As we approach the middle of 2018 we are still facing a chronic tech skills deficit. The critical issue remains that the demand for highly technical skills is outpacing the growth of the talent, with the need for data science talent still in high demand.
This is especially critical in the marketing world, where data science provides valuable insights on currents trends far beyond the analytics of a typical marketer. Data scientists work closely with the marketing function by using data points and trends to help tweak content to meet demand. That is why having data science resources, whether outsourced or inhouse, is vital within the marketing function of any business.
All marketers know that ROI is key to any marketing function and senior marketers are expected to quantify results as justification for keeping budgets and strategies together. Marketers hold data within their campaigns and collect it to improve their strategy, however large amounts of data can be very complex and comprehensive, increasing the demand for data scientists as customer data is essential to making marketing decisions.
However, the skills shortage doesn’t mean that all marketers should become data scientists. What is needed is for businesses to understand that the two departments work better when working together. Here are our top three tips on how businesses can integrate marketing with data science.
1. In-house or Outsourced.
Having your own dedicated data science function within a business can be great, however if you are starting out in exploring this field there are many factors to consider when recruiting. Due to the nature of the demand, data scientists are an expensive hire. For example, hiring a team of four could set you back £250,000 on their salaries alone. Plus, you will also have to make sure you have enough work for them, as hard as it is finding data science talent, it is equally as hard retaining them.
If you choose to outsource instead, there are many organisations that offer consultancy services or something similar. Pivigo is one company who specialises in bite-sized data science projects, helping many organisations with their data science needs via their global marketplace.
2. Breakdown silos
Okay, so you are outsourcing your data science needs, and they want to see the data, so they can understand how they can improve the ROI on the different marketing channels used. But you don’t know where this is stored or who looks after what function?
This is so important to any data science project because data science cannot consider data it doesn’t have.
3. Time is off the essence
By having a large marketing team — SEO, Social, Digital, perhaps even R&D — each department will have its own data. Make sure the data collected is clean to use and stored appropriately in line with the new GDPR legislations. Keeping your data relevant and up to date is vital, showing past trends and how they correlate to present ones. The focus is on fresh data, so your decisions are made based on what is best for your current market.
Who knows what the future will hold, however it doesn’t diminish the importance of data science in marketing. If anything, it should compel marketers to get their data in order, to benefit from data science and to empower them to analyse data alongside scientists.
If you want to find out more about how Pivigo can help your marketing team, get in touch today. www.pivigo.com/contact