Many times, when we have a burning research question, we often jump the gun and start throwing money at new studies, tests, experiments, the whole 9 yards, when in reality, we might have a lot of the answers right under our noses.
Secondary data is data collected from our previous efforts, it may not answer the full current research question we have at the moment, but it can make the job a lot easier if it contains important info that we can use without having to spend more money, time, and resources.
And the best part of all is that you probably have tons of secondary data within your business, assuming you are not a startup. You can find previous information in your database, from your financial analysis, CRM, studies, even data you collected from social media when you first started introducing your brand to digital marketing.
If it is useful, it is valuable, and when it comes to marketing, looking at patterns and consistency Is a great way to predict, implement strategy, and even shift your focus for better decision making.
So, before you go out and start blowing cash, make sure to take a look at what you currently have and use that as a road map to figure out what you NEED to get.
