iKnowtion Blog

An Untapped Opportunity for Gaining Customer Insight

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Posted on 05/11/2009 by Mike McGuirk

Marketing analytics professionals are certainly aware that the strength of their analyses and the accuracy of their predictions are linked to the quality of the input data.

Fortunately, businesses that want to compete with analytics have invested heavily in new information technology to improve the collection of marketing and customer data. In addition, the proliferation of third-party data providers, ranging from collaborative databases to online panels has helped augment our understanding of consumers and expand the types of actionable insights we can offer our clients. This is indeed progress.

However, the purpose of this blog entry is to encourage companies as well as the marketing analytics community to continue to search for new sources of business and customer information.

In my opinion, one source of untapped insights rests quietly, wa...

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The Importance of Using Analytics in Tough Times

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Posted on 05/01/2009 by Sreekanth Sampathkumaran

“When the going gets tough, the tough get going” is an inspirational quote that we’ve all heard. It exemplifies the fact that you cannot solve problems by standing pat, doing nothing.

On a related personal note, I recently tweaked my back and even small movements such as trying to buckle my seatbelt or reaching for a glass of water resulted in waves of pain. While searching for relief, instead of sticking with my typical remedy of sleeping it off, I decided to apply analytics to find the best solution. I incorporated a test & learn strategy and tracked the results of my mix of remedies which included a combination of heat generating balms, massage, pain relievers, and an electric heating pad. In the end, I found effective relief relatively quickly.

Similarly, in these tough times, many companies are trying different approaches to solv...

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What More Can Web Data Tell Us?

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Posted on 03/31/2009 by Don Ryan

The web is giving us a greater opportunity to see how consumers behave – how they interact with a brand, what they’re interested in, what captures their attention, and how they like to shop. Clearly, consumers who visit a company’s website frequently are engaged with the brand. This fact alone can tell us a lot about who might be more willing to respond to an offer, try a new product, or participate in an event or discussion. Web visits can also alert a company about who might be in the shopping mode -- a key piece of knowledge, especially if you sell large ticket items that are not purchased frequently, such as automobiles or technology hardware. Web data can also enhance what is known about consumer preferences by pinpointing what content the consumer views and how much time he or she spends looking at that content.

But how often is this information bei...

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Using Marketing Dashboards for Fact-based Decision Making & Accountability

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Posted on 03/09/2009 by Don Ryan

I recently read a New York Times article, “1,000 Points of Data,” which extols the benefits of a comprehensive database of key national indicators. The main point was that to provide greater accountability in Washington we need a tool that enables all Americans to gauge whether we are making progress on vital issues of national concern, and a shared frame of reference would enable us to practice collective accountability.

As someone in favor of, yet concerned about what we are going to get for our trillions of recovery and redevelopment dollars, it sounds like a good idea to me.

So good in fact that I feel commercial companies should use the same concept to tighten up accountability within their own businesses and provide decision makers with a common ...

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