New research commissioned by DataFlux finds 48% of UK IT and marketing managers unsure of the quality of their customer data

New research commissioned by DataFlux finds 48% of UK IT and marketing managers unsure of the quality of their customer data

DataFlux, a data management technology and services provider, recently announced the findings of an online survey that asked UK-based IT and marketing managers about their customer relationship management (CRM) systems and the quality of data underpinning those systems.

The results of the survey highlight that there is widespread uncertainty amongst UK organisations regarding the quality of data held about customers.

Key findings included the fact that 48% of respondents were unsure of the quality of data within their CRM systems and another 13% were not confident about the overall quality of their customer data.

Single customer view lacking

While 26% of respondent organisations operate two or more CRM systems, which the provider said can contribute to multiple, conflicting views of the customer; 47% of respondents surveyed operated a single CRM system for the entire organisation.

When asked about the difficulties of maintaining more than one CRM system, 47% of respondents cited data de-duplication and data quality as the biggest challenges, with 23% believing interoperability was the greatest frustration. Meanwhile, nearly a third (32%) of organisations said they currently had ongoing systems consolidation initiatives and 33% are working to improve the quality of their CRM data.

Missing out on opportunity

Colin Rickard, regional managing director at DataFlux, added: “The results of this survey demonstrate that UK organisations are missing an opportunity to extend the value of CRM initiatives with high-quality data. Accurate, trusted and complete customer data is the lifeblood of any modern marketing strategy and can protect the investments companies make in CRM technology, so that results meet expectations.”

He added: “While the study shows many organisations recognise the value of maintaining a single, integrated CRM system, there are still a significant number of organisations running with two or more CRM systems. Multiple systems can lead to data errors and adversely affect service levels and the potential to drive additional revenue through marketing.”

The research study was conducted by eMedia Group on behalf of DataFlux during 2010. Respondents were either IT or marketing managers involved in CRM projects, and all 80 were drawn from UK organisations.