The business decisions about data in your business are more important than the tech itself. Here are a few thoughts on what to consider:
We’ve all heard a phrase that ‘data is the new oil’ and you should invest in it like Texas did in the early 1900s. Well – that’s a nice phrase for high level executive officers but in reality the comparison to oil in this day and age might be a little off.
We like to compare data to the fuel powering the business machine – but the type of fuel that is fitting the functionality of that machine, and thus corresponding to the business reality and needs in a given situation.
Building on that, we observe that for many ecommerce businesses the definition of what the role of the data in the ecosystem is – is just missing. And sure, they might be using analytics tools, moving channel and audience investments to the best performing ones, looking at engagement and conversion rates. Nothing wrong with that.
The problems begin to appear when an ambition of a business grows to the size of a huge cruise liner but their capabilities are able to serve the functions of a small motorboat. Then it becomes evident that the missing step in drawing a nice financially-oriented growth strategy didn’t take into account the heart of the business – the system landscape and the data architecture. Often then, the missing elements or functionalities are filled by smart and sharp salesmen, who will do anything to close a deal that also just as often becomes a purchase of ‘technology for the sake of technology’. Where for political purposes the executives would claim that purchasing a tool that can do something is equal to enabling a fully grown competence in the business. Then this situation often results in a mismatch between the business needs and the actually available resources, or to come back to the fuel example – the type of the engine and the type of the fuel. Have you seen what happens when you pour diesel into a petrol engine?
The whole digital industry is standing at the doorstep of the paradigm shift
There are many examples of that, and the most important one for the businesses who are using digital advertising is the change from the third party data dependence to the first party data dependence. This means that your own knowledge about your users and customers will be the basis of how you can interact with them and how you can use their interactions to improve their experience with you and thus increase the value of your presence in their lives. If that aspect is not covered in your ambitious growth plan – you need to come back to the drawing board and include how and where you will benefit from integrating first party data in your tech ecosystem following the growth milestones you want to reach.
Once that is clear – it has to be reflected in your technological landscape. Here at Kvantum we have a good experience with helping our clients to draw out their technological architecture and place the use cases that are linked to the specific milestones that then lead to development of specific solutions.
At the beginning for almost everybody the level of those use cases is quite basic – but so is their overall setup. We believe that taking those baby steps now already puts you miles away from the ones that are not taking them at this moment, as in time your tech and business competence will grow exponentially while the others will have to start from scratch. So nothing is lost. But just like Rome wasn’t built in a day – you need to prepare that it will take time, investments, trials, mistakes, lessons, tweaks and upgrades. There are no easy wins, but there are wins nonetheless. So it’s the matter of realizing what it takes and committing to it!
It’s also the matter of getting started, and we at Kvantum are ready to talk about the next steps for your business – so do reach out! It’s never too late!
Wojciech Zak
Head of Data and Analytics
