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Summary
SPARKLANE is an editor of predictive lead scoring solutions for B2B marketing and sales. The company has now more than 600 clients in the UK and France, among them a majority of large accounts such as Google, Nikon, Samsung, Linkedin‌ Each day, SPARKLANE posts new articles on its blog Sales & Marketing Insiders. Those articles are written by EORJJHUV LQȾXHQFHUV MRXUQDOLVWV DQG marketers, on topics regarding sales, marketing and their innovations. We have chosen to gather in this blog book some of the most relevant articles published by our contributors on the topic  How to boost your sales prospection? 
Big Data & Predictive Analytics: Beyond the Buzzwords Sam HURLEY Every business today needs one essential piece of kit: a crystal ball. If you could predict the future, risk and waste would be avoided. You wouldn’t need to apply guesswork as to what your prospects or existing customers are thinking; business operations would undoubtedly run very smoothly. I’m not here to show you how to predict the future, but to explain the next best thing: predictive analytics, leveraging big data. When predictive analytics is applied to ‘big data’, you can almost see into the future...
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Finding Hidden Opportunities via Sales Triggers Michael LEVY The Internet has seriously upended the relaWLRQVKLS EHWZHHQ % % EX\HUV DQG VHOOHUV $ dozen years ago, buyers were much less informed about your company, products, and competitors than they are now. The seller drove the purchasing process. According to research SHUIRUPHG E\ WKH &RUSRUDWH ([HFXWLYH %RDUG D few years ago, 57% of the purchasing decision is now completed before the purchaser contacts any vendors. Nowadays, the buyer drives the purchasing process. In this context, what is the secret of successful
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sales reps? Well, let's discover together the opportunities provided by sales triggers.
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7 tips to make your Sales staff love their CRM system! FrĂŠdĂŠric CANEVET Sometimes, when you talk about CRM to some VDOHV VWDÎ? LWȇV OLNH LI ZHȇG VDLG D GLUW\ ZRUGČ? However, the CRM tool should be popular DPRQJ VDOHV VWDÎ? VLQFH LW HQDEOHV WKHP WR EHFRPH IDVWHU DQG PRUH HÉ?FLHQWČ? :KHUH does this misunderstanding come from? In this article, you will discover why sales reps are not VDWLVČ´HG E\ WKHLU &50 DQG KRZ WR PDNH WKHP fall (back) in love with that essential tool.
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So what can be done? How can we change this situation and make the exercise both pleasant and constructive as much for the salespeople placing the calls as for the prospects receiving them?
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Without Big Data, there is no 360° view of the customer! Alain CLAPAUD At a time when all CEOs are declaring loud and clear that the customer is now at the centre of WKHLU VWUDWHJ\ WKH UHDOLW\ LV PXFK OHVV ČľDWWHULQJ &XVWRPHU LQIRUPDWLRQ LV GLÎ?XVHG ZLWKLQ FRPSDQLHV DQG UHPDLQV LQFRPSOHWH DQG GLÉ?FXOW WR FRUUHODWH %LJ 'DWD Č´QDOO\ RÎ?HUV D ZD\ RI DFKLHving the 360° view that all companies are chasing.
P.24 B2B Prospection: Get rid of Cold Calls! Kieran LE PERON
How to achieve “smart� prospection on Social Media Carine ROUCHER
This is real life observation. Whatever the comSDQ\ ZKDWHYHU WKH Č´HOG % % VDOHVSHRSOH generally dislike “hard slogâ€? prospecting. Nobody wants to spend the day on the phone cold calling. It’s a hard job, one that can be psychologically exhausting if repeated and without tangible results. At the other end of the line, prospects too dislike salespeople calling them, and often interrupting the course of their day.
7KDQNV WR VRFLDO PHGLD D % % VDOHVSHUVRQ KDV never had so much formal and informal data available to get to know their prospects. So long as you abide by some rules and show some tact. And never devote all of your sales HÎ?RUWV WR WKLV FKDQQHO DORQH DV LW GRHV KDYH some limitations.
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The secret of sustained sales performance Kieran LE PERON We live in an increasingly fast-paced world. Whether in our private lives or our professional environment, everything is accelerating. It is becoming harder and harder to take the time to do things. Very often, the most interesting deals take time to settle down. Sales people working on big deals with major accounts know this. You have to know how to show patience and tenacity. Discover in this article the four pillars of a successful long-term client relationship.
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10 effective techniques for exploding your B2B sales targets! Frédéric CANEVET This situation should remind many sales and marketing managers of something: the end of the quarter is quickly approaching and you still have some way to go in terms of hitting your sales targets… It is time to put what I call the “Disaster Contingency Sales Plan” in place, WKDWȇV WR VD\ WR LPSOHPHQW D SODQ RI VSHFLȴF actions aiming to hit targets in under 3 months. Discover 10 techniques that will help you explode your quarterly, even monthly, sales targets!
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Every business today needs one essential piece of kit: a crystal ball. If you could predict the future, risk and waste would be avoided. You wouldn’t need to apply guesswork as to what your prospects or existing customers are thinking; business operations would undoubtedly run very smoothly.
BIG DATA & PREDICTIVE ANALYTICS: BEYOND THE BUZZWORDS Sam HURLEY
I’m not here to show you how to predict the future, but to explain the next best thing: predictive analytics, leveraging big data. When predictive analytics is applied to ‘big data’, you can almost see into the future...
Unpicking the Buzzwords Clear of buzz and jargon, here are my GHȴQLWLRQV RI WKH WZR WHUPV Big data refers to the eternal galaxy of
recordable raw numbers and stats generated every second of each day by all devices, whether online (typically the case) or offline (prior to digital storage for utilisation). Data is constantly accumulated by intelligence agencies, data centres and businesses in the digital age and has been for many years. Every web page session, app load, product sale, instant message and each shake of a wearable device...literally all digitally-recordable actions we take create footprints. The collective term of which, is known as big data. You could refer to your own website YLVLWV DV GDWD %XW DOO PHWULFV RI HYHU\
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Source: Working with Big Data by Seth Familian
single website in your industry would be classed as big data. Similarly, amassed granular records from the day-to-day running of a large enterprise business would be classed as big data; including all transactions and where they took place, customer service queries, staff in and out, profits and losses, electricity consumed, stock fluctuation, social media engagement, website metrics plus much, much more. Predictive analytics is a way to
analyse such data sets; discovering helpful patterns relative to your particular objectives. These patterns can be used to forecast future outcomes. This not only means identifying overall trends of the whole data set but also granular tendencies of smaller subsets. For instance, locating a fractional group of action-takers and comparing their habits with another.
%LJ GDWD LQ LWVHOI LV RI QR UHDO XVH WR DQ\ERG\ There is simply too much of it to be valuable DQG LWV YHU\ QDWXUH LV XQVWUXFWXUHG %XW Ȃ when you combine big data with predictive analytics, something quite remarkable takes place... Your business can connect the dots; uncovering trends in processes, sales and customer behaviour. Through accurate forecasting based on historical patterns, this harmonious blend RHUV KLJKO\ DFWLRQDEOH LQVLJKWV WR LPSURYH future business performance. That of course, means streamlined activity DQG RSWLPDO SURȴW
The Potential for Businesses Can such a combination mirror a crystal ball? In terms of being able to unscramble patWHUQV RI FDXVH DQG HHFW IURP KXJHO\ FRPplex data sets…it certainly comes close.
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Paul Trujillo1 GHȴQHV WKUHH ZD\V ELJ GDWD can be used to improve business performance:
Gail Gardner2 explains three great use-cases of Paul’s ideas listed above: You can use consumer behavioural
To provide in-depth customer
insight. This helps you to strengthen relationships and understand what your customers really want.
insights to target customers, applying specific pricing promotions likely to be of interest at any given time. You are able to constantly predict
To identify issues in business pro-
cesses. You can solve these problems to produce efficiency gains. To transform supplier networks.
You need to move towards real-time knowledge-sharing and away from rudimentary, purely transactional relationships. The potential is growing just as fast as the data:
machinery downtime, allowing you to circumvent productivity spikes or install additional equipment ahead of any disruption. Your business and customers can
benefit from better information security, using data to reveal patterns of risk such as hacks, fraud and theft – including where or how they may be initiated.
Source: Working with Big Data by Seth Familian
1- www.waspbarcode.com/buzz/3-ways-predictive-analytics-can-harness-your-big-data 2- smallbiztrends.com/2016/08/predictive-analytics-examples.html
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Paul Trujillo also touched on two common examples: using physical location analysis of purchases in a supermarket to maximise sales and the tracking of barcodes / use of inventory systems to improve stock control. The possibilities are endless and many of us can begin implementing similar ideas right now with the best predictive insight tools available3 for marketing and sales teams.
The Holy Grail for Marketers? What if you could take all the data regarding customer lifestyle across every platform – transactions, web browsing, social media activity, interests, demographics, inclination – and drill into it to produce meaningful trends, right down to the individual? Could you predict the spending habits of each customer to completely personalise their unique experience? Well, that would be the pinnacle of marketing insight right there. More on the answer in a moment... When it comes to such a level of personalisation, privacy concerns are always raised. It’s a double-edged sword – some argue this extent of individual forecasting is what customers actually want and more importantly, what they will demand in future (without exception).
3- www.sparklane-group.com/en/home
2014 57%
2015
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According to the Ponemon Institute’s 2015 State of Data Security Intelligence Report, IT’s Biggest worry - not knowing where sensitive data resides - is only growing. Source: Informatica
In the digital age, consumers expect brands to intuitively respond to their individual needs with almost immediate HHFW 7KLV H[SHFWDWLRQ RI LPPHGLDF\ LV only matched with the expectance of customer service on a peer-like basis. Marketing is constantly growing in complexity and such campaigns must be data-driven. Yet, the crystal ball would not only present itself as a marketing device; it could be a customer service mechanism, a sales aid and a way to build solid loyalty. Think: real-time analysis of what is sold, who’s buying on what device plus the timing and location. It would be a way to ensure sales are swift, secure and delightful while simultaneously providing feedback on how to improve and adapt the entire process to suit both customer and business...does that enthuse you? It should do!
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The Limitations So, can big data predictive algorithms really tell us everything, down to the individual? Can the crystal ball calculate future occurrences in their entirety..?
ULJKW KHUH RQ 6SDUNODQH H[SODLQHG Č´QGLQJV from Stanford University: just 0.5 per cent of all digital data collected by businesses is actually serviceable for the purposes of predictive analytics. In addition, check the stats on perceptions regarding inaccuracy of data:
The truth is: not just yet. A basic example: ‘personalised’ internet ads, otherwise known as remarketing or retargeting ads that follow you around as you browse. On the run up to Christmas, if someone YLVLWV D Č´WQHVV ZHEVLWH ZLWK D YLHZ WR VWDUting a New Year’s resolution in January, that does not necessarily mean they want to buy running shoes there and then in November... Aside from that, aggressive remarketing DOWKRXJK DQ HÎ?HFWLYH QXUWXUH WDFWLF FDQ feel pretty creepy if overdone. Consumers outside the knowledge of ad technology will feel violated. This results in zero gains across the board. When big data and predictive analytics are HÎ?HFWLYHO\ FRPELQHG VXFK LQWHOOLJHQFH SURYLGHV DFFXUDF\ IRUPHG IURP TXDOLČ´FDtion. However, as Matt Masui4 points out, human behaviour is inherently unpredictable. Data isn’t always great at forecasting that – unless you want to get into advanced analysis and chaos theory. Where’s Einstein when you need him? %LJ GDWD DOVR KDV LWV RZQ SUREOHPV $Q insightful piece from Yann Gourvennec5
26% According to Experian’s 2015 Data Quality Benchmark Report, organizations suspect 26% of their data to be inaccurate. Source: Informatica
Isn’t that incredible yet at the same time, truly disappointing? %LJ GDWD LV RIWHQ XQVWUXFWXUHG LQFRPSOHWH invalid and too confusing to produce the desired outcomes. Development is required in the methods used to cleanse such huge amounts of multifaceted data.
The Human Touch %LJ GDWD DQG SUHGLFWLYH DQDO\WLFV DUH WKH closest you will get to a crystal ball. However, you still need a fortune teller: someone who can read the predictions and make decisions based on them –
4- www.cmswire.com/analytics/give-predictive-analytics-a-boost-with-the-human-touch 5-www.sparklane-group.com/en/2016/05/02/what-impact-does-big-data-have-on-decision-making
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conclusions only a human could accurately deduce. There will always be a human element of unpredictable, random behaviour in any test, campaign or observation. Is it possible to create an algorithm to predict such behaviour..? I’d say, highly unlikely. At least, not anytime during the next couple of decades! You can’t rely solely on algorithms to tell you what customers want. You need their chatter and you must listen; interacting on ground level to gain qualitative feedback. However, the crystal ball does play an important part in predicting what’s coming next. That is why a combination of big data, predictive analytics and the human HOHPHQW LV D VXUH ȴUH ZD\ WR DFKLHYH balanced and accurate foresight. Nicholas Ismail6 discusses the ‘3 pillars’ in approaching big data and predictive analytics for business. He covers desirability, feasibility and viability of problem discoveU\ IROORZHG E\ UHFWLȴFDWLRQ RI VXFK LVVXHV with the ability to quantify impact. These are intrinsically, human decisions – which explains why many companies are still struggling to piece together the big data puzzle. Robots aren’t taking over just yet...
storage and intuitive software have made big data and predictive analytics more accessible than ever before, hence the KHDG ȴUVW MXPS WDNHQ E\ PDQ\ ZKR SRVsibly aren’t quite ready to tame the beast. If something is accessible and powerful, you VKRXOG FHUWDLQO\ EH XVLQJ LW Ȃ ȴUVW DQG IRUHmost, with a fundamental understanding of the system on which it is based. Big data and predictive analytics are already playing a key role, supporting businesses in designing their customer journeys and streamlining operational aspects. As reliance on automation only increases, so will demand for predictive systems. There’s no escaping it – if you’re not up on your game, your competitors will be. I’ll leave you with some big data eye candy!
SOME INTERESTING FACTS
90% of world’s existing data has been created LQ WKH ODVW \HDUV
1 Billion - Pieces of content shared on Facebook shared on a daily basis
2.5 Quintillion - The amount of data generated by people everyday
6 Billion - Hours of video watched on Youtube every month
271 Million - Monthly active users on Twitter The Future? Ajay Ohri7 claims that cheaper data
2.7 Zetabytes - Amount of data in the digital universe Source: Kensvalley Technologies
6-www.information-age.com/technology/data-centre-and-it-infrastructure/123461857/3-p illars-big-data-analytics-potential 7- adaptivesystemsinc.com/blog/predictive-analytics-moving-beyond-buzzword-action
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