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This post is first in a two-part series.
Most companies, when developing a data driven marketing strategy, start with technology. The adopted technologies drive the acquisition of data, and it is from this acquired data that the organization derives insight. This same technology-led focus is also responsible for the proliferation of irreconcilable data and data sources. Finally, and usually only after many years of investment, do companies address the matter of skills, process and profitability. By this I mean:
1. Do we have the skills available to gather, interpret and take action upon the resulting data?
2. Are the processes in place to gather and distribute the data in the most efficient manner?
3. For money spent, what will we gain in either customer acquisition, retention or margin?
The typical result of the technology-led process is the poor reputation many marketing departments have at board and share-holder level in demonstrating return on marketing investment, projects that fail to deliver as forecast, and marketing departments reliant on specialist technology skills to operate on a daily basis. The right product at the right time in the right place… you wish.
A further function is seen in the time and effort wasted pursuing subsequently abandoned projects and the plethora of poorly articulated RFI and RFP documents seen by supplying organizations such as ourselves.
As new technologies evolve, marketers continue to clamor for more expenditure for increased technology without any demonstration of ROI. Currently, this can be seen with the near obsessive levels of interest shown in social media.
It doesn’t have to be this way. The simple fact is that technology doesn’t drive customer insight; people do.
By inverting the above described process, the vast majority of marketers can very quickly and very simply identify where capital or operational expenditure can be applied for the most effective return on investment, ensuring that return is in line with the company’s strategic objectives. The result is often a lower rate of capital expenditure with a greater ROI.
How does your company develop its data-driven marketing strategy?
Great post Graham – technology is just the enabler, you need to be clear with what you are trying to do with it and what this means in terms of return…