Welcome back to our series on building a successful data ecosystem framework and comprehensive data strategy! If you are just joining us, be sure to check out the first post on data acquisition best practices. This week, the Blueprint team, continues with a discussion on the value of third-party data to enable teams to improve your models and provide a competitive advantage.
Data is the lifeblood of today’s organizations, providing invaluable insights that can inform strategic decisions and drive business growth. However, with the sheer volume of data available, it can be challenging to unlock the full potential of your organization’s data estate. This is where third-party data enhancement comes into play. Incorporating data from external sources can significantly increase the accuracy and power of your models, providing a competitive advantage in today’s data-driven world.
An overview of third-party data
One example of third-party data comes from SafeGraph, a company that offers a wealth of high-quality point of interest data. By layering aggregated transaction data over this point of interest data, organizations can gain a clear understanding of consumer spending behavior. They can analyze spending trends over time at a set location, between locations, and even across entire regions. Another example is Precisely, which provides rich customer preference and demographic data, such as geo location and census data. By merging this data with your in-house data, you can significantly increase the effectiveness of both traditional BI solutions and the data science models used for marketing, forecasting, and customer segmentation.
Other data services like Experian, Nielsen, and Dun & Bradstreet can also provide valuable third-party data for enriching your data sets. Experian provides consumer and business credit data, demographic data, and marketing data. Nielsen provides data on media consumption and consumer behavior. Dun & Bradstreet provides business data, including financial data, sales and marketing data, and supplier data.
Blueprint is here to guide you
Blueprint has extensive experience incorporating third-party data into our clients’ data estates. We understand the importance of using the right data sources to deliver insights that can drive business growth. With Databricks, our team has the capability to develop and run machine learning models to enhance the value of third-party data. We can help organizations get started with a subset of their data, determine the value of third-party data sources, and decide how to expand their enrichment initiatives.
Start small
Getting started with third-party data enhancement can be overwhelming, so we recommend starting with a small subset of data. This will allow you to determine the value and impact of the enriched data on your models and processes. Once you have established the benefits of this data, you can gradually expand the use of third-party data sources and incorporate them into your larger data management strategy.
One of the keys to success in incorporating third-party data is understanding how it fits into your overall data management strategy. It’s important to consider factors such as data quality, data privacy, and data governance when incorporating external data sources. Organizations must ensure that their third-party data sources are secure, compliant with industry standards and regulations, and aligned with their data management policies.
Managing costs
Another challenge is effectively managing the costs associated with acquiring and integrating third-party data. By working with a trusted partner like Blueprint, organizations can ensure that they are getting the most value from their investment in third-party data. Our team has extensive experience working with third-party data sources and can provide valuable insights into how to manage costs while still delivering impactful results.
In conclusion, third-party data can be a game-changer for organizations looking to gain a competitive edge in today’s data-driven world. By incorporating external data sources into your data estate, you can enhance the value of your models, provide valuable insights to inform business decisions, and drive business growth. However, it’s important to start small, carefully consider your data management strategy, and work with a trusted partner to ensure the successful integration of third-party data sources. With Blueprint’s expertise and experience, you can unlock the full potential of your data estate and take your organization to the next level.
