Marketing wisdom dictates that to make headway with the consumer, marketers need to be creative. Too often businesses believe that the secret to a successful marketing campaign is witty and hard hitting messaging. But that’s not always the case. It’s fair to say that until recently creative ruled the roost. However, with the birth of big data, marketers now have a new tool at their disposal.

The expanding data footprint left by consumers means that businesses are increasingly aware of individual preferences and reactions – gone are the days of mass market messages which rely solely on creative. By cleverly using customer data to their advantage, marketers are able to target consumers in a way never before possible.

Here are some top tips for making data and creative work for you:

• Use data to drive creative decisions

Marketers should view data as a new tool that can supplement the marketing process of old. The insight gained from data can be used to identify target audiences with a new-found degree of sophistication. In turn this influences the imagery and messaging used in advertising campaigns for competitive advantage and ROI.

• Combine your teams

For many businesses, the structure of the marketing team now includes marketers, creative and data experts. Data is increasingly an important part of the team. From an in-house and agency perspective, the ability to use data in campaigns is fast becoming an area of differentiation which sets them apart from the competition.

• Refine and optimise

Businesses need to recognise how data and creative can work alongside one another to drive ever-smarter and ever-more effective targeted campaigns. A prime example is email and web banners – with the use of data, knowing who to target and where to display or send them not only makes the process more effective, but a whole lot more efficient.

• Target more precisely

Businesses should appreciate that ‘the public’ rarely have homogeneous tastes. Instead they should look to target specific consumers based on their attributes and behaviours – not only is this more effective, but by removing irrelevant marketing it enhances the customer’s experience too.