How can Publishers Use Big Data Effectively?

The term ‘big data’ was something of a buzzword in 2013 and the concept continues to cause confusion among company executives.

Due to this lack of understanding, it seems the phrase is often misinterpreted to describe anything that is remotely data-related.

For media outlets, the growing demand for digital content has led to a big data boom, with huge amounts of new registration, subscription and usage analytics data being processed every day.

One thing is for sure, publishers need to make the most of this customer information – specifically data that highlights an individual’s online behavior – if they are to fulfil their potential in the coming years.

Consumers are now using multiple devices to view paid content and keeping track of the terabytes of data that is generated each day is arguably one of the biggest challenges facing publishers in 2014.

Companies may have found new digital monetization methods in the past few years, but converting big data into revenue is a different matter entirely.

To maximize profits, it is vital that businesses have access to sophisticated customer relationship management (CRM) platforms.

While CRM is not a silver bullet that will analyze all of your data for you, it does provide publishers with a single centralized silo of data which in turn enables a single customer view. This allows publishers to consolidate and analyze all of their valuable information from one place and removes the risk of duplication.

In an article for INMA last year, Dirk Milbou, business manager/consumer relations for Belgian media-based company De Persgroep, said firms are “drowning in data, but not capitalizing on it”. He added it is important to “build a 360-degree consumer view”, as this makes it easier for businesses to leverage big data.

Companies can see who is paying for their content, get a better idea of what people are reading and find out where they are consuming these articles.

Marketers can use this data to launch more targeted campaigns that appeal to specific individuals, rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach to promotional drives.

Getting the most out of big data can be a lengthy process, but you are far more likely to succeed if all of your information is in good order to start with.

Companies should also introduce a predictive customer churn model, which will enable them to develop a better understanding of when subscribers are most likely to cancel their membership. This can make it easier for marketers and salespeople to launch successful winback campaigns.

Something else publishers should consider is differential profile pricing, whereby customers are charged varying amounts to access certain content.

MPP Global will be at Digital Media Strategies taking place between March 3 and 5 to discuss big data and all the very latest innovations in digital content monetization.