Beyond collection: How to make the most of your data

The power of data is undeniable. While a majority of companies out there today would say they are actively collecting data, utilising it well is a whole new ball game altogether.

In fact, many companies today are underutilising the data collected, argued marketers at a recent round table hosted by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, alongside Treasure Data and Artefact, titled “Navigating consumer engagement”.

According to Kartika Guerrero, digital and media director SEA at Fonterra Brands, many brands are now efficiently able to collect and analyse data, but there still needs to be education in knowing what kind of data is actually needed. And unfortunately, many companies are still stuck at the stage of collecting and using it for email marketing.

“We still need to educate ourselves on how we can maximise each data point because each consumer data costs a lot. There needs to be a lot more education on what is the right data for your brand. And what do you want it for,” she said.

At the end of the day, Guerrero added, collecting data is also an additional cost on the corporation as this unstructured data needs to be cleaned up and collected in a manner that can be best used by the company.

“While we all want that 360 full view of the customer, it’s a holy grail that many aren’t able to achieve. So as marketers, we need to educate the wider organisation as well on how we can validate the data, show the costs associated with it, and maximise it,” she said.

Adding to the conversation, Kenneth Lim, chief marketing officer of STB, said that with the impending deprecation of third-party data, it’ll be important to identify other sources of information to help us understand our customer behaviour better.

“While we need to identify other sources of information to better understand our consumers, it will be equally important to weigh the cost and benefits of getting precise data to understand how our visitor actually moves around the destination, and evaluate if the upsides will outweigh the costs”.

Breaking it down further in the realm of communications, Sean Valencia, marketing manager, APAC of Treasure Data, said that at the end of the day, hyper personalisation isn’t always about being there all the time. Sometimes, it is about communicating to the right person at the right time. So rather than just gathering data all the time, it is about finding a way to translate what you know into a more relevant experience.

The use of AI

The use of AI was also top-of-mind for marketers at the luncheon. According to Catherine Scown, vice president, commercial, Asia Pacific, at Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, the use of AI is an area of focus for the brand as it sits on an abundance of data which is still manually deciphered and responded to.

“We have 126 hotels. Harnessing and harvesting all that information from a database of over two million guests that have stayed with us, and an app with six million messages, is important for us,” she said.

“Currently, we are looking at how AI can help us decipher the data and automate aspects, but at the same time it’s a balance because we also don’t want to lose that connection with the customer.”

In fact, according to a report by Artefact – “Generative AI survey: The technology, the rewards and the risks” – Gen AI has the ability to help hugely in the aspect of personalisation as it changes how people, especially customers, consume data by allowing them to personalise their interactions with brands in an extremely precise manner.

Such a change will likely set a new standard for the way we interact with knowledge systems. Customer service, according to the study, came in as the top most-cited function for the potential applications of Gen AI.

Moreover, generative AI may upend many internal processes and practices of companies and people when it comes to productivity. As such, Kevin Cheung, senior data consulting director for Artefact, shared that using AI is an area that will require education, but the right way to think about using AI is how can we make the human element more efficient.

“We need to empower our staff with data, not only descriptive data, or showing them a nice dashboard, but tangible insight that helps them with their conversion,” he said.