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Business operation and strategies have undergone a massive change of late. Thanks to the infusion of new technology frontiers, fresh avenues of communication and better methods of acquiring information about the target market, many businesses are currently in the process of bringing in a massive overhaul to the way they do things. The one field of business that has been the most affected by these changes is marketing, especially digital marketing. In the corporate world, the whole concept of marketing and its related processes are witnessing a tremendous change in the recent times, and this change comes majorly from one factor – Big Data.
A commonly used term these days, Big Data is the concept that has many companies in an overdrive mode. Every facet of business is currently actively trying to find uses for Big Data and it has already come in handy for many companies, giving them the much needed edge over their competition. There might be many opinions about the origins of the term “Big Data”, but at this present time most people have reached a broad consensus about its definition, scope, and implications.
Big Data has already had major implications for many mission critical business areas, and the one area where its presence has been felt most is marketing. The influence of Big Data over marketing comes from the symbiotic relationship between the two – marketing efforts require more and more detailed, in-depth information and leveraging Big Data is the perfect way to acquire that information. Information gleaned from Big Data and using that information to develop insights and marketing strategies is the modus operandi of many modern companies, and it is likely that Big Data will continue to inform marketing efforts in future.
The Implications of Big Data
As a concept and as a technology, Big Data has been developed to a large extent in the last few years. With advancements in data crawling and data analysis technologies, many companies use Big Data as their primary source of business intelligence and insight. In many ways, Big Data is reshaping businesses in this day and age. Few of the changes that can be easily observed are –
– Big Data is a primary agent behind making businesses more efficient. Thanks to the kind of insights and actionable information that it provides, businesses can now perform better with less effort. The need for multiple resources or systems is slowly being subverted with the help of Big Data, which makes for much more streamlined and integrated processes.
– Big Data is also driving existing business in a big way. Companies can now study their customers more in-depth, examining their tastes, preferences, purchasing patterns and behavior. This allows them to target their existing customer base better with better products and services.
– Big Data opens up new revenue sources. With insights gained from Big Data, companies can now explore new viable markets and come up with new products and services with the express goal of entering new revenue streams.
– Big Data itself can provide companies with information which can be directly or indirectly monetized. Many companies are using insights with new, creative methods of monetization to bring in new revenue.
From all this, it is amply clear that business and its very fundamental nature in the next decade will transform a lot with the implications of Big Data. According to an independent survey, almost 65% of major companies worldwide have the view that Big Data is causing the boundaries and notions of business to change in many ways, and the only way to survive in future is to embrace and leverage this change.
Developing Better Marketing Strategies with Big Data
Marketing is a field which has already faced a lot of change after the advent of the internet. Gone are the days where the only marketing technique in use would be interruption or outbound marketing. Digital marketing has opened up new horizons in the field of inbound marketing- attracting new leads, closing and converting them, reaching out to customers and driving satisfaction is the new way.
In this current scenario Big Data is something that can truly make a difference. Its influence and consequences have already changed the concept of marketing in a significant manner. Since data has always been the primary force behind every successful marketing initiative, Big Data and new ways of web data extraction and data analysis can be a perfect foil when it comes to developing effective marketing strategies.
Many companies have found out to their peril that no matter how good their products and services are, without proper demand analysis and proper promotion, they may well turn out to be duds in the business sense. This is the reason why it makes sense to take into account the insights provided by Big Data to drive marketing decisions armed with better insights. Marketing in this present day and age should involve tapping the vast information resource of Big Data, compiling critical data points, testing and analyzing them, and using the insights gained to formulate plans and strategies.
The Opportunities
Here are some of the ways Big Data can make a difference when it comes to coming up with the right marketing plans and strategies for the future –
1. Targeting New Customers –
The goal of every business is to bring in new customers. To achieve this, the first thing you need is high quality, actionable data which gives you an idea about the target market, buyer personas, tastes, preferences and trends. You need to understand the psyche of your potential customers, figure out the challenges of marketing to them and grasp the driving forces that compel them to make purchasing decisions. Once you achieve that knowledge, you can use it to fine-tune your campaigns to suit their tastes. You can use modern platforms like social media and SEM with help of experts to really reach the core of your target market, and send the right message.
2. Targeting Existing Customers –
While getting new customers is important, keeping your existing customer base happy is also a priority. Getting new customers requires much more in way of expenses and efforts, and it is always easier to hold your existing customer base and upsell to them. With Big Data and the quality of information you can extract from it, you can take a long, hard look at their purchasing patterns, satisfaction and engagement. You can use this information to hone and streamline your marketing efforts in the way they target the customers that you already have.
3. Recognizing New Opportunities –
The next step you can take is expanding and diversifying your business to reach out to new markets. From the information you get on Big Data, you can get a handle on the kind of products and services people in general tend to demand. From social listening and keeping a weather eye on metrics and other important data, you can easily identify the kind of products and services that are in demand, but that are not currently under your umbrella of offerings. After further data analysis, you can eventually nail the correct products and services which you can then think of offering to the market. This is a great way to leverage opportunities and enter new markets as you have a much better chance of success, equipped with the insights you have gathered.
4. Making Marketing More Efficient –
A lot of marketing efforts are usually wasted due to lack of proper, efficient targeting. In the realm of marketing, information gathered from Big Data can be suitably used to enhance business efficiencies, integrate software platforms and leverage your existing marketing tools for better performance with less effort. This way you consume fewer resources but your marketing campaigns have more likelihood of success. Analysis of marketing performance over the last few years and combining that information with your customer knowledge can help you focus on marketing strategies that have been proven to work and prune practices that are inefficient. This makes your marketing efforts more targeted, more effective and overall more efficient.
Harnessing the power of Big Data and data analytics may well be the boost that your marketing needs to start to show better results. To get a better handle on the data and numbers, there are quite a few tools you can leverage to take your marketing strategies to the next level. A few of the commonly used, effective tools are –
- Studying email open rates for your email campaigns to streamline content.
- Studying CTR on particular links to identify engaging, compelling content.
- Studying site visits and page visit times to identify which pages need more work.
- Tracking views and shares on social platforms and blog posts to determine engagement.
- Studying traffic sources with search engine traffic to better understand demographics and geographical locations.
- Listening to and monitoring social platforms for analyzing brand penetration and perception.
- Surveys and qualitative reports to have your finger on the public pulse.
With these tools at your disposal and the incredible potential offered by Big Data, you can turn your marketing campaigns into noteworthy success stories by having a more well-rounded marketing strategy in the coming years.
