by Anees Mueller
July 15, 2020Four out of five marketers responding to a BlueVenn survey said that they didn’t have the skills to handle data analysis.
With the fast pace of data, many marketers find that simply handling the collection and storage of data is overwhelming, so they never reach the point of analyzing it for insights.
Consider, too, that nearly 90% of all data has been created in the past two years, and unstructured data remains a problem for 95% of businesses.
It’s a missed opportunity, for sure, but what if your data collection and analysis efforts were less of a massive volume intake, and more of a strategic, targeted approach?
Listening for Data
Consider a case study that demonstrates this type of strategic data handling:
Chick-Fil-A was planning to debut their new spicy chicken sandwich. In development for years, what would become a fan favorite was expected to launch within a few months. Our team at DirectMail.io developed a survey for Chick-Fil-A that included the question, “Would you like Chick-Fil-A to offer a spicy chicken sandwich?”
Each customer that answered “yes” on the survey later received a follow-up email with the message from Chick-Fil-A that read, “Hey, because you asked for it, we created it.”
This type of targeted message served to deliver insights to Chick-Fil-A’s development team, but it did significantly more. Customers felt that they had been heard, giving them an increased loyalty to the brand, but they are also more likely to offer information in the future because they know their opinions were important to Chick-Fil-A.
Smarter Data Collection
When taking a strategic approach to data collection, it’s important to think about which types of data can help you streamline your efforts to connect with audiences. Automated marketing tools allow you to track the different channels you’re using, and then identify the preferred format for audience members based on their responses.
For instance, if you have a market segment that largely follows you on Facebook, but is more consistent about clicking through on an email newsletter, this helps your team know how to dedicate your marketing efforts.
Understanding these types of data points for your audiences helps you design a personalized customer experience that improves every connection with your brand.
Give Value to Get Valuable Information
Strategic data collection often comes with a price. Do you want a deeper understanding of your customers? You must be willing to pay for it. That means that in order to get customers to deliver important insights about what they want and need in your product or service, you may need to offer a promotion or insider’s information.
The cost may be money well spent. You could spend a lot of time and energy sifting through your data lakes as the pace of information speeds up. Taking a strategic approach to understanding your audiences may help you edge out ahead of the competition while they sit overwhelmed, up to their eyes in raw data.
To learn more about an approach to data that replaces volume with strategic analysis through automated marketing, contact us at DirectMail.io.
