7 Ways Business Intelligence Can Improve Your Sales and Marketing Efforts
The sales and marketing department is the engine room for any business. In today’s competitive environment, having an edge is the surest way for your business to thrive. Accessing accurate data and using it to your advantage can be the key to success. So, how do you track sales data about your business?
Business intelligence is the way to go. It entails a combination of business analytics, data ming, visualization, and better practices. This enables informed decision-making by companiines.
With this form of intelligence, it’s easy to keep track of what customers are buying and what they aren’t. It helps to highlight trends in the market and position your company to increase revenue. A company was able to increase sales by 24% through the adoption of new marketing strategies.
The ability to track data and total it improves transparency in its operations. With actionable intelligence, data gets simplified into charts and graphs. This helps make better decisions based on real-time data.
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Below is how business intelligence in sales and marketing can boost your business.
Identifying Target Audience
All your marketing efforts would be futile if you do not have a target audience. It is paramount that you know who your customers are and how to reach them. There are many sources of information where businesses can mine customer data. It includes their official website, social media platforms, email, and third-party sources.
Understanding your customers can make or break your marketing campaign. With Business intelligence, it becomes easier to identify your existing customers. It is also easy to identify those with the potential to get converted. For example, based on the feedback section on your company’s website, you can tell your customers.
This would, in turn, help you to adjust your marketing strategy to target such an audience. With business intelligence tools, it’s easier for a company to keep track of its most loyal customers.
Focusing your marketing efforts on existing customers is cheaper than targeting new customers. Your loyal customers are more likely to buy something than prospective customers.
It Helps Provide Better Customer Service
Tracking your sales data can provide helpful insight into vital customer information. Data reveals which products are preferred, mode of payment, and the number of units bought per customer. You will be able to analyze their habits, helping you to understand their needs better.
Business intelligence can help sales teams to understand the client better. That way, they can pre-plan prospective products they will pitch to them.
Besides, it allows you to take timely stock of your inventory. This helps to avoid challenges when demand is high for select products.
The data collected can help you understand your customers in a better way. It allows you to provide better services, build relationships, and keep loyal customers.
Make Data-Based Decisions
To have a competitive edge, you need to access all information about your operations. Such data can help you make vital decisions. Also, you are less likely to make expensive mistakes associated with emotional decisions.
With BI, you can access any data broken down by product and customer or as you wish. It is easier to review performance with real-time data available on demand. It gives helpful insight to your sales team to know what they need to do to improve performance.
This leads to increased sales and fixing broken relationships with customers. With real-time information at your disposal, you can make timely and informed decisions.
Customer Insight
The needs of customers change in line with shifting market dynamics. Business intelligence in marketing has led to the invention of various beneficial tools. They give you real-time insight into customer interactions with your products.
That way, you get an idea of how to approach them anytime there is a need to. You can also access any helpful customer information to transform your services. This helps to keep at par with changing market aspects.
You can also use the available data to classify your customers. This can be according to their product preferences, value, and timing of purchases. That would help with any new marketing campaigns targeting specific traits in customers.
It is a unique opportunity to optimise the use of your resources in courting the right customers. You remain on track to meet your growth targets as you keep your existing customers.
Customised Targeting
With BI, you can retrieve and analyse relevant information about a prospective customer. It makes it easy for targeted marketing campaigns. That is because you now understand the customer better. Your sales team can go through the customer’s numbers on sales, turnover, policies, and more.
This is easier, especially where you are targeting a public limited company. With private companies, you can leverage intelligence to get essential information. Such information includes the budget, growth plans, turnover, and sales.
It can help create a personalised marketing pitch customised to meet the client’s demands. This, in turn, leads to higher chances of conversion.
Determine your Marketing Budget
The analytical reports generated through business intelligence systems can be beneficial. They help you determine what works for you and what doesn’t. Also, You can tell the returns accrued from the various marketing programs.
If social media generates more returns than other tools, you can use more of your resources on it. Take full advantage of what is working and cut off what is not working.
That way, you will be utilising your hard-earned resources on income-generating campaigns. Your marketing budget is also likely to reduce as you cut on ineffective strategies.
Mobile Intelligence
Rapid technological advancements have contributed to the overreliance on mobile devices. People want to access information on the go. Businesses have dived into this trend, and for good reasons too.
Acquiring vital information through your smartphone is fundamental in the modern business environment. Real-time access to information can influence decisions that give you a competitive advantage.
Thus, it is vital to integrate mobile actionable intelligence solutions in your business. You can send, receive, or retrieve information on the go. This is essential for timely decision-making. You can access the information through your smartphone, tablet, or laptop.
This means that you can close new deals, serve your clientele, and make strategic decisions on the go.
Summary
Most businesses spend a reasonable amount of their income on sales and marketing. It is only fair that this expenditure generates tangible results for the company. They expect more revenue, more customers, and competitive advantage.
This has not always been possible in the past, though. But, with business intelligence tools, it is becoming a common realisation.
Business Intelligence involves the processes involved in collecting, storing, and analyzing data. This data can be from the businesses’ operations about products, customers, and competition. It helps to improve performance.
It also assists in product positioning and preventing challenges before they occur.
Businesses can now access data reports that show what is working and what is not. They can also get suggestions about what needs to be done. The intelligence offers data-based insights to achieve your marketing goals. It becomes easier to understand customers and study their behaviour. You can also gauge the effectiveness of your marketing strategies across various channels.
Are you leveraging business intelligence to increase the sales of your products? Give us a call today and get a quote for our business solutions.