USE DATA TO BUILD CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS LIKE A SMALL BUSINESS
Information about the habits and preferences of your customers is the key to determining what is – or is not – working from a marketing standpoint. One advantage local small businesses have is the ability to interact with and learn about their customers on a regular and individual basis.
For example, a neighborhood bakery can build personal relationships through repeated interactions, and over time become familiar with the tastes and preferences of their consumers. They can then make decisions based on what they have learned about their own specific market, and receive measurable feedback about their marketing efforts.
By comparison, companies using direct mail marketing often have a wide customer base that they may not see face-to-face, making it more difficult to develop the same kind of personalized relationship. Luckily, technology can help bridge the gap to provide the data companies need to make predictions and to influence future decisions.
How to track direct mail data
Many tools now exist to analyze marketing data. According to SAS, it’s important to gather and study data from more than one channel. For instance, a smart business may compare how a past email campaign performed versus a direct mail campaign, while also looking at social media to determine who is talking about the company and what they are saying. Looking at one of these sources alone does not paint a complete picture of how effective a marketing strategy may be.
Just as it is important to look at the big picture when collecting and analyzing data, it is equally important to look at the specifics. And some information is more useful than other information. For example, the number of followers a business may have on a social media site does not necessarily give any insight in to how much ROI a particular campaign is bringing in. According to Forbes, useful data to track would include:
- Who is coming to your site, and what are those people doing once they get there
- What channels are driving buying customers
- Who is converting
- What conversions are deepening relationships
- What conversions are driving revenue
The purpose of analytics is to provide the data necessary to take action, and to improve upon marketing strategies. With the right information, you can make predictions and adjust future campaigns to maximize efficiency and stretch your marketing dollars.
If you want to collect and analyze data to make sure you are getting the best ROI on your marketing strategy, help is here. Contact our full-service agency today to learn more about Conduit, our marketing software tool, and to receive a free demonstration.