Marketing Insights and Big Data

Marketing Information and Customer Insights

• To create customer value, marketers need deep insights into customer needs and desires.
• Customer insights are crucial for building engagement and competitive advantage.
• Gathering insights is challenging as consumer needs and motivations are often unclear.

Marketing Information and Big Data

• Big data refers to large, complex datasets.
• Companies have access to data from various sources (social media, digital interactions, real-time monitoring).
• Effective use of data requires refining and using the data effectively, not just having more data.
• Handling big data provides opportunities for rich customer insights, but data overload must be avoided.

Developing Customer Insights

• Customer insights are fresh, marketing information-based understandings of customers.
• Major companies create customer insights teams to analyze data.
• Examples include Unilever's CMI team using focus groups and AI to understand consumer needs.

Marketing Information System (MIS)

• MIS is a structure of people and procedures to gather and use information.
• An effective MIS provides timely, relevant data to make decisions and strengthen customer relationships.
• MIS identifies user needs, gathers data (internal and external), and creates actionable insights for customer engagement.

Assessing Information Needs and Developing Data

• A marketing information system (MIS) serves a company's marketing and managerial needs.
• A balanced MIS filters necessary information from excessive data to avoid overload.
• Costs of managing data are significant, so companies must assess the value of additional insights.

Internal Data

• Internal databases collect consumer and market information from within the company.
• Data comes from various company departments (marketing, customer service, accounting, etc.).
• Internal data can provide competitive advantages.
• Example: Westpac Bank's "Know Me" program uses customer data for targeted marketing and increasing revenue.
• Internal data can be outdated, incomplete, or difficult to manage.

Competitive Marketing Intelligence

• This involves systematic collection of publicly available data about consumers, competitors, market trends.
• Techniques include observing consumer behavior, online research, and monitoring social media.
• This helps companies understand consumer interactions and competitor actions.
• Example: Samsung monitoring Apple's product launches via social media.

Ethical Considerations

• Ethical practices are vital when using public sources.
• Avoid unethical methods for gathering intelligence.

Marketing Research

• Marketing research systematically designs, collects, analyzes, and reports data for specific marketing situations.
• It is distinct from general market intelligence and focuses on specific customer/market insights for marketing decisions.

Traditional Marketing Research in Transition

• Traditional methods (surveys, focus groups) are complemented by digital approaches.
• The pandemic accelerated the shift to digital methods.
• Effective research now blends digital and traditional approaches.

The Marketing Research Process

• Collaboration between managers and researchers is essential.
• Defining the problem and research objectives guide the process.
• Objectives can be exploratory, descriptive, or causal.

Exploratory Research

• Gathers preliminary information to define problems and suggest hypotheses.

Descriptive Research

• Describes marketing situations or problems, like market potential or customer demographics.

Causal Research

• Tests cause-and-effect relationships, such as the impact of pricing changes on consumer behavior.

Developing the Research Plan

• This specifies data sources, research approaches, and tools.
• Secondary data (existing data from sources like company records, external databases) is cost-effective but requires evaluation.
• Primary data (new data collected for the project) provides direct insights, though can be time-consuming and expensive.

Gathering Secondary Data

• Often the starting point, secondary data is accessible and affordable, but its relevance and quality must be verified.

Primary Data Collection

• Companies often need primary data to address research problems and goals.
• Research approaches include observational research, surveys, and experiments.

Observational Research

• Gathers data by observing relevant individuals, actions, and situations.
• Examples include Domino's observing customer interactions or social listening.

Contact Methods

• Data can be collected via mail, phone, in-person, or online.
• Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages.

Ethnographic Research

• Trained observers interact with consumers in their natural environments.
• Example: Intuit's "follow-me-home" program.

Survey Research

• Common method for gathering data on knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors.
• Flexible, widely applicable, but has risks of response bias.

Experimental Research

• Focused on finding cause-and-effect relationships.
• Uses online platforms to conduct tests quickly, like Microsoft's A/B testing.

Online Behavioral Tracking & Targeting

• Marketers increasingly use online data to understand consumer behavior.
• Data analysis reveals shopping habits and preferences.
• Privacy concerns have grown with this level of tracking, hence laws like GDPR and CCPA.

Sampling Plan

• A sample represents a larger population (key in conducting research and gathering insights).
• Choosing participants balances reliability and cost.

Research Instruments

• Primary data collection uses questionnaires and mechanical devices.
• Questionnaires should begin with general questions.
• Real-time data from IoT devices allows insights into consumer needs.

Implementing the Research Plan

• Finalizing the plan involves collecting, processing, and analyzing data.
• Ensuring data quality is crucial.
• Statistical tools support gaining insights.

Interpreting and Reporting the Findings

• Finally, researchers interpret findings, report conclusions, and help guide marketing strategies.

Analyzing and Using Marketing Information

• Information analysis needs internal databases, competitive intelligence, and research data.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

• Manages and integrates customer data across all touchpoints.
• CRM systems consolidate data from various sources.
• Enhancing customer satisfaction and loyalty is the outcome.

Big Data, Marketing Analytics, and Artificial Intelligence (AI)

• Marketing analytics analyze vast data sources to identify actionable insights.
• AI helps with personalized advertising and customer engagement.
• Human oversight in AI usage is vital.

Distributing and Using Marketing Information

• Timely access to relevant information is essential for effective marketing.
• Intranets and extranets facilitate internal and external information sharing.
• Mobile access to data enables faster, customized decision-making.

Other Marketing Information Considerations

Marketing Research in Small Businesses and Nonprofit Organizations

• Small businesses and nonprofits need customer insights.
• They use informal surveys, observations, and affordable secondary data.

International Marketing Research

• International research has challenges (data scarcity, cultural barriers).
• Accessing data requires careful planning.

Public Policy and Ethics in Marketing Research

• Consumer privacy concerns need careful management.
• Balancing customization with privacy concerns is vital.
• Issues like data breaches and misuse of research findings need ethical oversight.

This quiz explores the essential concepts of customer insights and the role of big data in marketing. It emphasizes the importance of understanding consumer needs and the challenges marketers face in gathering actionable insights. Additionally, it highlights how companies utilize big data to enhance their marketing strategies.