Digital data and analytics are bigger than digital content optimization
The digital world and the physical world are completely intertwined. Whereas online shopping used to integrate with later in-store shopping, now the two are happening simultaneously, because customers walk into the store with a mobile device.
Wal-Mart says that over half of their online purchases are picked up in store locations, to the point that stores are becoming showrooms rather than the place where products are bought.
In every business situation, almost everything is done digitally, rather than person-to-person. Every aspect of a business produces data, and connecting the data is important toward reaching business goals.
For example, look at the supply chain. If there is too little inventory, business grinds to a halt. If there is too much inventory, the business loses money. So deciding exactly how much inventory is needed is crucial. Site searches can often indicate how much interest there is in a given product.
Again, there is a process:
- Paid Search – Customers search for HDTV on Google
- Direct Load – Customers come directly to the site and make a purchase.
- Email – Customers respond to newsletters announcing a clearance sale.
- Display Ad- Customers returned via a display ad click, and pick a product by recommendation on the site.
- Natural Search – Customers come to the site via natural search, enter a discount code, and make a purchase.
It’s crucial to integrate digital data with in-store data to custom target advertising to drive sales
Another area where optimization is often not considered is price points. Price optimization is a difficult process, because customers get upset when prices are changed.
In order to make commerce more intelligent, data connections are crucial, and one crucial thing in marketing optimization is to prevent data connection from becoming the analyst’s whole job. At the sales level, data needs to be presented at the customer level to help target actions directly to the customer. This needs to be handled automatically and across channels, to combine the whole experience to optimize customer relations.
Takeaways
- Digital data and analytics are bigger than just digital content optimization
- You own the most real-time insight into customer opportunities
- Infuse digital data into your enterprise and digital marketing eco-system
- Base technology selection on your digital marketing strategy
Akin Arikan – Multichannel Marketing Evangelist at IBM
Akin Arikan is the author of Multichannel Marketing: Metrics and Methods for On and Offline Success. He is also an evangelist for Unica’s web analytics and interactive marketing solutions. Akin has been working with analytics practitioners over the last eleven years now. He has been presenting at many conferences to share the lessons learned and best practices from his experience with customers. Read Akin’s blog at http://multichannelmetrics.com.