The consequences of poor data quality for a business

Trouble with maintaining data quality is an ongoing problem that plagues numerous businesses, and if IT leaders don't take steps to improve the accuracy of their information, there could be serious consequences.

There are many ways that companies make mistakes with compiling and managing customer data. Human error is a big one. For example, when a customer is filling out a form on a business' website, he or she might make a careless mistake such as misspelling a word, providing an outdated address or giving the wrong phone number. Once these mistakes are added to the system, they can be difficult to correct.

They can also lead to long-term issues. Companies rely on accurate data to assist their marketing, sales and customer service efforts. If they don't have the right information on their customers, they're bound to waste time chasing leads that don't exist. Time, as they say, is money.

Research from our 2017 Global Data Management Benchmark Report has indicated just how widespread an impact these quality issues have. We polled numerous businesses about their data woes, and the findings were alarming - 94 percent of US organizations said they faced data governance challenges.

Moreover, there are problems with tapping into customer vision. In this "big data"-driven world, every company is looking to use more customer information for analyzing operations and finding ways to improve. Unfortunately, though, quality issues can make this next to impossible. Our benchmark report found that 92 percent of organizations don't have a single customer view in place today.

Problems with data quality are practically inevitable. To err is human, and nearly everyone makes the occasional mistake entering customer information into databases. It's essential that companies take action to protect their data - if not, the consequences can be staggering.