Direct marketing has evolved from the days of mass-delivered print content to today’s digital world. Nowadays, marketers have access to an increasing number of channels to send direct, personalized messages and engage prospects and customers in one-to-one conversations.
With each log-in, interaction, click, or message sent, data is being distributed and received. Each day, 354 billion corporate emails, 400 million tweets, and 1 billion Facebook posts are created. This presents marketers with an opportunity to gather this mass of data and use it to their advantage when creating and executing direct marketing campaigns.
To illustrate some of big data’s biggest impacts on direct marketing, we’ve compiled the following list:
#1: Better Personalization. Big data and direct marketing work hand-in-hand within today’s connected digital world. A strong direct marketing campaign can’t succeed without marketers analyzing data to glean actionable insight that drives targeting, personalization, timing, etc. Gone are the days of “batch-and-blast” emails or messages; social networking and other digital channels have led to heightened consumer expectations for personalized messages and experiences.
“Studies show that consumers remember just four of the 3,000 messages we’re exposed to every day,” said Christa Carone, chief marketing officer, Xerox. “This survey validates that earning a spot at the top of a consumer’s mind, and ultimately driving a purchasing decision, takes insight, individual attention and can be influenced by the way the message is delivered.” Personalized messages will oftentimes make customers feel unique, which may, in turn, facilitate brand loyalty.
#2: Single Customer View. In order to properly target customers and personalize messages, marketers must create 360-degree customer profiles based on available big data. These profiles create a single marketing view that aggregates multiple online and offline data streams. Marketers should aim to make these profiles as extensive as possible, gleaning the maximum amount of data. However, it’s also important to remember that data is only good if it’s used and actionable.
#3: Content Delivery. Big data and a well-established customer profile can provide direct marketers with an in-depth look at the type of content that should be delivered to each customer through specific, well-researched channels. With so many digital channels available, this can be a crucial step, combining timing, content, and channel into message delivery tactics.
#4: SoLoMo. Big data also enables direct marketers to deliver messages in real time, unlocking exciting new possibilities for SoLoMo (social, local, mobile) marketing. While shopping, for instance, push notifications could be sent through mobile devices based on location and previous purchase data from the customer profile.
Without proper collection and analysis of all this data, it’s impossible to be “direct” with your customer. Marketers who aren’t using big data to drive direct marketing success will likely find difficulties acquiring and retaining loyal customers. In today’s digital era, timeliness, personalization, and an overall understanding of customers as individuals is more important than ever.
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