March 28, 2023 by Quanda Hunter

Data-Driven Marketing Strategies Can Increase Your Success When Expanding Into New Markets

 

Quanda Hunter

Senior Manager, Product Marketing, Revenue EDGE – Calix Marketing Cloud

 

Data is fundamental to the growth of every business. Research from McKinsey underscores this: Data-driven organizations are 23 times more likely to acquire customers, and they’re also 19 times more likely to be profitable.

For broadband service providers (BSPs) in increasingly competitive markets, data can be the key to successfully expanding into new territories and acquiring new subscribers.

Even with the vast amounts of public and private investment available to fund BSP expansion, entering new service areas requires significant time and budget. And while there’s no guarantee for success, BSPs that use data to make informed decisions about market expansion can reduce risk and improve their return on investment (ROI).

Identifying New Market Opportunities

When considering a move into new territories, BSPs start by researching the number of competitors already in or planning to enter a specific service area. And while this research is foundational to expansion plans, marketers must dig deeper. They need data on the number of homes in untapped service areas, as well as the percentage of prospects likely to sign up for new broadband service. Additional demographic data–such as the total number of adults, household composition, and average household income for homes passed in new service areas–help increase a BSPs confidence level in new market opportunity.

Yet, many marketers struggle to take advantage of advanced data metrics. Fortunately, the introduction of industry-specific customer data platforms that collect and consolidate analytics on both current subscribers and prospects allows marketers to now make data-informed decisions. With the right data at their fingertips, marketers can more easily identify the new service areas or market sectors that offer the greatest growth potential.

For example, a BSP could prioritize expansion to an area that’s become a magnet for high-income technophiles in the work-from-anywhere era over one with an older population that’s less likely to embrace new services. Data also allows marketers to diversify beyond residential-only services. Now they can easily identify small business customers in a specific geographic area and reach them with messages and offers that meet industry-specific needs.

Targeting and Engaging New, High-Value Subscribers

In a survey of BSP C-level executives in the United States and Canada, 63 percent revealed their top strategies for increasing market share involve new subscriber acquisition. Subscriber acquisition is a top priority—but it’s also very costly, so marketers need to execute acquisition campaigns with precision. That starts with using data to identify and reach the right prospects.

By analyzing their current subscriber base, marketers can develop a profile of their highest-value subscribers. They can then find prospects that match the profile and use these similar audiences to run acquisition campaigns.

Data also allows marketers to build targeted campaigns that speak directly to an individual subscriber’s pain points and desires. Marketing to a middle-class family with young children requires a much different message than a campaign targeting college-aged gamers or millennial remote workers. Marketing channels also differ by audience. A Gen-X mom may be more likely to respond to email, a less tech-savvy retiree may prefer direct mail, and social media is still the best way to reach millennials.

Enhancing and Personalizing the Subscriber Experience

Data analytics can help marketers build robust insights into subscribers’ and prospects’ preferences and behaviors. BSP marketers can use a deeper understanding of their subscribers and prospects to build campaigns that resonate on an individual level. One-size-fits-all messages are a relic of the past, no matter how small your marketing team may be.

Data-driven marketing strategies help BSPs prove that they care about every subscriber and their unique needs in an often-impersonal online ecosystem. This personalization pays off. In a McKinsey study, 76 percent of consumers said that receiving personalized communications was a key factor in considering a brand, and 78 percent said such content made them more likely to repurchase. And that leads to loyalty: 78 percent of consumers are more likely to refer friends and family to companies that personalize.

By reaching the right subscribers with the right messages at the right time, BSP marketers can strengthen engagement at every touchpoint—from awareness to acquisition to advocacy. In doing so, they increase satisfaction, loyalty, and, ultimately, grow revenue.

Leveraging Data To Gain the Competitive Advantage

To deliver on their growth priorities—expanding into new territories or addressing new market segments—BSPs need to take a strategic approach to subscriber acquisition. And this starts with data.

Data gives BSP marketers the in-depth insights they need to better understand subscribers and prospects alike. They can inform new build planning by identifying the markets—even neighborhoods—with the greatest concentration of high-value subscribers with the propensity to buy broadband services. And they can diversify into new segments (like small businesses) or focus on specific audiences (such as families with children or avid gamers) to grow share. By using data to tailor offers and messaging to subscribers’ individual needs and preferences, marketers can increase engagement, achieve higher take rates, and maximize ROI.

The bottom line: Those BSPs that embrace data and insights will have a distinct competitive advantage in expanding into new territories and driving subscriber growth.

Learn more about how you can adopt data-driven strategies and gain the competitive edge—download our white paper “Fueling Broadband Growth: Data-Driven Strategies To Attract and Acquire Subscribers.”