Extracting value from customer data, wherever it’s generated, wherever it exists

A few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to spend a day in the beautiful surroundings of The Grove in Hertfordshire. 

Sadly, I can’t claim I was there solely to take advantage of the amazing facilities (and, to be honest, a report of a wellness weekend probably isn’t appropriate for the company blog). The day was purely professional, and one of Richmond Events’ well-respected series of Strategic Business Forums. 

I say ‘purely’ professional. We were treated to breakfast, lunch, and dinner – all delicious – though these were also part of the opportunity to meet with the digital marketing professionals and gather some valuable insights into their current needs and challenges. I thought I’d pull a few of the themes together in this post.

The value of variety

The breadth of responsibilities of the executives attending the forum – from customer experience to ecommerce; from data to digital marketing – was mirrored in the variety of industries represented. 

Not only was this hugely valuable in bringing a broad range of perspectives. Central to these was the view that it doesn’t matter which function you’re in, everyone is focused on maximising the value from customer data.

Great customer data…if you can use it

Various discussions I had during the day highlighted a significant difference of opinion on how well organisations have addressed the perennial issue of data fragmentation. In short, many of those organising and managing customer data feel they’re broadly in a good place. Those who want to put that data to use…a little less so.

An analogy that sprung to mind was of a physical store, where the person charged with keeping the stock room well-organised has done a good job, but they’ve then locked the door to make sure that nobody can mess things up. Putting products in front of customers therefore becomes significantly more difficult.

It’s not the perfect analogy, but you get the picture. Access and the ability to use customer data – and to have that data as up to date as possible – is essential if marketers are going to have the agility they need.

And proactive, personalised, and responsive marketing execution – underpinned by this agility – is vital, given the current commercial pressures. 

Leadership leaning on legacy, those on the front line looking for a new approach

Another difference of stakeholder opinion aired during the day was the motivation of leadership to continue the commitment to large, legacy solution implementations, while those at the sharper end of marketing execution were looking for a new approach.

You could argue that leadership is likely more aware of the significant investments that have been made in marketing technology, including customer data platforms, and therefore retain an interest in generating the promised RoI from those. Equally, you could counter that those using the platforms at the coal face have clearer insight into what’s needed to power more effective sales and marketing.

This will always be a tricky debate to have and a difficult decision to make. Technology has advanced quickly, however. Several trends of recent years have converged to suggest that traditional solutions are no longer fit for purpose, and the advantages of newer approaches outweigh the downsides of changing tack.

I would say that, of course. But after similar conversations during his recent visit to eTail Connect, my colleague Liam has expanded upon some of these trends in his own post.

AI, of course

One unavoidable subject, inevitably, was artificial intelligence. Whether the opportunities in efficiency or the risks of agentic shopping, I can’t remember a conversation that didn’t touch on the topic.

Many leadership teams are simultaneously challenged by the limits of legacy systems, while pushing for the use of AI, though often without a clear use case. That said, in more advanced organisations, we are seeing AI being applied to bridge the gap in putting customer data to use.

Using a natural language interface to interrogate and manipulate customer data, building audience segments in minutes rather than days or even weeks, is genuinely transformational in marketing agility. 

There are both efficiency gains and effectiveness ones. Marketers can be far more responsive to external factors, while also applying more of their own time and energy to the creative. Not only does this drive more engaging and effective marketing, it makes better use of uniquely human characteristics. And, let’s face it, it’s more rewarding work.

Rising to the challenge

The nature of those who take the time to attend these events, meet their peers, and take part in open conversations probably leans towards the solution oriented. While everyone acknowledged that we’re working in a challenging environment, the overall sentiment was one of optimism (the legendary dinner buffet and beautiful surroundings may also have had an impact).

People want to rise to the challenge. They believe in the power of smart marketing, and that the tools exist, alongside human ingenuity, to make it more personalised and effective. I’m already looking forward to the next event.