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The infinite stream of information in the 21st century world has created many new possibilities for companies. Analytics that track consumers across Web pages, tweets, blogs and other content posted every minute create a wealth of resources for sales reps and marketers who need to develop a greater understanding of their customers’ movements and industries. However, all this information can be overwhelming and distracting. There’s simply too much of it to deal with. To many executives, Big Data is large and intimidating. However, if you find a way to cut through the noise, you can reduce the flood to a more manageable trickle. To do this you need the right infrastructure, tools and attitude.

Executives Want More Information For the most part, executives are on board with using data, even if they don’t know how to approach it. A CSO Insights survey cited by Business News Daily found 89 percent of executives believe that sales reps missed out on sales opportunities because they weren’t up to date on what was going on with customers and prospects. In addition, the survey found that salespeople often need to look at as many as 15 different sources to find usable information about prospects. The time spent looking through the CRM, social media accounts and doing Google searches all adds up. And after you’ve finished looking through all these sources, your data may not be organized.

Not All Data is the Right Data According to a recent article from Forbes, many businesses hear about big data analytics and try to jump on board without really thinking it through. As the magazine explains, you need to consider carefully which data will help you achieve your goals and what will just add more noise. You need the right tools to navigate the flood, otherwise it will remain unmanageable. For example, if your goal is to use market intelligence to gain a better understanding of your customer’s industry, you need to find a way to hone in on the details that matter.

How Companies Can Gain From the Right Intelligence When businesses have access to a platform that streamlines the Niagara-level flood of data into a navigable canal, sales reps and marketers suddenly have insight that can help improve revenue productivity. Your sales reps can plug into the client’s world and see trigger events they can use to create more targeted sales pitches. They can see events on the horizon that will change the market, like the introduction of new products, activity of competitors, or changing management. They will have the ability to answer questions their potential clients haven’t figured out how to ask yet. In short, while big data may seem unwieldy, you can harness it to improve sales productivity.

Getting Customer Intelligence in the C-Suite Businesses tend to perform better when they have high-level executives dedicated to successfully implementing big data initiatives. According to Mckinsey, different companies need to assess how management can best approach introducing analytics into the business sphere. Often, chief marketing officers may take the reigns on these initiatives. On the other hand, depending on the individual needs of your company, it could be an idea to create a whole new role to manage the implementation of customer intelligence and make sure it is successful from upper management down to the sales teams that use the knowledge to craft better pitches.

By choosing the right solution, your company can figure out how to use Big Data successfully to make a difference in your sales and marketing strategies.

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