Many marketers these days come face-to-face with a situation when everything in their marketing strategy is being done perfectly, and yet lead generation is lagging. If they dig deeper and check their marketing techniques such as email marketing, customized blogs, presence on social media and everything else they would be doing things just right. Then why do the results speak otherwise?…
More often than not, the fault lies in the fact that the database is ineffective and redundant. As a practice, the data of the organization must be kept updated and healthy at all times. However if it is not being done, then this is the time to build a process around it and keep it ready and accurate at all times. After all, all the time, money and effort that is being spent on marketing activities will be of no use if the target customer base is incorrect.
Here are the steps that you can adopt for a strategic database management solution:
1) Data Assessment
Data decay is a constant process and hence you need to at least assess your data monthly, if not fortnightly. Check for business contacts that have moved on to different companies, inaccurate email addresses, changes in the job title of your business contacts and so on. Depending on the nature of your business, you need to determine the fields that need to be checked periodically and then put a team on this task. Efficiencies are higher if accountabilities are built into the system.
2) Data Segmentation
Once you are sure that your data is accurate, it should be segmented to fine tune it. Segmentation can be done basis the industry, size of business, buying patterns, job titles and similar fields, depending on the kind of marketing strategy you want to apply. Once you have segmented your data, there is a chance that you realize that different segments would need different strategies.
Personalized messages become more effective in the process. For example, in case of email marketing, if you intend to send out mass mails to the whole of your database, then it can become individualized and only the relevant group can be covered in case of segmented data. Similarly, if you are catering to the needs of other companies, then you can segment this database basis the number of employees they have and offer them differing service levels.
3) Data Monitoring
As you go through the process of segmentation, you may come across certain patterns or analysis unique to different channels. It may be worthwhile to record these patterns and use it during the strategy building process. For instance, you could check the pattern of the responsiveness of companies on your database, whether they check their emails or comment on your Facebook posts and so on. Using this information, you can tap the client in the forum he is most comfortable in and create a lead. Once this is done, you could also offer to tweak your marketing strategy as per their requirement.
Monitoring, till the end result is achieved, is extremely important. Once your sales person is on a lead, ensure that the tracking is done through the funnel right till the end. In the process, you will earn better and get more loyal customers, who will further help strengthen your data segmentation process.
So, cull out all the dirty data and make your marketing team achieve every bit of the output that they deserve.
About Us
Techno Data Group is b2b marketing firm in Wilmington, Delaware focusing on business success. We can help you targeting key accounts using real time verified data; we can identify your buying personas, analyze your existing database and fill in the missing information.
We work with some of the world's leading brands and Fortune 500 companies. We are proud to say that we are their preferred database partners.
