Is Sales & Marketing Data As Good As It Needs to Be?

Sales and marketing teams are continually gathering essential information through data. While executive leaders  acknowledge the crucial importance of capturing, managing, and utilizing data, they admit there is room for improvement. To better understand their data management concerns, challenges, and strategies, Dun & Bradstreet surveyed 160+ sales, marketing, and revenue executives. 

Survey respondents readily admitted their data struggles, and many are experiencing the consequences of poor data management and ineffective usage. Only 38% think they’re doing at least “somewhat better” than their competitors; nearly the same number say they’re doing “about  the same” as the competition.

The same holds true when it comes to data utilization. Approximately one-third of the sales, marketing, and revenue leaders believe they’re performing “somewhat better” than their competitors in this area, while 35% say they’re performing “about the same.”

In other words, it’s no secret that most organizations struggle with data in some way. 

Third-Party Data: The Puzzle Piece Executives Are Missing 

According to the survey results, 85% of sales and marketing leaders wish they had insights beyond what their current data reveals so they could accomplish more of their marketing and sales goals. Only 15% say they have all the data they need to meet their goals. 

For example, 44% believe that having more data would increase company revenue, while 43% think more data would help support cross-selling or upselling, and 33% believe it could increase customer loyalty and retention.

One of the most notable pieces missing from the data puzzle for sales and marketing leaders is third-party data. The companies not integrating third-party data streams into the mix are overlooking the opportunity to discover new audiences and unlock valuable insights. First-party data and third-party data can enrich one another; combining the two can be beneficial.

Being able to identify which companies are in the market for your goods and services is valuable to those who want to target resources strategically, and it also offers insights into the ideal customer profile. This is information you can’t buy off the shelf: You must work collaboratively with a combination of first- and third-party data to understand the intent behind existing investments.

The companies without a third-party data stream are missing the opportunity to discover new audiences and unlock valuable insights.

According to the survey results, the 53% of companies using third-party data are also outpacing the competition. However, they may not be using the data to its full potential.

Although over half of this group successfully integrates third-party data with their other data, the remaining half battles data silo challenges. Third-party data sits in one place while other company data is housed in a separate platform or database.

Data Management Problems: The Root of Business Problems

Survey results indicate these data gaps aren’t simply leaving holes in marketing and sales strategies — they’re potentially impacting profits, too. Poor data management comes with consequences.

Almost everyone in the survey admits to experiencing challenges and negative business outcomes caused by inadequate data practices.

Too many disparate platforms create data silos, which increases inefficiency. They can cause major issues with the data your company produces, including inconsistency, missing and incomplete data, and problems sharing insights across the organization.

Approximately half of respondents say their data issues have led to lost productivity and wasted money, followed closely by lower conversion rates and loss of revenue. 

How Sales and Marketing Leaders Can Win with Data

Sales and marketing leaders can start by leveraging the data at their fingertips, using it to build a reliable, trustworthy data foundation with clear yet stringent processes. This will allow the data foundation to support additional data sources, such as third-party data, to paint a more vibrant picture of key audiences.

The companies that establish ways to improve data management and usage — and then use these newfound strategies as a competitive advantage — are more likely to rise above their competition, close more deals, increase revenue, and improve customer experiences.