How to get the most out of your data this Christmas

The John Lewis advert is out, the mince pies are on the shelf and Wizzard is on repeat –  its official, Christmas is well on its way.

The busiest shopping period of the year has started. This should be music to the ears of marketers, as consumers are never more willing to spend their money, and opportunities to maximise new business are aplenty.

But, as consumers are bombarded with advertising and marketing telling them which gifts, turkeys and Christmas party outfits to buy, it has never been more important to truly understand your customer.

Providing them with an engaging and tailored shopping experience will help your company stand out from the crowd and ultimately secure more business.

Setting out a plan for data management and cleansing is essential to get real value out of analysis

Considering the fact that data and analytics now make up the lifeblood of modern marketing, I won’t be telling you anything revolutionary when I say consumer figures is the key to achieving this relevant and engaging shopping experience.

Yet, despite this understanding, our recent research of UK marketing professionals revealed that 71% of marketing professionals feel overwhelmed by data, 69% say that spending time on stats distracts them from their core marketing duties and 29% believe they lack the necessary skills to analyse it.

So, in order to ensure you are able to enjoy the festive period and won’t have to drown your data sorrows, we have included below our top tips for marketers to turn the data they have into actionable insight that can drive their business forward.

1. Make sure it’s compliant  

If you’re confused about what’s compliant and what’s not, it’s important that you work with a data partner who understands the complexities around PECR and GDPR.

Working with expert data scientists who have the ability to wrap their minds around the statistics, algorithms and programming languages needed to leverage the masses of available data is also key.

2. Understand what is critical

You could considerably reduce your marketing costs by using fewer but more reliable sources. Look for the nuggets of information that help you to understand the triggers behind customer behaviour.

There are plenty of upsell and cross sell opportunities that exist for your current customers – the key is having the right data to reach out to them at the right time. It is well known that the best customer experiences are the ones that are tailored to the individual. And having a better understanding of the triggers behind your customers’ behaviour is key to delivering this in practice.

An example of data you could look out for is that which indicates a change in lifestyle or life stage, as this could signpost a change in purchasing intent.

3. Quality over quantity

Setting out a plan for data management and cleansing is essential to get real value out of analysis. The aim of successful data management is to make sense of all the information, and this requires collating, organising, updating and managing all customer data so that only the highest-quality, most relevant sources are utilised.

Getting the quality of data right can have a significant impact on other marketing costs further down the line. Targeting a smaller pool of higher quality leads reduces production costs, as well as spend on media buying and distribution, leading to improved ROI across the board.

A successful Christmas period can really help improve annual profits, so effectively using data to boost consumer engagement and enhance their shopping experience is more important now than during any other period. And who doesn’t want to finish the year with a bang?