In the age of big data, many marketers are still prioritising instincts and experience over hard facts, according to new research.
One in four marketers regularly rely on their ‘gut instincts’ when making decisions and planning their campaigns. That’s according to research from experience management company Qualtrics, carried out with 250 in-house marketing professionals.
The research also shows that:
- 86% of marketers rely on ‘gut feel’ at least some of the time
- 85% of marketers collect data from 15 or more sources to inform their marketing decisions
- 63% agree they need more than traditional Operational Data to build an effective customer experience
The findings, which were launched in Qualtrics’ “Experience Data – The New Competitive Advantage” report, reveal that 86% of marketers admit to relying on ‘gut feel’ at least some of the time. Despite this fact however, 85% of those surveyed collect data from 15 or more sources in order to inform their marketing approaches.
As many as 75% of marketers analyse these varied data sources at least once a month, yet 63% agree that they need more than traditional Operational Data to build an effective customer experience.
Caroline Mogford, EMEA Marketing Director, Qualtrics, comments: “Marketers certainly aren’t short of data – but when so many are still relying on gut feel, it’s clear there’s a gap between the data they have and the data they need.
“The most successful marketers are closing that gap by looking at a new type of data – Experience Data (X Data). This looks beyond the traditional marketing metrics that tell you what’s happened in the past and looks at the ‘why’ behind this data.
“When you can understand the key drivers behind your core metrics you can use data rather than gut feel to identify the improvements that will have the biggest impact on your organisation.”
To find out more about the role of X-Data in customer experience management, download the Qualtrics report here.
Methodology
Qualtrics commissioned a survey with a panel of 260 marketing professionals. All respondents worked in-house (rather than agency-side) in UK-based organisations employing at least 50 people and had a minimum of two years’ experience in a marketing role.