Let’s Talk Data

I’m a vendors’ vendor.

That is, I’ve worked as a vendor in the information industry for most of my career…and I enjoy working with other vendors as well as end users for their information needs. Many of my clients are actually big companies that have their own research departments but are looking for assistance when they’ve run out of conventional options.

I know the inner workings of most of the companies that I deal with — having been there, done that. I know when to buy, what questions to ask, when to push, and when to back off.

Catenate came into existence because I really wanted to be an “emissary” (one who works on the behalf of others) to this world I felt I knew well. I saw unassuming prospects, unaware of their options, make uneducated choices. My goal was to offer a variety of sources that could be used to solve complicated problems — without the bull that goes along with big company sales goals and bureaucracy.

When I first started the business, I worked with vendors I knew well. I set up deals to earn a commission that generally ranged between 20 (stingy) and 60 (good) points (%) of the market value for the project. That is, depending on the greediness of the source, I could sell a project and make between 20 and 60 cents on the dollar. Most of my projects went above and beyond the initial specifications — after all, what good is data if you don’t know what to do with it? Even though it wasn’t required, my team would try to get the most out of what we saw — and deliver to the client without extra charges. (You buy an answer, you buy our brains, not the time it took for us to solve the problem.) Most of the vendors appreciated the real value that a VAR (Value Added Reseller) brings to the table and were very supportive. Let’s face it, if you don’t deliver, clients simply don’t come back for more.

Over the years, more programs became available for information resellers. I spent a great deal of time reviewing the benefits of the various sources before agreeing to resell their stuff. But a funny thing happened. The more time I spent trying to improve the products for the vendors so that they met clients needs (yes, most of these vendors wouldn’t know a real client if he bit them on the ass), the more difficult it became to work with them as a reseller.

“We’re partner friendly” they’d declare, trying to woo me. “We want to have the best product”. But the larger the organization, the more layers of people trying to keep their ho-hum jobs got in the way. Without naming names, suffice it to say that the biggest players in the data and geodemographic industry do not have their clients needs top of mind. They are always looking to squeeze more profit out of a tired product and rarely entertain new ideas that would bring them far more revenue if they just took the time to think about the problems they are trying to solve.

I’m not bitter, just inspired.

If I told you about all the crap I’ve been dealing with over the past few years trying to get vendors to give me advance information on updates and changes so that I can prepare myself, my website, my clients — my own client information that they gather on my behalf, and BASIC BASIC internet advertising statistics — you’d be shocked at how incredibly unsophisticated and uninspired the big vendors are. They play it safe — they play it stupid and leave millions on the table.

I am working on a plan to change the way people get marketing data. I don’t intend to reinvent the wheel, just put together a car that actually moves forward when you step on the gas!

Wouldn’t it be nice to start by telling your vendor what the end goal was and having them give you a “trip tik” (pre-yahoo maps I know!) that showed you all the options and the places you might want to stop and investigate along the way before getting to your end goal?

Imagine a road trip where you knew where all the gas stations were, when you were likely to need them, the restaurants, the loos….all neatly mapped out in relation to your end destination. And the beauty would be that you could investigate any of the paths along the way in more detail…knowing that you could get back on track at any time.

Too often, we data geeks go searching for answers without keeping the end goal in mind. We provide demographic reports, maps, analyses — but fail to answer the question “now what”". Action oriented marketing is what I believe in, and what I intend to deliver in Catosphere V2.

…….

Now back to work!

Where do I begin?

I guess I could start by explaining my spotty blogging this summer.

We live in an area called Central NY. Actually, smack in the center of New York state, we’re in a ‘burb of Syracuse. This is simply one of the most strikingly beautiful places to live — filled with rolling hills, clear lakes, pastures, farms, and indeed a city that has many claims to fame (other than being the home of the Syracuse University “Orangemen” !) Summers here are beyond beautiful….but winters are a little brutal at times. (Syracuse is the fourth snowiest city in the country averaging over 100 inches a year…and when those winds blow, you simply don’t want to go out.)

Anyway, with two small children, summer is the time we let loose and spend as much time outside (untethered to the computer) as we can. (Thank goodness for cell phones and PDAs…I am always able to get a few things done while being mobile.)

This year, my business, Catenate, LLC took on a very challenging project for our favorite client — HP and indeed, that was a big focus during my working (and non-working) hours.

Added to that pressure, of course, we have had our house on the market. Keeping things spotless was a bit challenging — but that was part of our daily lives, too. Knowing that we could move at any time, I’ve been hesitant to change office space and add an assistant or two…I was waiting, in kind of a limbo, until the dust settled.

Like many of us in the sandwich generation, with parents and young kids — this summer was also a time of hospitals and nursing homes.

I am sad to share that after a six year battle with emphysema, lymphedema, depression, with no hope for a cure — my dad passed away last week. He wasn’t happy, he wanted relief from years of pain. He knew the end was near, but I don’t think he really expected to die so soon. While we weren’t shocked, death is never easy, no matter how much you think you’re prepared for its inevitable presence at your doorstep.

Dad was a smart man, and he planned for the future. He had a will and a financial planner, but unfortunately, he wasn’t very organized. My mom, like many women of her generation, didn’t pay the bills, and doesn’t have a handle on the finances. So, my sisters and I are tasked with locating and logging all of the assets he and my mom shared so that we can plan for her future.

So…as you can imagine, my focus wasn’t really on demographic data in the least.

I was intrigued though, by the whole administrative side of death. The questions on the death certificate such as place of birth, cause of death, and other pieces of information that could be used to show how mobile our society is. How do we live? How do we marry? When do we die, and why?

And of course, the first thing that came to mind when we determined that we’d have to hunt for assets is the fact that just about every financial transaction has a social security number associated with it. I’ve been making calls to see if there is an IRS database which might give us clues as to where to look. We’re looking through cancelled checks (which gives great insight), credit card bills (calling for the report today) and other pieces in the paper trail that one can’t avoid while living in modern society.

Looking through receipts we can see where he chose to spend his money — on prescription drugs, food, etc. The analyst in me wonders if there are patterns associated with behavior and death. While hopefully we can use numbers and databases to learn more about one side of the man we loved as our dad, you can never reduce a person down to mere numbers.

Looking at the house I grew up in, the house in disrepair after years of neglect, its hard to put a number on its value — or lack there of. To my mom, its as clear as can be in her head. She adds the years spent together there (40+), the kids (3), the animals, the neighbors, the good memories and yes, the bad…. and can’t imagine moving. My sisters and I see her future tied up in an asset that can be sold and will likely be completely torn down or remodeled beyond recognition. To come to some kind of resolution that preserves and honors her memories yet provides for a future certainly filled with healthcare bills — is something that we need to do. We’ll use databases that show recent sales in the area, upgrades, tax rates — all this data will help us assign a value that can be used to turn memories into cash. But will it be fair? Of course, its all relative.

So, I’m back. And while I can’t promise any revelations, I do look forward to taking a second look at sources of data that we take for granted.