We have all been talking about the explosion of data created through transactional, interactive and, increasingly, market and social data, and problems this creates for your analyst...if you're lucky enough to have one! 

Fine grained interaction data created through customer tracking systems creates a whole new level of data management challenges.  It is anticipated that in another decade, we will only see a tiny portion, probably less than 0.0001% of all data generated. (1)

Give the analyst a life raft 

It won't be long before the analyst will be unable to rely on spreadsheets, raw data or one-dimensional reports to analyse information collected through such systems - well they can...but they won't be looking at the whole picture very effectively.  There is a sense that businesses are just starting to think about the increasing amounts of market and social data out there - what are we going to do with it?

Using data from loyalty, gaming and membership systems and creating customer segments is not something new for venues; it is the time it takes to integrate the information that is getting out of hand.  If you consider the rest of the information out there that you haven't even touched or thought about yet, you might eventually find yourself out-of-date and behind your competitors. 

Despite all the hype about data, the important thing to consider here is maintaining an outcome focus to managing this information now and into the future.

Be clear on the outcomes

To ensure an outcome focused strategy it is imperative that you are clear on the business value proposition.  This may be invoked through the following fundamental questions:

• Would understanding the frequency of customers last year versus this year enable better targeting for customer campaigns?
• Would understanding the next predicted customer visit date provide a better ability to target those customers who are overdue on their predicted visit or who could be incentivised to return earlier?
• Would identifying increasing and decreasing market segments enable you to better target areas of the business that are growing or in need of attention?
• Would understanding where customers come from, their visiting patterns and their spend enable better marketing campaigns?
• Would comprehending the ROI on marketing spend across customer segments help measure marketing success?
• Would it be valuable to know the impact of promotions across the different areas of the club?

What is the next step?

To turn these business values into actionable outcomes, it is critical to get the IT function clear on the objectives.  Investment in your internal data and transactional systems reflects significant capital expenditure, and from this commitment, you should experience real benefits in transforming data into information and ultimately, knowledge, this is what feeds the strategic direction of your club.

The easiest and most cost-efficient way to do this is through SaaS (Software as a Service) applications or Cloud technology.  Internal reporting systems do change over time, and therefore it is important that an IT model is adopted that allows flexibility to change the data management model to meet the changing needs of your business.  

Both SaaS and Cloud technologies are highly flexibility.  If your strategic direction changes and you have new business value propositions, it’s not going to be a timely and costly exercise to change the way you turn data into knowledge and therefore find the answers you're looking for.  In short, you are spreading the overall cost of information management through data partnerships and this also allows you to focus on the business rather than infrastructure.

A lasting thought

Giving some time and consideration to this topic - it's important - because at the end of the day, the best way to ensure long-term profitability is to meet the needs of your customers and exceed their expectations each time they visit your club.  To do this efficiently and at the lowest cost, you will need an information model that is flexible to change as your customers do.

Solutions are at hand 

We've got some solutions to help you out, take a look now!  Honestly, your analyst will enjoy their role more if they get to analyse data, not get buried in it. 

Reference:  

(1) The Petabyte Era of Gaming Data, Casino Enterprise Magazine, September 2008. Singh, Cardno