Know the Best Practices to Extract Value From Customer Data

We all have days where we simply don't know what to do with the seemingly infinite customer data for marketing that we have with us. Moreover, it's always difficult to find effective ways to extract value from this sea of information. To further add to the predicament, customer data is ever-growing with more and more people accessing every kind of device, and even different software generating their own data about user behavior.

So, how does a business wade through this never-ending stream of information and get valuable digital insights needed for boosting profits, sales, and performance? After all, we know the importance of customer data for marketing in the growth of any business.

Fortunately, there are solutions for it ā You need to know practical ways that help extract value from your customer data for marketing. In this post, we are going to discuss 8 solid ways to do so. These will help you know where to aim your analytical efforts, helping you eventually achieve increased brand reputation, awareness, and profits for your business. Let's get started:

1. Big Data Isn't Going Anywhere

Have you ever looked at big data? If so, you might have sighed at its sheer volume and found it as a huge mess of random data. Unsurprisingly, many businesses tend to ignore big data because of this very reason. But, the thing is, they make a real mistake when they do so. When you are able to screen, filter, and interpret what's valuable in big data, you drive incredible value from it.

The bottom line? It's about time that businesses realize that big data is here to stay and acknowledge the fact that you can find useful data in it. This is the first step that businesses need to take if they want to extract valuable customer data to aid business growth.

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2. Find an Analytics Solution

To make use of customer data for marketing, you need to have the right talent and tools to wade through the mountain of information and find data that makes sense for your business.

If you take a look at established brands, a lot of them have already allocated an operational budget to analytics and dedicated entire departments to this job. Many small to medium enterprises, on the other hand, have found an analytics solution that is well-suited for their budgetary and size requirements.

In all, consider investing in analytics if you are looking to extract real value from customer data.

Note: Now that we are on the subject of analytics, we want to recommend the DashClicks' Analytics app for your business. The app allows you to monitor and report on all your marketing campaigns in a single place. You can also view granular data insights on the software to make smarter marketing decisions.

Here are some other important features of the Analytics app that you should also know of:

• Get a birds-eye view of all your marketing campaigns and see cross-channel reporting in real-time.
• The white label marketing analytics platform allows for integrations such as Facebook Ads, Google Analytics, Google Ads, and CallRail.
• You receive accurate white label reporting in real-time.
• You can create a custom date range to view all your data.

3. Streamline Your Operations

Another way you can get value from customer data for marketing is by using the insights for your internal operations. For instance, insights from datasets such as customer behavior can help you cut down on certain costs. The insights can boost your efficiency and decrease the spend that would have otherwise been wasted, leading to a spike in revenue for your business.

Let's take an example to understand this point further. Your customer data shows that you are receiving an increasing amount of marketing responses from Instagram and Facebook. It also depicts that you are getting less of it from YouTube. Now, in such a situation, you must think of it as a signal that for your business offering and target audience, you can cut down your YouTube spend and dedicate more of your efforts to the social platforms that are working well for you.

4. Analyze Historical Data

When you talk of getting value out of customer data for marketing, individuals consider digital insights or metrics as a means to foresee the future. However, it's vital to note that the lessons taught from past data are some of the most significant ones. Therefore, you should use and analyze historical data from vital customer information. It's about time that businesses consider the fact that the data gathered over time is simply the best information available to them. Using historical data to understand your customers is always a step in the right direction.

Let's take an example to further understand the point we are making. For instance, you should be paying attention to your sales data from the last 5-10 years. Why? Because analytics put to the task of discerning previous customer sales information can provide extremely helpful information about customer purchase patterns and behavior.

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5. Think of Social Media as Dataā  Too

Social media isn't just a channel to get in front of your potential customers. It shares an extremely large portion of the world's overall data. Now, the great news is, you can get real value from customer data for marketing if you examine different social media platforms and use the unsorted, unfiltered data that you find there. When you go deeper into social media data, it helps you know where your market is and what your market is actually looking for.

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Tip: Ensure you check the trends that show up on social platforms as it will help you know the factors and trends you need to leverage for your own business. Doing so can even help you move ahead of your competitors and generate more business for your company.

6. Analyze Client Churn

One of the areas in which big data, coupled with analytics, can create a huge difference for your business is “client churn.”

For those who are new to the term, “client churn” means the turnover rate of clients or customers from being regular buyers to taking their business someplace else.

Analytics that focus on the specifics of your client churn can help you increase customer retention and become more profitable.

For instance, the process can involve looking at your customer data and making inferences that let you know why some customers support your business for a certain period and then don’t stick around. The process can also explain why others stay loyal to you.

7. Make Data Accessible

To get the best possible ROI (return on investment) from your customer data for marketing, ensure you share the digital insights with those who may need it. For instance, if you know something important about the behavior or needs of your customers, share it with someone in your company who can actually use the information and put it to use.

The bottom line?

Information can only be useful for your business if its access is given to people who know what to do with it. Think about it this way – Suppose a person handles customer support in your business, then they should be able to share a customer complaint with a department that can further offer insight into the problem or even provide a resolution for it

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8. Consider Automation

A lot of people are of the view that automation is applied just to mechanical, physical activities. But, it is applied to data analytics too.

When you put your faith in software and algorithms to sift through the data rather than carrying out a line-by-line analysis of every bit of incoming data, you get more valuable insights about your customers. Also, automation helps you find only what's relevant to your needs.

All in all, while looking for a more effective solution when faced with the question of how to extract insights from data, ensure you consider implementing automation.

An additional benefit of using automation is that it frees up your employees for activities that best suit their talents. They are also able to focus more on innovative, ambitious activities.

Wrapping It Up

As more and more data is being generated with each passing day, it's becoming even more difficult for humans to keep tabs on it. However, this data has a lot of hidden insights that can help your business soar and reach new heights. With actionable tips and the correct strategies, you can select the right data, examine it, and put it to the best use. The different ways we have discussed to extract value from customer data will help you during this time.