Is Big Data the villain or the superhero of the movie?
Regarding technology matters, I have always considered myself to be “traditional,” “old-fashioned,” or like my mom likes to describe me: “an old soul trapped in a millennial body.”
Sometimes, I feel I am the only one still taking notes on a notebook instead of using a laptop during my classes. Also, nothing gives me more gratification in life than holding a new book in my hands (I have to confess I am still a little offended by the idea of e-books and audiobooks). I have social media accounts, but I am that kind of person who will always prefer human interaction over screen interaction.
The truth is, even if we like it or not, technology is everywhere, and we can not fight against the fact that it makes our lives easier. Nowadays, there is nowhere to hide from it, but is that good or bad? At least for marketers, that is great news.
Still, if you ask me about technologies like Big Data and Artificial Intelligence, I would say those are great and essential tools for any marketing campaign. They basically allow you to gather infinite amounts of information, from tracking users’ online behaviors, for better decision making and targeted ads. It helps companies understand what people think about their product, who they are, and where the company stands among the competition. We live in a “Datafication” era where everything we do, say, and do not even say, can be easily turned into valuable information ready to analyze and interpret.
As a consumer, the use of Big Data sounds creepy, intimidating, and extremely invasive, with a complete lack of privacy. It might be true that this situation has gotten out of control since data became extremely valuable for companies, and others started to sell or re-use users’ data in questionable ways. Those actions caused several controversies like Cambridge Analytica and Facebook during Donald Trump Presidential Campaign in 2016, which triggered some consciousness and mistrust among consumers. We started wondering: What are companies doing with our data? How many aspects of our private life are we giving away in cyberspace? With the use of Big Data, there is a lack of transparency that must be amended immediately.
Even if we understand how companies use our data, it is hard to control or avoid it. We live in a world full of online “surveillance,” “cookies,” and now even “fingerprinting,” which allows companies to identify your persona based on your computer’s information like the battery status. As Jodi Avirgan explained in the same article, one of the risks implicated in that constant “surveillance” is that people might lose their intellectual freedom and the right to share valuable ideas and opinions privately. If they feel tracked online, people might change their behavior, and digital platforms like social media should always be a “safe space.”
Still, it seems clear the problem is not about Big Data but how it is used. As marketers, we have an outstanding tool and an increased opportunity to use that collected data to provide an added value back to people, instead of just taking advantage of the information, manipulating peoples´ purchasing behaviors and preferences just to increase the ROI of a company. How many times have we been targeted online with excessive and persuasive ads that we end up clicking, liking, or buying the product even though we do not really need it? I have done it infinite times.
Marketers and organizations should always ask themselves: How is the data about customers being used to help customers? Big Data and Artificial Intelligence tools have endless benefits when business and marketing goals are customer-oriented. For instance, AI uses data to make marketers’ jobs easier, machines smarter, but especially consumers’ lives more personalized and optimized (in the right way).
Like I mentioned before, Big data allows marketers to gather insightful information about each of us. However, they should always use it to target us with ads that truly give us joy, solve our real needs, help us make better decisions, and our lives better and easier. That will increase the ROI of any company as well, but through more ethical and transparent practices.
There are so many ways that marketers already leverage data to provide excellent customer service. Marketers should always use Big Data to track consumers’ past experiences to enhance future ones and provide extra value throughout the different consumer’s life cycles (not only pre-sale). I think anyone appreciates it when we call a company for customer service, and it seems they already know ahead of time what our concerns are and are ready to provide a solution.
I will always prioritize human connections, experiences, and emotions in my life. However, I will always embrace technologies that enhance those human experiences. For that reason, Big Data will never be the bad guy in the movie, and we should not be scare about it.
The problem is that consumer’s data has earned so much power, value, and easy access that everyone wants a piece of it, but not everyone makes the best with it. Marketers and organizations should make a significant effort to reinforce consumers’ trust by using their data transparently in ways that will primarily benefit those consumers and not the company itself. Consumers need to feel confident that their data is secure against cyber breaches.
However, do I think that is going to happen any time soon? I am not so confident about it.
