Are you one of those businesses that’s constantly putting out one fire after another? Do you find that you’re always in catch-up mode and reactive instead of proactive? More importantly, does it sometimes feel as if your decisions can only be made one day at a time? If so, then this is a must read. Making informed business decisions comes from having an inbound marketing strategy that continually provides you with invaluable customer data.
Making better business decisions nowadays need not be complicated. It’s not based on guesswork, assumptions or your gut feel. Instead, it’s based on a business intelligence gathering strategy that operates in real-time. It comes from enriching both your internal data and the data emerging from your inbound marketing strategy. Here’s how you get started.
#1) Eliminate Data Silos
Eliminate data silos where internal departments are guided by personal objectives and interpretations instead of cold hard facts. Ditch the Excel spreadsheets. Funnel all customer and marketing decisions through one integrated process. Review that process and data weekly, monthly or quarterly. Make sure everyone is on the same page and interpreting the same data so that the decisions your company makes are based upon factual assertions - not assumptions.
#2) Adopt Data Enrichment
You can’t rely on one data source. You need multiple data sources. That means you must have a data enrichment strategy that allows you to marry your internal customer data with the data emerging from your inbound marketing strategy. Data enrichment allows you to improve both the quality of your data and your data gathering approaches. Identifying which data matters means you’re able to focus on the digital strategies that provide the best returns.
#3) Track Customer Interactions and Identify Lead Generation
Establish key performance indicators (KPI) for all business development and customer-facing personnel. Use that business intelligence to define your best lead generation strategies, the ones that lead to sales. It’s not enough just to secure leads. You want to know which strategies generate the best leads and which leads become actual customers. The more you scrutinize the results of your inbound marketing strategy, the stronger your future results.
#4) Personalize Your Marketing Message
Your customer data allows you to personalize your marketing message. It helps you round out your buyer personas and make sense of how customers make decisions. Don’t ignore what that data is telling you. Drill down. Understand what your customers are saying in real-time. This means interpreting the results of email marketing campaigns, digital advertisements, reviewing your website's analytics and understanding how different content affects different customers.
#5) Expand Your Data Sources
Complement your internal and external data with research. A simple website competitive analysis will allow you to better understand how your competitors reach customers. Are they adopting strategies you’ve ignored or are unaware of? How is their website laid out? Can you learn anything from how they’ve structured their landing pages? A website competitive analysis isn’t about emulating your competitors. It’s ultimately about understanding what’s working and why.
Your company has too much intelligence at its fingertips. You don't need to go it alone. You can improve the quality of your data and use those improvements to further increase the effectiveness of your digital marketing strategies.
If you want to understand how your customer data can help you make more informed business decisions, contact us. We'll be happy to work with you to find the best solutions for your needs.
Written By: Doug Milnor
