BLOG

I had the pleasure of representing Experian Data Quality last week at the Demandware XChange conference in Las Vegas. As many people in the tech world know, Demandware has seen massive growth over the last few years and brought an astounding 700 retailers, 300 partners and 200 employees to the conference this year. I spent the first two days connecting with other LINK Technology and Solution partners as well as learning about Demandware’s plans for joint marketing and promotions to drive additional revenue and referrals.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems allow you to store all your customer and prospect data—think along the lines of contact data, account information and leads—in one location. That kind of localized, accessible data storage platform enables organizations to gain a simplified view of their customers, and if they use it to its fullest potential, also facilitates internal data organization processes, better customer service and a more personalized experience for your consumers.

But what happens when:

• Your current data quality strategy doesn’t use data to its fullest potential?
• The data you store in your CRM is compromised, either by human error or technical limitations?
• You’re letting the data in your CRM just sit there?

Commonly known as an ancient Chinese philosophical method of organization, feng shui is more factually known as the harmonization and orientation of one’s surroundings in an auspicious manner. While feng shui is mostly practiced as a way of strategic organization, let’s take a minute to relate this ancient concept to something a little more abstract: data quality.

We can apply feng shui concepts to data quality in one very simple way—clutter removal. In an optimal clutter-free world, every second we spend on a task would be optimized. Imagine finding what you need when you need it! You could maximize productivity and channel positive energy into endless accomplishment. In a recent study conducted by the Ponemon Institute, Corporate Data: A Protected Asset or a Ticking Time Bomb, 73 percent of end users stated that the growth of numerous types of company data have significantly affected their ability to find and access that data. While it is important to clean, standardize and de-clutter existing dirty data, insuring new data is clean at point-of-capture is truly the key to improving the overall health of data within your organization.

Many of us today are in the market for data quality solutions. In fact, 89 percent of companies are planning to invest in some sort of data quality solution in the next year, with an average of a half a million dollars in budget. But, some companies are already spending much more. Thirteen percent are spending between two and five million dollars and seven percent are spending over five million dollars.

This high degree of investment is not something that should be taken lightly. Companies need to be sure they are working with the right vendors and selecting solutions that can have a material impact on the quality of data and show a return on investment.