Data is crucial and fundamental to Chief Marketing Executives, as well as to all marketing executives, in doing their jobs.
Data Fundamental for Marketing
As Marketing Executives strive to gain insight, create plans, execute actions and evaluate results, data is a fundamental ingredient in marketing and management activities. Data is the lifeblood for marketing analysis and action.
Data Framework
The challenge is to develop a useful, practical and timely data foundation, data framework to drive analysis, decision making and action.
Access all data sources
This framework should include access to data from all meaningful data sources available. This includes internal data systems such as CRM, billing, customer service, marketing programs and marketing leads (inquiries, web site visitors, white paper downloads, webinar attendees, and conference attendees). This also should include external data such as purchased marketing data, social media data, and marketing partner lists. Transaction and purchase history data must be included. The key is to start small and allow room for growth.
Coordinated & linked data, in the Cloud
Framework data can be both physical and virtual in the sense that useful data can be coordinated and linked for analysis and marketing actions. This actionable data framework can also exist in the Cloud to enable Marketing to have access to important data anytime, anywhere, under proper supervision and controls. All, with the need to know, can analyze the same consistent data. Consider using the Microsoft database (SQL) and Excel tools, at least to start. Chances are internal resources already exist in the organization that can be aided, as needed, with external assistance.
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