Steal That Idea: 5 Smart Ways Presidential Candidates Mine Big Data

Big data analytics has and continues to transform the race to the White House.

Strategists for both presidential candidates are increasingly relying on digital technology and analytics to find, engage and, most importantly, activate voters and donors. These strategies offer some valuable lessons--and caveats--for chief marketing officers and sales leaders. Like campaign strategists, CMOs need to find, engage, and activate customers in a data-rich landscape. A proliferation of social platforms coupled with an emerging culture of sharing has generated not only massive amounts of user data but also a wide array of opportunities to make connections with customers.

Among the many digital strategy and data analytics lessons from the current US presidential campaign, five stand out:

1. Go micro.
2. Go mobile.
3. Get relevant.
4. Empower your base.
5. Get your money’s worth.