Your marketing database is a veritable treasure trove of actionable insights – if you are willing to work hard with your data. Mining for gold is a filthy business, but the returns can be massive.
Here we look at five reasons why your business should be investing time and effort in mining your marketing database.
Deep analysis of your data allows you to identify new opportunities using the information you already have. Customers who have previously bought product A, may well be interested in product B, which provides additional functionality.
Your existing customers are also your most valuable, so it makes good business sense to prioritise them with value-added offers to generate additional revenue.
“75% of consumers say they have spent more with a company because of a history of positive customer service experiences.”Global Customer Service Barometer Report – American Express 2012.
Not all marketing data has to be stored in your system for instance. Proactive monitoring of open social channels will identify potential leads who have reached out to your competitors.
You can use this information to create specially targeted offers, such as personalised discount vouchers, as a way of enticing buyers to consider your brand.
“Nearly 15% of organisations don’t know what percentage of requests originate in the social sphere as they aren’t programmatically monitoring or engaging in support conversations on social.” –Social Media and Customer Service: From Listening to Engagement – Aberdeen Group.
Even in the digital age, word-of-mouth referrals are both powerful and effective. Cross-referencing market data with social sources will help you identify customers who have expressed positive sentiments towards your brand.
This information can then be used to build a loyalty club, provide early product access opportunities or other experiences that encourage further engagement with your brand.
“Marketing-induced consumer-to-consumer word of mouth generates more than 2X the sales of paid advertising.” –McKinsey Research.
“Customers referred by other customers have a 37% higher retention rate.” –Deloitte.
The people who use your products and services are also those most likely to identify shortcomings or potential enhancements. Whether you use your contact data to follow customers up with surveys, or you simply monitor online sentiment, there will always be new input available that can be fed back to your product development team.
At the very least, you should be able to carry out the earliest stages of market research using this information. Admittedly this isn’t a direct sales technique, but developing new products that have been crafted to specific customer needs is a powerful USP.
Using what you know about your customers to provide exceptional support and services is an excellent way to create brand loyalty. Again, this is not necessarily a sales tactic, but it has been shown to boost revenue.
“55% of consumers would pay more for a better customer experience.” –Defaqto Research.
Knowing what your customers want and delivering it is a sure fire route to success.
So is it worth investing in further data analysis? Absolutely! You can:
· Up-sell and cross-sell existing customers with relative ease.
· You can target buyers who may be headed towards your competitors’ offerings.
· You can build a community of brand advocates to spread your message for you.
· You can improve your product and service offerings.
· You can create an exceptional customer experience, raising revenue in the process.
To find out more about how managing your data can increase its value, read: Modern marketing essentials guide: data management.
