In the past, digital marketing companies had specific departments that undertook key internet marketing responsibilities. The Search Engine Optimisation team would worry about making websites more search-engine friendly. The creative department would focus on creating attractive slogans or punchlines. And, the design team would create nuanced graphics. With the rise of internet use and internet-based shopping, the number of departments has slowly increased.
Nowadays, digital marketing agencies have multiple departments – one for social media, one for automation, and separate departments for business intelligence services. All of these departments of modern-day marketing agencies have one thing in common – they are driven by data.
Modern-day marketing agencies are dealing with customers that expect nothing less than marketing messages that are relevant to them. The only way to make marketing messages relevant to every customer is by adopting data-driven methods. Modern-day businesses have to collect customer data wherever they can and share this data with their digital marketing teams to create relevant and user-oriented marketing programs.
Plus, traditional “hard” data such as a user’s email addresses, location, job titles, etc. isn’t enough. To create personalised marketing campaigns that stand out from the rest of the marketing messages on the internet, marketing agencies must include “soft” data or behavioural data of target customers.
Typically, behavioural data includes –
- Data of anonymous people who visit business websites. Trackers need to be put in place to identify these anonymous visitors’ IP addresses, nature of engagement on the website, etc.
- Data of frequent visitors on the business website. The products they viewed the most, the amount of time these frequent visitors spent on each webpage, etc. are all very important.
- Third-party data, i.e., data collected from other sources (not the business website) is equally important. Be it the target customers’ social media pages or the responses of target customers’ in random surveys – all customer data acquired from third-party data sources is very important.
How important is data-driven marketing? According to a recent survey involving some of the world’s leading marketers, two out of three participants stated that data-based marketing decisions are far more effective than instinctual decisions.
Hence, it’s no surprise that the top digital marketing companies in London are obsessed with customer data. Acquiring customer data and shaping business communications on the basis of data analysis not only improves the quality of marketing messages, but they also boost customer loyalty. After all, which customer doesn’t like a business that makes an effort to find out what they like and dislike?
Data-driven marketing is currently ruling the digital marketing industry because –
Marketers Get to Create Targeted Campaigns
Data-driven marketing enables marketers to shape targeted campaigns featuring innovative and personalised marketing messages for each customer.
Data analysis gives marketers a clear insight into each target customer. Be it their personal interests or their internet activities – every aspect of a customer’s online behaviour can be weaponised and used in marketing messages to create long-lasting impressions.
Better Content
Data-driven marketing gives digital marketing agencies access to a lot of information. Using this information, they can generate marketing content that’s most likely to resonate with target customers. Data analysis can steer a company’s content marketing strategy in a relevant direction. For instance, a user who is interested in politics will appreciate his or her favourite brand post politically aware content.
Plus, this relevant content can be shared across multiple communication channels. In fact, customer data analysis informs marketers about their target customers’ favourite social media channels. They can use this information to post more content on the social media channels their target customers prefer.
Quick Corrections
Data-driven marketing is still an imperfect process. In fact, 54% of companies agree that collecting high-quality data without any flaws, errors, or ‘gaps’ in understanding is one of their biggest marketing challenges. However, with data-driven marketing, companies always have the chance to improve. They can immediately assess which marketing tactics generate the most or the least amount of user engagement. As per this analysis, businesses can reallocate their time and budget.
Better Customer Experiences
In an age where businesses are scrambling to find ways to differentiate themselves from competitors, high-quality customer experiences play a key role. In a recent customer behaviour survey, it was revealed that 86% of customers are eager to pay more if a business promises better customer experience.
Data-driven marketing gives businesses a clear idea of how their target customers engage with different brands. By analysing this data, businesses can receive the insights they need to provide smoother and more rewarding customer experiences.
Generate More Sales
Data can transform straightforward sales tactics (that have a 50% chance of success) into guaranteed leads. Data analysis enables businesses to quickly respond to market opportunities. For instance, a customer spends hours every day browsing for low-price gaming chairs. The next gaming website he visits should be able to recognise this persistent behaviour and offer him the cheapest gaming chair available.
Businesses shouldn’t waste any time and invest heavily in creating data-driven marketing strategies!