The value of data today is incomparable. A customer database is an asset for many companies. Don’t we all wonder about how a marketing email looks like it’s made for us? So many marketing messages seem cut out for specific customers. However, this is not pure magic. This is the power of data. The world today is able to offer personalisation based on your data. Therefore, companies prefer Customer Data Collection to help them provide better services. A good customer database can also help a company with sales and marketing.

Customer data collection is diverse. However, people often think that this data is your basic information. It is in fact much more than that. As technology continues to advance, ways to gather data become more. 

Today, we have tech that can find your location and recognize you through your face. In addition, We also have tech that can trace your browsing history and can recognise your voice. Therefore, there are many points and ways to do it. 

Humans are in general too busy to even realise when and how we provide this data. This has become the reason for data privacy issues.

What Is Customer Data? 

So, your customer data is the information that your customer provides you. Therefore, it is the information that a company gets while interacting with customers. That information method could range from surveys to social media. So, through a customer’s journey, there are many data collection points. 

Firstly, there is your personal data. This is to identify your customer. Therefore, these are your basic personal details ranging from Name to Address. Such information also includes your debit/credit card information and phone number. In addition, even your IP address and cookies are a part of your personal data.

Another type of data is your behavioural data. This helps understand user patterns. This includes small details too like heatmaps and user attention. It keeps a tab of your repeated actions as well as old purchases. 

Although, engagement data is how the customer interacts with you across many channels. Be it website traffic or post shares and likes. This includes all information about a customer and their behaviour on different channels.

Finally, there is the attitudinal data which is subjective. It is all about how a customer feels about your brand. Therefore, this is collected through surveys and reviews.

The Importance and Benefits of Customer Data Collection

Customer data collection is no doubt valuable and important. However, what are its benefits? Here are some of them: 

• Helps personalise customer experience: Customer experience is a priority for many companies today. Everyone wants to provide the best experience. This is so that you can convert new customers into loyal customers. Therefore, it helps you do that. It helps you understand how to make the experience better and customise it for them. For instance, providing good product suggestions.

• Helps improve marketing: It helps improve digital marketing. You can make your content more creative for your audience. This helps you reach your customer with a message that can promote lead conversion.

• Know your target audience. Before setting out to sell any product, one must always do research. This research is to know your target audience better. Only when you know your customer, can you know what to sell. It helps change your company’s products and services as per your customer’s needs. For instance, if a particular product is receiving bad reviews, you will avoid making it. 

• Know your primary audience: It is important to identify who will be with your company in the long run. Data helps you do that. It helps you know who your repeat buyers are. This will help you use a different marketing strategy on them. You might use loyalty or reward programs in this case.

• Good understanding of the market: At the end of the day, your company has to function in a market. It is important to have good knowledge of the market you are serving. This knowledge only comes by collecting and keeping a good database.

Top 5 Customer Data Collection Strategies 

The growing technology has made it easier to collect data in many ways. You no more need forms and filings. All you need is a digital device. Here are some interesting strategies: 

• Subscription data: People don’t like a lot of emails. Therefore, if someone has subscribed to your website, it is most likely data you can trust. This data often collects basic personal information. Along with this, you also are able to gain people on your mailing list.

• Social media: These metrics also help gather information about your audience. It helps you get an insight into your engagement. You can know about the demography of customer visits to your page. You will also understand what posts are most liked and shared.

• Surveys and feedback forms: This is your typical method of getting to know your customer more. This is to know about suggestions and opinions from the customers’ end. Therefore, This tactic is helpful in improving company performance.

• Online traffic: Today, companies can know about what happens on their websites. They can know how many people visit and what they click. In addition, companies can also know about products left in the cart too. This is information which you can use to target your ads better too.

• Analysing marketing campaigns: Whenever you do digital marketing, you use a digital channel. These channels help you track and analyse your campaigns too. They help you gain valuable data along with the campaign statistics.

Pros and Cons

However valuable customer data may be, it also has its pros and cons. Therefore, here are some advantages:

• Segmentation: It helps segment customers better. You can divide your target audience on the basis of geography and demography. You can divide on the basis of psychographic data too. This helps target each segment in a more efficient manner.
• Needs and problems: It also helps figure out customer problems and needs better. Therefore, it helps in improving your company’s performance for the customers.
• Improves campaigns: It helps a lot while crafting good marketing campaigns. Marketing banks on good and accurate details.
• Customer: It helps in creating buyer personas. In addition, this type of data helps improve customer churn and lifetime value.

The disadvantages of Customer data collection are not many. However, these disadvantages are due to the mistakes made while collecting them. Some of those common mistakes are:

• Data decay: A customer may not keep staying at the same place using the same number. Information is not stagnant. It can change. Therefore, it becomes important for a company to have data that is up to date as well as accurate.
• Data privacy issues: Companies must be careful in terms of security. Such data is private and important. Customers should not feel scared to provide their details.
• Ensure government regulations: Marketers should ensure using data in the right way. There are several regulations put in place. Any mistake can cost a lot. You can lose out on the trust of customers forever. However, all this brings in a lot of extra cost and effort for the company too.

The Best Customer Data Collection Examples 

Here are some good examples of collecting data from customers:

• The New York Times

The NY Times uses surveys to collect data to improve their experience. They not only have close-ended questions but also open-ended ones. A lot of companies in fact use surveys to gain data. This helps them know how their customers feel about them. It also helps them get suggestions and opinions about what changes to make.

• HubSpot

They collect basic information about their customers through an email subscription form. A lot of companies use this. It’s a pop-up which comes right after opening a website. Websites allow this to be optional. On other hand, some websites make it a compulsion to sign up before accessing any content. The latter tactic may or may not work too.

In Conclusion

All in all, customer data has a lot of potential. This potential is no doubt in use by a lot of companies. A lot of companies use this data to improve the way they send emails. Companies segment their customers and send them emails. For instance, you will not receive emails about a store opening in a different city. 

Companies also tend to send offers that are relevant and customised for the customer. Even subscription reminders are sent on the basis of data collected. There are so many ways that one can use to collect this data too. Therefore, it helps you make good use of all the digital channels.

Do you think customer data collection is important? Do you like to receive emails that are designed for you? Let us know in the comments section below.