Throughout the buying process, each interaction a customer makes with a brand results in multiple data points. Email clicks are tracked, purchases are saved, abandoned carts are recorded, loyalty actions are rewarded. A complete record of interactions exists whether or not a marketer is using a system to do so.

However, marketers who leverage this data are likely to provide stronger messaging that resonates with customers while creating exceptionally engaging experiences. Creating more loyal customers and driving more revenue all starts with tailored customer experiences, put into effect with intelligent marketing using customer data.

Technical Architecture

The technical architecture of customer data management is the foundation for managing and using such data. While marketers don’t necessarily need to fully understand the underlying data models of the software they’re using, they do need to translate what they hope to accomplish with a system so internal and external partners can properly design it. Flexibility and customization are paramount.

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Integrative

More customer data means more intelligent marketing campaigns. Thus, marketing systems should have the ability to integrate and pull in data from any source. For example, a marketing system that is integrated with a point-of-sale system which updates in real-time allows marketers to exclude a customer who just purchased a product from a future campaign featuring said product. If the marketing system was updated with customer purchases via a nightly batch upload, the brand might turn customers off by marketing a product they already purchased.

 Resolute Customer Identity

A single view of the customer allows brands to create personalized messages that achieve the one-to-one communication both marketers and customers crave. In order to attain a single customer view, data must be connected to a customer profile with a unique identifier. Without a resolute customer identity, data without context is simply a set of ones and zeroes.

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Data Without Borders

Remember when you were charged by the number of text messages you sent or the number of minutes you used for your wireless phone bill? An overage of either would deliver you a massive fine. Such financial disincentives should not be built into any marketing system. Every day, brands and their customers create more and more data, a trend that will only continue as marketing campaigns are increasingly sophisticated and personalized. As such, marketing systems need to be built to handle the scale, speed, and accuracy demanded by enterprise B2C brands.

Impactful Campaigns

“Right message, right time, right channel” is a marketers adage to get customers to respond, engage, and purchase. This doesn’t happen without the customer behavior and preference data helping to create campaigns that speak to customers. The right message for the customer lies in what communications they have already responded to and what products they purchased. The right time requires an understanding of their journey, what pages they viewed, what offers have interested them, and what content they have read. While considering both the right message and the right time, marketers also need to know what channels that each customer responds to best, then send the message on those channels.

Data is the key to marketing to customers and creating loyal relationships. Marketers must leverage all data available to resolve customer identity and create intelligent, personalized campaigns. This will ultimately create emotional loyalty,  which drives higher engagement and eventually, more revenue.

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