Why Marketing and Big Data Have Become Such a Good Marriage

Big data has become the solution for many of the challenges of marketers

A few years ago, but not as many as it may seem at first glance, the technology industry organized the first press conferences and the first events with media in which it presented the new element that was going to be fashionable, the new tool tech that was going to change everything (or at least that was what they sold).

Technology companies talked about big data and how it was called to change the market. The potential of big data and its impact on business was very high.

It was going to completely change what the companies were doing and what they were going to be able to do in the near future, opening up great opportunities and making them much more effective in their businesses.

Maybe in those first press conferences and presentations they did not speak clearly and directly about marketing and how big data could change things in that field, but the truth is that marketers soon became enthusiastic about the potential of big data and how things could change them too.

After all, the elements that big data was changing and the ones it was impacting were closely related to what they needed to know and do.

They were a clear foothold for the industry and for what they had to achieve.

From that first moment or so, therefore, the relationship between big data and marketing became a kind of well-matched marriage.

It might be a relationship for interest (and not something that flowed as well within the traditional parameters of the industry as it could be the case of creativity), but that did not mean that the relationship had settled solidly and in a way that made things much better for the marketing side.

Why big data has become a key piece

The reason for all this is in the very essence of what makes the relationship work. Big data has become a key piece for the industry because it positions itself in key work points. That is, big data and related tools allow consumers to know much better, both how they are and their needs, their aspirations and their habits. In addition, it also helps to shape the market much better and to understand its strengths and weaknesses.

Thus, not only can you establish much more precise strategies, but also develop products that fit much better with consumers and that position themselves in the most efficient window of opportunity to reach their potential audiences. At the same time, it is much easier to get ahead of the problems and solve them, making the experience much more fluid.

Big data impacts all the key elements of what companies and their marketing teams have to take into account in these times. It helps to be much better not only in communication and messages, personalizing and making more effective the elements that are shared, but also in matters such as customer service, consumer experience or after-sales relationship.

What they have to keep in mind

Of course, nothing is exactly perfect and big data also has its problems, problems that companies have to take into account when launching to use it and turn it into a key piece.

First, the first big problem is one of scale. For big data to work, to be that almost magical tool that changes all things, it is very necessary to have a broad information base. That is, all this only works if the big data is really “big”. This makes large companies have a much more favorable starting situation than small ones. The more customers and more activity, the more potential data can be accumulated.

And, to continue, the next big problem is linked to the information. As consumers are more aware of the power of information and of companies’ interest in data, they are also more sensitive to what happens with them. They are increasingly reluctant to leave their personal data within the reach of brands and that can undermine the big data strategy.