Three Tips To Help Your Business Take Advantage Of Customer Data Collection

From a business standpoint, data can be marketing gold. The more data you can collect and then distill down, the better you can understand your current and your potential customers. Yet, many business owners shy away from data collection, either because they are afraid it will turn off customers or because the science part of the term "data science" seems overwhelming. The following three tips can help take some of the mystery and the hesitation out of data science so that you can reap the marketing advantage.

Tip #1: Fully integrate data collection into your business model

Data collection doesn't have to feel intrusive. An age-old method that works for both online and brick-an-mortar retailers is the membership club. In this case, customers willingly turn over their data and access to their shopping habits in return for free entry into the club. The customer benefits by receiving special members-only discounts and special offers. Giving out free products are another way to collect data. Using this method, prospective or current customers are offered something for free or at a steep discount for answering a series of questions. This is often used online to draw in new customers and to add to the data collection.

Tip #2: Never let an ad go untracked

A common mistake from rookie data collectors is to not attach a data collection point to every advertisement, mailer, or email that goes out. This is the single simplest way to track your customers and your marketing data. For example, add a coupon code to any mailer or email so that you can track who is using it, when they are using, and which of the coupons are being used most. When advertising new products, provide a small discount code to any mailers, emails, or even TV/radio ads to see which is your most successful medium. In other words, nothing you provide to the customer should go untracked.

Tip #3: Use the right tools

There are two tools you must use if you want to get the most out of your data collection – a data science software system and a professional analyst. Raw data can be very difficult to distill down to its useful components. Separating out the data you need and organizing it into a coherent manner can take weeks or months. This is where software takes over. It can quickly scan all of your collected data and organize it by the parameters you choose. For a small business, this can often be sufficient. For larger enterprises, you may want to consider hiring or contracting with a professional analyst to help you monitor the software and organize your information.

Don't be afraid of data – it can be the key to growing your business. Get in touch with a business like DiscoverText to learn more.

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