The problem with business data today is that it’s big – and it’s getting bigger. According to an , 92% of the world’s data was created in the last two years. No doubt, that includes some data about your current and potential customers that your marketing department should be using.
However, 40% of marketing budgets are wasted due to an inadequate use of Big Data; which isn’t surprising in light of the very definition of Big Data: "a collection of data from traditional and digital sources inside and outside your company that represents a source for ongoing discovery and analysis." Due to its “all encompassing” nature, Big Data is difficult to harness and use.
If it can be accomplished, better marketing analytics could yield a 10-20 percent improvement in ROI on marketing campaigns. Yu suggests that marketers “focus on the information that is most relevant, actionable and accurate.”
When it comes to capturing and taking action on that relevant, actionable, and accurate customer data, a is an invaluable tool.
CRM tools capture customer data regarding:
- purchasing behaviors and histories
- interest in new products or services
- the ways that your customers are engaging with your marketing/organization
- social interactions and engagement
- brand perception
- response to campaigns (and how those responses proceed through the sales cycle)
CRM tools enable the analysis of customer data through:
- lead scoring to guide leads to the appropriate stage in the sales process
- heat maps and trending tools
- extensive reporting capabilities
- dashboards displaying marketing KPIs
CRM tools empower you to take action on customer data by:
- reducing your time to market
- enabling trackable and targeted email marketing
- automating campaign tasks
All of these tools and capabilities are available through . Get started capturing and taking action on your big data today with a .
By Socius, an Ohio CRM Partner and Kansas CRM Partner (www.socius1.com)
