As the Web plays an increasingly strategic role in customer engagement, marketers are scrambling to better understand, measure and act upon information gleaned from this medium. It has been well-documented that we are in the midst of an information explosion, and the Internet has served as its fuse. Amidst the bits of data that companies try to reassemble on an ongoing basis, perhaps no area has proved as vexing as that of the data generated from the Web.

In advance of Obama's election victory, it was clear that the US and global economies would be in trouble for a while. Whoever would become President-elect, one lingering consequence would be the need for companies in most, if not all, sectors of the economy to reduce capital expenditures. That didn't mean customer service should have to suffer or that technology expense would cease, but that enterprises would need to find alternative solutions to meet both ends of the customer care requirements: keeping their technology current and meeting customer service goals.

Amid the uncertainty of today's economic turmoil, one thing is clear: Consumers aren't spending the way they used to. But, while retailers expect this holiday season to be the most difficult in years, there are ways to make sure they are getting the most impact from their marketing investments.

The ongoing revolution in customer-focused analytics has sparked a shift in the retail landscape. Faced with increasing competitive pressures, forward-looking organizations are moving from the days of traditional market-driven strategies to a new era of data-driven customer-centric retailing.

If you've either decided to outsource your marketing database or you've inherited a database host, how are you going to ensure that the marketing database delivers? Many marketers are unfamiliar with the more technical side of their world, lack the staff to dedicate to this aspect of marketing or prefer to focus on directing creative development.

In this age of multimillion-dollar CRM programs and equally expensive targeted prospect and customer contact strategies, the perils of missing or incorrect contact data can be costly. Compiled lists and response lists are the traditional "go-to" sources, but more marketers, who demand higher accuracy and sell-through, are seeking "hard-to-find" data sources - particularly as regulation and suppression erode the completeness and availability of existing data sources. There is too much opportunity lost, and waste being generated, by neglecting the integrity and completeness of contact data.

The delivery model for DM computer programs has been ingrained over the years: You investigate vendors, select a provider, sign a contract and enter a lengthy and potentially difficult implementation phase. Then, you deal repeatedly with your vendor post-installation to iron out bugs and glitches. However, one of the most popular trends in technology in recent years is designed to collapse that timeline and streamline the installation and maintenance process.

Are CRM and sales force automation systems compatible with sales forces? Rather than being the paradox it first seems, this question deserves to be asked. Sales forces historically resist computerization and instead tend to man the barricades in the face of the digital revolution.

The traditional way of approaching CRM is changing. For example, organizations have stopped viewing their CRM strategies as simply CRM application implementations.

Estimated income and other measures of affluence are often a driving force behind effective direct marketing campaigns. So what happens when your measures of affluence, namely income and home value, are simply inaccurate?