CMOs Say Data is Not Broken, People are Drowning in it
In today’s data-driven world, marketers are more than ever reliant on metrics and analytics to inform their decisions. With the abundance of data available, it’s no surprise that the average digital team manages over 9 dashboards and 20 plus metrics. However, despite this wealth of information, many marketers still struggle to make key campaign pivots. According to Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs), this overload isn’t a technical failure, but rather a signal of poor signal-to-noise ratios.
In a recent article by IntellSys.ai, CMOs warn that marketers are drowning in data, and it’s not because the data is broken, but rather because they are unable to decipher the noise from the signal. The article suggests that what marketers now need is not more dashboards, but fewer decisions, made smarter and faster.
So, what’s causing this data overwhelm? The answer lies in the sheer volume of data being generated. With the rise of social media, customer feedback platforms, and other digital channels, the amount of data available to marketers has increased exponentially. According to a report by Accenture, the average company has access to over 10 times the amount of data it had just five years ago.
However, this abundance of data hasn’t necessarily led to better decision-making. In fact, a study by McKinsey found that only 27% of companies use their data effectively to drive business outcomes. The rest are stuck in a sea of data, unable to extract meaningful insights from the noise.
So, what can marketers do to overcome this data overload? The first step is to simplify their data strategy. Rather than trying to track every metric under the sun, marketers should focus on a few key performance indicators (KPIs) that truly matter to their business. By narrowing their focus, marketers can reduce the amount of data they need to process and make more informed decisions.
Another key step is to use data visualization tools to make sense of the data. Rather than pouring over spreadsheets and reports, marketers can use dashboards and charts to quickly identify trends and patterns. This can help them to spot opportunities and challenges in real-time, and make adjustments accordingly.
However, even with a simplified data strategy and the right tools, marketers still need to overcome the curse of the signal-to-noise ratio. So, how can they do this? The answer lies in using data to tell a story. Rather than simply presenting a list of metrics and statistics, marketers should use their data to tell a compelling narrative about their customers, their market, and their business.
By using data to tell a story, marketers can help their teams to understand the insights and make more informed decisions. This can be particularly powerful in the age of automation, where machines are capable of processing vast amounts of data in real-time. By using data to tell a story, marketers can help their teams to stay ahead of the curve and make decisions that drive real business outcomes.
In conclusion, CMOs are right – data is not broken, people are drowning in it. The key to overcoming this data overload is to simplify our data strategy, use data visualization tools to make sense of the data, and use data to tell a story. By doing so, marketers can make smarter and faster decisions, and drive real business outcomes. As the article by IntellSys.ai so aptly puts it, “what marketers now need is not more dashboards, but fewer decisions, made smarter and faster.”
Source: https://www.intellsys.ai/
