Breaking It Down: How to Harness Big Data to Make Big Sales

This is a writing sample from Scripted writer Christina Comben

The concept of big data may be something you're still trying to get your head around, but it's actually nothing new.

For years, marketers have been familiar with practices of data mining and database marketing. Whether you worked with MS Access or a simple Excel; remember selecting customers for a mail blast based on pre-determined filters?

How great was that? You could target your customers by country, industry; gender, profit turnover the sky was the limit. Well, more like the ceiling actually. Anyone who's ever worked in what used to be called direct marketing will remember the glory days.

Preparing a direct mail campaign for a list of completely unknown entities and being excited by a two percent response rate. Time's moved on.

What is Big Data?

Big data is basically a term used to refer to the amount of information generated and stored every second on a global level. And that's not so much "big" as cosmically vast. But having terabytes of information available is pretty much useless without a viable way to navigate it. According to IBM Big Data & Analytics Hub, big data depends on four Vs:

  • Volume
  • Variety
  • Velocity
  • Veracity

Size Doesn't Matter

No really. It doesn't. Size doesn't always matter when it comes to big data because it's not just about how big it is, but more about what you do with it. If you're constantly receiving insights into customer behavior, purchasing history and social preferences; but you're not using them, then any data, big or small is essentially useless. All this information needs to be digitally analyzed by marketers so that they can reveal consumer patterns and predict trends and behavior.

Using big data correctly allows you to gain real insights that lead to better decision making and more effective marketing spend. Which allows for laser-targeted marketing (there's a term you're more familiar with), increased conversion and higher sales.

Predictive Marketing

Just as science can predict the weather based on mapped patterns, predictive marketing analyzes past historical customer data so that it can predict future activity. But trying to analyze that kind of data manually is clearly out of the question. The only way to harness the power of big data and make big sales is by using the right predictive marketing software. So if you're still using an Excel for storing your company information, it's about time you got more sophisticated. Welcome to 2016.

Predictive marketing trailblazer Mintigo, increases your company's marketing effectiveness at every stage of the sales funnel, capturing data in real time and organizing various data types. From numeric databases to emails, financial transactions, social media activity and text documents; you can compare different data across different systems.

Ever had one of your topics trending on social? Or held a Black Friday sale? Then you'll know that your data doesn't always come in consistently. How do you cope with spikes in data without a robust platform in place? Predictive marketing software was created to make marketers' lives easier and businesses more successful. How? Because they no longer have to manually go through a pool of data and end up drowning in it in the process.

Account Based Marketing (ABM)

If you're up-to-date on your B2B marketing terminology, you'll know about Accounts Based Marketing (ABM). But in case you missed the memo, let me go ahead and explain it anyway. The purpose of ABM is to create harmony between your marketing and sales teams so that you can engage the right customers at the right time. ABM works on the assumption that purchasing decisions are made by a group of people and therefore, allows you to target the collective.

How? This is where it gets really smart. To get your message in front of a group of people at the same time, you used to have to organize a meeting. How passé. With ABM you can now use IP-based targeting to get your message in front of all parties simultaneously. You can zero-in on the dedicated IP addresses of a company and market to the corresponding group of people more efficiently. It's perfect for companies who regularly work with enterprise level clients who go through a lengthy sales cycle, or sell to multiple decision makers.

According to Tony Yang, VP of Demand Generation for Mintigo: "Having this kind of focus will help weed out the activities and campaigns that don't meet your goals thus reducing wastage in marketing spend as well as efforts from both teams, which results in higher ROI." In addition to that, a well-implemented ABM approach allows you to focus on the unique needs of your potential customer. You can then offer the most relevant solutions to address their specific pain points and needs.

The Takeaway

Predictive marketing software and ABM software empower your sales team by giving them access to a goldmine of critical information. Lifting key customer insights derived from predictive models and dropping them directly into your CRM. Imagine that. Your sales staff can now do their jobs with greater efficiency and speed.

Big data, predictive marketing, and AMB are all about taking advantage of the masses of data floating around out there. You can find out more about your customers wants and needs without having to overload their inbox or even pick up the phone. Not only will they feel less pressured by your company, but they'll also feel as if you understand their needs. Harness big data with predictive marketing software and watch your sales take off.

Written by:

Christina Comben
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Christina is a copywriter, columnist, marketer and MBA with a passion for helping businesses achieve their goals. She creates all types of content, from articles on technology, business and marketing, to fintech, cryptocurrency and other emerging technologies. Well versed in SEO best practices, she's adept in WordPress, writing engaging sales copy and CTAs for B2B and B2C websites, white papers, press releases, and more! When she's not hunched over the keyboard, Christina loves to travel and surf - you might just catch her riding a wave on a Sunday afternoon.
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