Data – From Big to Small and Real to Old

From last couple of days I am thinking about different marketing campaigns their designs, usage of different channels and most importantly role of data playing in them. During this wasted thinking items I was asking one question to myself.

Is it a good idea to go after real time data or depend on your predictive models for marketing? Now let me tell you why I am behind data this time. If I am correct the most important and expensive piece in any planning is data. More specifically so called real time data, you must be wondering why I am calling it ‘so called’ when the whole world is calling it otherwise?

The main reason behind this is why we call it as real time is the data just came out of the system. It’s as true / valid as it can be. It gives you the knowledge of what your customers / listeners / readers / prospective customers / the WORLD is thinking right now or doing right now or looking for right now. It can make you king / queen as you have the power to use the data as you want to make you successful. Now after all these you must be thinking that if I am agreeing to this then why I am not supporting the concept of it? The idea of using the real time data and become successful is a myth.

Four points to support my points,

• Real time data are way too expensive and get the actual value becomes hard for some company
• Getting meaningful information from those huge / small and clustered / un-clustered data takes some time
• Mold your existing / planned campaign with respect to the market demand and the kind of information coming out of these real time data takes time
• Decision making process in every company takes its own sweet time depending upon the company size and decision making flexibility

In above four points last three ones can take any time between couple of days to weeks to months, which actually makes the data no more real time but old time. As you know real time data in consumers market changes every day and business market might be not that fast because but it changes every quarter. So by the time you are ready to take an action on the data it became invalid for current time as some vendor will be ready to give you real time data of that date.

Once all these thinking done, I was looking for an easy way out. And guess what I had one which cheaper too. Let’s use the older data (a year may be) and a proven predictive model to give you an answer of what you are looking for. I think the older data are cheaper than real time. And I always feel comfortable working with older data and a proven statistical models to get the answers regarding campaign planning. This plan does work for me (Would love to know your experience on this).

Exclude the artificial intelligence systems which are making use of real time data, because they are best combinations for this concept. Gist of it can be if you have to make use of real time data in proper way, prepare a human free model.

Now the question is whether you are ready to pay, loads for something which you can’t actually use as it’s sold. It would be great if you can let me know your take on this in comments below, as I love to change my concepts if I am wrong.

This is a personal scribble ground. The opinions expressed here are all personal they do not express any direct or indirect linkage to the organization I am attached to. But I love changes so they might be changing time to time. :o)