How Deluxe is Competing in the Data World

Often referred to as “the inventor of the checkbook,” Deluxe has evolved since our inception in 1915 into a company that helps customers pay, get paid, and grow. While check products are still critical to the business—and a component of helping customers pay and get paid—Deluxe is competing successfully in the data-driven marketing space, which ultimately helps our customers grow market share.

What exactly is data-driven marketing?

Data-driven marketing is all about reaching the right potential customers, at the right time, through the right marketing channels. Rather than marketing products or services to a potential customer who may or may not be interested, data-driven marketing gives us unique insights to understand which prospects are viable candidates, and at what time.

For example, one of our focus areas is behavioral triggers and life events that make a consumer or small business much more likely to make a specific purchase. Consumer life events include milestones like the birth of a child or the purchase of a home. For businesses, milestone life events may include a new incorporation filing, a new location or a change in ownership. Deluxe has three to four times more consumer trigger marketing data than the next largest provider, which means that we’re casting the widest net to capture relevant activity in real time.

Beyond trigger data, Deluxe offers clients similarly robust data on business and consumer characteristics, interests and behaviors. We are one of the largest providers of marketing data and consulting in the direct marketing industry.

How is our approach to data different from competitors?

While the types and amounts of data Deluxe has available is unique in the industry, the way that we help our clients use this data further differentiates us from our competitors. Let’s say, for example, that we’re working with a luxury car  manufacturer to target new buyers. We use our proprietary audience decision engines to comb through our data and assess three critical factors that may lead to a purchase.

1. Does a potential customer have the capacity to make a purchase? 
   In other words, does the household have a sufficient income and enough assets to fund the purchase of a luxury vehicle?
2. Is a consumer interested in making a purchase?
   If a consumer has the capacity to purchase a luxury vehicle, this question helps determine whether a consumer is even spending, or likely to spend, on one. No matter how wealthy they are, some consumers just don’t buy luxury cars.
3. Does the prospect prefer our customer’s product over other options?
   If a prospect has the capacity to make a purchase and is interested, this question helps us evaluate whether they’re likely to choose our customer’s offering over competing luxury brands.

Answering each of these questions using Deluxe data and analytics helps remove prospects from the pool who aren’t likely to purchase based on their capacity, their interest, or their preferences. This enables our marketing clients to reach qualified prospects when they’re most likely to make a purchase, resulting in more effective, relevant and cost-conscious marketing campaigns.

Learn more about data-driven marketing and Deluxe’s capabilities, and read this article for a deeper dive into data-driven marketing.