Marketing has evolved at an astonishing pace over the last decade, and technological advances have played a big part in fueling these rapid changes. Just a few visionaries predicted the rise of mobile devices ten years ago, and at the turn of the century, only science fiction writers envisioned anything like the mobile-first, customer-driven, data-saturated world in which marketers move today.
The dizzying rate of change has left some businesses scrambling to catch up, but other companies have seen opportunity where their competitors saw only challenges. Database services that keep companies competitive and help them make informed strategic marketing decisions play an important role already, and the transformation shows no signs of slowing over the next year. Here’s a look at where database marketing is headed.
Building Agility into the Database
The days of seeing data as a static collection of records are past. Successful data-driven marketing treats information as a dynamic resource that can help the organization spot nascent trends and act on them while their rivals are still in business-as-usual mode. The modern marketing database does more than store and retrieve information; it also performs analytical functions that make gathered and derived data more valuable. Armed with more detailed information, businesses are better able to anticipate their leads’ needs and create the customer experience their prospects want.
Greater Integration Leads to Deeper Insight
If your CMR, sales histories, and prospect database don’t communicate, you can’t trace the entire buying journey your leads take. If you don’t understand that journey, you aren’t able to smooth the path for them. Breaking down silo walls and integrating data within a centralized database is essential to understanding how every aspect of sales and marketing intersect with one another. Software from even a few years ago may not offer the complete integration that today’s systems do, and data migration is easier than ever – especially if you have a data consultant in charge.
The Era of the Database Management Consultant
Hiring a data consultant isn’t an entirely new idea. Businesses have long sought to bring in expertise they don’t yet have in-house. What’s new here is the level of database services available. From initial data migration to developing a system by which new data is organized to creating a strategic map for your overall revenue marketing program, a database manager can help your marketing efforts achieve complete success. Another benefit of database consultants is that they can adapt their suggestions to the tools you have at hand. A self-assessment of your organization’s data science maturity is a good place to start, and a consultant can take you the rest of the way to your goals.
Database Services for Everyone
Database marketing used to be only for the biggest players, the super-heavyweight firms with profits larger than the GDPs of most nations. That’s no longer the case; with access to third-party database marketing consultants and off-the-rack solutions that scale, organizations of any size can benefit from marketing database tools and experienced consultants to set them up. Expect the trend toward accessibility to continue throughout 2017.
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