50 things I’ve learned: 1. Data vs Insight

Zach Schabot
Jul 20, 2017 · 3 min read

There is a massive difference between data and insight.

WebMD provides data. Doctors provide insight.
iTunes provides data. DJs and rock journalists provide insight.

In my world — in real estate — websites like realtor.com and Zillow provide data. A potential home buyer picks a neighborhood, chooses the number of rooms, checks the boxes, clicks the drop-down menus and the site spits out a list of perfectly-suited homes. Right? Probably not. The list shows exactly what the search requested, but no search results list will be able to provide the feeling of a neighborhood, or the history of a home. Plus these sites are built for searching. The more you search, the more ads they can serve up and the more revenue they generate for their company. If you want to find the meat behind the search results, you have to go to the real estate professionals who can provide insight. These professionals possess the tribal knowledge that lies behind the data and THAT is what people want: truly authentic views of what you’re trying to create, buy and sell.

A non-real estate example: I graduated from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Attending a college at the beach, I wore flip-flops daily. And when you wear flip-flops every day, you develop a pretty specific brand preference. My flops of choice were brown, leather Rainbow sandals. I learned early on that with Rainbows, once your foot makes its imprint on your sandal, you are connected for life. That might sound a little over-exaggerated for flip-flops but seriously, you’ll know immediately if you put on someone else’s Rainbows. Oh, the disconnect!

Then a few years ago, a friend saw my sandals and — in a drunken late-night sales pitch — said, “Oh man, Rainbows? You gotta get some Havianas.” I scoffed at him in defense of my beloved footwear and said there could be nothing better than my Rainbows. But then he closed his eyes and mused, ”Havianas feel like walking on clouds.”

Despite his mint-julep fueled review, I was intrigued. I mean, that was a pretty bold and heartfelt statement about shoes even if it was the bourbon talking. And, as it turns out, I was intrigued enough to buy a pair of these cloud-walkers so I could see for myself. I didn’t want to break up with my Rainbows, but after his comment, I though I’d maybe just, you know, see other shoes for a while. Dammit. He was right. I’m now a multi-brand flop guy. As of today I have owed six pair of Rainbows, three pair of Havianas and one pair of Feelgoodz.

Basically what I’m saying is this: Shoe sizes, sizing charts, colors, materials used, and measurements represent what we would wear (the data), but product descriptions, creative color names, video product demos, suggestive photos and — keep this in mind even if it sounds odd — personal stories from the product developers provide a sense of what it’s like to wear them (the insight). If my friend just said, “look at my flops. They’re blue and size 10 and they cost $30,” I would have rolled my eyes and smiled and walked away with my Rainbows. The data wouldn’t have persuaded me to make a purchase. But cloud-walking? That was heavenly insight that made me a repeat customer.

Think about YOUR life experiences, what insight can you offer to benefit other people?

*Thanks to Matthew Shadbolt who first described this concept to me in such a concise, clear statement. Matthew is the Director of Real Estate Products at the NY Times.

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