Turn your customer data into actionable insights

More brands, more categories, more channels and more data sources, all represent a challenging marketplace. So, how can you turn your customer data into actionable insights?

Companies have a wealth of customer data, said to be the world’s most valuable resource (Economist). So how can companies make the most of this asset? joining the wave of marketers and analysts on the crest of ‘Big Data’, ‘Marketing Intelligence’ and ‘Data Driven Insight’?

The answer is to harness your customer data and gain actionable customer insight, in other words, insight or intelligence that you can use to base decisions upon, ‘actionable insight’.

What Is Actionable Insight

Firstly, what is actionable insight? I like the definition provided by Technopedia  “Actionable insight is a term in data analytics and big data for information that can be acted upon or information that gives enough insight into the future that the actions that should be taken become clear for decision makers. “

For purposed of this article actionable insight refers to insight resulting from data analytics and processing, to help you drive informed business decisions. It starts with your own customer data, an extremely valuable commodity available to each any every organisation. Businesses that use customer insight to drive strategy, not only gain a better understanding of their customers which makes their business more successful, but also gives them that competitive edge in their marketplace.

Informed Decisions

Customer insight is not just raw data or research. It’s a multifaceted interpretation of customers, product preference, channels to market and future new site & product development opportunities.

You need to be able to pull together both internal and external data to understand, describe and predict customer behaviour and how it impacts your customers interactions with your brand. Many businesses often stop at the describing stage and don’t move to using gains from customer insight to produce the meaningful actions (actionable insight).

Embracing the full potential of your customer data can transform how you set your strategic objectives to grow your business, enabling you to define your future commercial plans and even how you take specific decisions with individual customers.

The following examples show how customer data can be analysed to provide customer insight. Analysis that helps identify which customers use which products and services, patterns in shopper behaviour, motivations and customer expectations: –

• Segmentation – using commercial or internal segmentation to predict which customers are likely to need a product or service.
• Utilisation – analysing existing customers to identify which customers take up services, and by which channels (whether they prefer contact by post, face to face, online etc).
• Engagement – analysing data from consultation, customer journey mapping, customer satisfaction measurement etc to identify customer’s needs, wants, behaviour and expectations.

Data is only valuable if you can gain the customer insight to tailor, change or adapt current operations for the better, then it becomes truly actionable.  It can then be used to drive strategy, allocate resources, manage performance, and better market your services in a targeted manner.

Benefits of Actionable Insight: –

• Informed decision making based on current customer understanding and buying patterns
• Ability to align marketing communications, pricing, ranging and promotions based on relevancy to target market.
• Understanding of your current performance and opportunity within the wider marketplace.
• Ability to improve ROI through increased customer targeting, relevancy and engagement.

Data led actionable insight can provide the means to improve business performance across different a variety of disciplines and departments internally.

The following services are benefits driven, aiming to provide the data led actionable insight our clients need to inform the right strategy for their business needs.

Market Research – Insight into consumer attitudes, behaviours & motivations

Shopper Insight –  understanding shopper behaviour by using consumer and shopper insight to drive execution in-store, online and via mobile channels.

Customer Segmentation – Insight from in-depth analysis of existing customer transactional data purchase patterns to drive ranging, pricing and pack strategies.

Store Segmentation – Insight to optimise ranging, promotions, price and merchandising at store and estate level to target sales and marketing activity more effectively.

Resource & Territory planning – Insight to optimise the allocation of your people and resources to the right outlets in the best locations to maximise return on investment.

Related Blogs:-

Actionable Insight to drive customer loyalty

Customer Insight to drive customer sales & footfall

Customer profiling to gain a competitive advantage

Insight to find your most profitable customers