Why Most Marketers Today Are ‘Data Janitors’

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Marketers today have a wide array of data they can analyze to get insight into messaging, campaigns and target markets, but having too much data can quickly transform into a burden. According to new data from marketing platform SOCi shared exclusively with Forbes, 41% of marketers spend at least half of their time preparing data for use in campaigns and analysis. And more than a third say they spend 25% to 50% of their time on the task. SOCi CMO Monica Ho said in a written statement that this represents a “red flag.”

“It indicates a major efficiency gap in our industry as marketers have turned into data janitors,” she said.

If preparing data takes a significant amount of work before it can be analyzed, taking action on insights becomes more of a challenge—both in the amount of time there is available to do it, and considering how much mental energy marketers may have to act on it. More than half said integrating the data was their biggest challenge—34% said it was integrating structured and unstructured data, while 27% said it was integrating data from different platforms and tools. Cleaning and formatting data to be used for analysis was the largest challenge for 22% of respondents, while 15% said it’s the sheer volume of data.

So what’s a marketer to do with this deluge of dirty data? In the study, SOCi writes that these problems are hindering the ability of new AI platforms to perform deep analysis—which could be an indicator that marketers should invest in other AI tools. Data cleaning and integration is certainly tedious, but most of the work involved is relatively simple tasks. It can be a matter of pasting items into a spreadsheet, searching for keywords in code, changing fonts or reformatting numbers—things that AI platforms are able to do. AI advocates talk about how this technology can enhance the workplace by boosting worker efficiency and freeing up time for more creative work. But if marketers are spending too much time preparing data for a deep AI analysis, the efficiency gains could be effectively erased.

IN THE NEWS

Even though TikTok is used daily by millions of Americans and has become a prominent channel for brand and influencer messaging, it’s well known that what lies behind the China-owned social media platform is less than optimal. Forbes’ Alexandra Levine reports that sensitive advertising data was mishandled by TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance. According to Levine’s reporting, competitive information about advertisers ranging from small companies to international business behemoths has been vulnerable and easily accessed by employees both in the U.S. and China. ByteDance workers had wide access to advertisers’ financial agreements and tax information, data from pixels placed on ads to glean customer information, and creative assets. Sources in the network’s advertising division said they were operating under a money-at-all-costs mentality, with managers pushing questionable tactics including sharing competitors’ creative, targeting and campaign investments in order to push further investment in the platform. Neither TikTok nor several advertisers responded to Forbes’ requests for comment.

SOCIAL MEDIA

In less than a month on the stock market, Truth Social parent company Trump Media & Technology Group has been in freefall, with shares down more than 60% from their peak. That hasn’t stopped former President Donald Trump from celebrating with an opulent party at his Mar-a-Lago club, or announcing a new streaming platform. The platform will push out content on the Truth Social app, as well as on dedicated streaming apps for phones, tablets and home TVs. The company said the content will include “news networks, religious channels, family-friendly content including films and documentaries; and other content that has been canceled, is at risk of cancellation, or is being suppressed.” No time frame for the launch or other details have been announced. On its own, this announcement didn’t help Trump Media. Share prices dropped another 14% throughout the day on Tuesday.

Another big change may be in the works for X. Owner Elon Musk suggested in a post that the social network formerly known as Twitter may start charging small fees for new user access. The fee wouldn’t do much to pad the network’s coffers, but is meant to control bots posting on the site, something the social network has begun cracking down on this month. The social network began testing a similar “Not A Bot” program in New Zealand and the Philippines last year, charging new and unverified users $1 annually for basic functions. Results of that test have not been made public, but it’s worth noting bots really are becoming huge problems, and not just on social media. The 2024 Imperva Bad Bot Report found bots now account for nearly half of all global internet traffic.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

A new report on customer engagement from Twilio says 81% of brands claim to have a deep understanding of their customers, but only 46% of customers say the same thing about brands. If nothing else, this one statistic shows why deep engagement—which can be less intensive for marketers when using AI platforms—is vital for today’s brands. For its study, Twilio analyzed several brands’ customer engagement maturity, finding just 17% were engagement leaders. That 17% reported an average revenue increase of 123% in the last year due to that engagement, opposed to a 30% increase for “low maturity” businesses. Customers like this level of engagement, Twilio found. More than half (55%) said they are willing to pay more for a customized experience, and they reported spending 36% more on these brands. Nearly half (48%) said personalization and engagement have led to repeat purchases from a brand. Forbes contributor Daniel Newman writes the disconnect between brand understanding and customers is likely a combination of brands not collecting or using the right data to improve customer experience and customers’ unrealistic expectations of what’s possible with AI.

DEEP DIVE

The Forbes Entrepreneurial CMO 50

In today’s world of quickly changing news cycles, ever-shifting messages, new platforms to reach customers, new technologies and economic ups and downs, being a CMO is a challenge. The third annual Forbes Entrepreneurial CMO 50 list recognizes marketing leaders who took risks, disrupted the status quo and made an impact toward growing and transforming their brands and businesses.

This year’s honorees include veterans from big companies, like GE CMO Linda Boff. After a decade as CMO, Boff has helped lead GE’s transformation in the public eye as the company is splitting into three distinct entities: GE HeathCare, GE Vernova and GE Aerospace. Boff led GE’s takeover of all ad space in the New York Times’ print edition, as well as most of its premier digital advertising, in December 2022 to introduce the split.

Brad Hiranaga, chief brand officer for outdoor clothing and gear brand Cotopaxi was also honored. He told Forbes he is taking the startup on a journey from the intrapreneurial to entrepreneurial, redesigning its marketing capabilities and culture and expanding into new media channels. He’s also kept the brand’s mission of doing social good at the center of its messaging.

Other honorees have changed the paradigm of how their industries are perceived. Boston Beer Company CMO Lesya Lysyj encouraged her team to try different things, which led to someone marrying a can of Hard Mountain Dew, creating Twisted Tea-branded underwear dubbed “Vasectomundies” with ice pockets for men recovering from the procedure during March Madness, and a Dry January giveaway of nonalcoholic Sam Adams Just the Haze to partners of pregnant people. Chime CMO Vineet Mehra built the online bank as a digital first and social media driven brand, talking like a member of a community and earning nearly 1 million followers on Instagram. And Maggie Schmerin, United Airlines chief advertising officer, helped create a six-minute holiday rom-com that was promoted on Bumble.

Overall, 76% of the marketers on this year’s list are from publicly traded companies, 80% of which are headquartered in the U.S. A majority—62%—are women, and 32% are people of color.

FACTS + COMMENTS

During its regular season, the NBA broke attendance records for the second year in a row, the league said.

71%: Proportion of sold out regular season games, up from 63% last season

12: Teams that sold out every game in the regular season

250 million: Times the most-watched single play—an unlikely alley-oop by the Dallas Mavericks—was seen on the league’s social and digital media media platforms

VIDEO

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STRATEGIES + ADVICE

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It makes sense for legacy brands to work with creators. Here are some ways for big brands with years of history to use creators to their benefit.

QUIZ

“BookTok”—the reader-centric corner of TikTok that is an increasingly powerful force in publishing—has helped which writer become the best-selling author of Q1 2024?

A. Sarah J. Maas

B. Colleen Hoover

C. Tom Robbins

D. Kristin Hannah

See if you got the answer right here.