Best Practice

3 ways to commercialise your data using visualisation tools

Use visualisation tools & analyst research publishing software to deliver data for added value.

Delivering Data

A data visualisation tool like Power BI integrated with Content Catalyst’s market research publishing platform is a powerful combination for analyst firms. This article explores three ways you can leverage this integration to commercialise your data.

While data visualisation is not a new trend, we’re seeing renewed interest and growth due to advances in AI and the need and desire for businesses to tell more compelling stories with their data.

Historically, the challenge with data has been the sheer volume available – far more than humans can comprehend and interpret. AI is helping solve this challenge, allowing humans to focus their energy on presenting data in a way that is more visually appealing and accessible.

Data and insight inspire action and change when presented in an engaging way and when time-poor executives can easily digest critical takeaways. Our aim at Content Catalyst is to help analyst firms commercialise their data and increase its value through our platform.

Edwin Edwin Bailey Chief Operating Officer Content Catalyst

Support data visualisations with expert narratives

The value of data can be increased when paired with analyst narrative. While data on its own can tell a story, expert analysts can weave more relevant and interesting stories around your data that executives can get behind.

Crucially, analysts bring credibility and authority to the data through association. Analysts form a reputation over many years working in their chosen niche or industry and, over time, position themselves as consistent and trusted informers in an otherwise volatile and ever-changing digital landscape.

According to the Financial Times’ research, analysts are the most effective source of market intelligence for strategic decision-making by Directors (57%), C-suite (54%), and Chairs (51%). They are considered more important than other sources of information, including global media outlets and own-commissioned market research.

The Content Catalyst platform allows analysts to embed interactive data exhibits into reports via integrations like Microsoft Power BI. Furthermore, analysts can continually update exhibits with fresh data without having to recreate them.

Build in reliance with evergreen data products

Building reliance on your subscription service increases the likelihood of renewals; evergreen dashboards or products are a great way of doing this.

Create live customised data dashboards for individual organisations or critical data grouped by sector.

Risk Leadership Network, for instance, created a series of dashboards to help their members save time gathering intelligence.

A Risk Manager deals with the analysis, assessment, and control of risk. To do their job effectively, they need up-to-date information for benchmarking and developing new approaches to risk management. Members can access three dashboards depending on their subscription package. Each dashboard collates information that would otherwise take members a long time to assemble and presents it in an accessible, easy-to-understand format.

ICO Coffee Report Data Dashboard

Incentivise up and cross-sales with data visualisations

Data visualisation products can be sold as additional modules outside subscribers’ standard subscription package, making it an easy upsell opportunity. Data visualisations can be ‘sold as seen’, or you can sell subscribers the ability to personalise exhibits by adding or removing data points.

For example, suppose a subscriber is interested in the last six months of US car production, but your dataset goes back ten years. An interactive data visualisation tool will allow them to isolate the period of interest and remove redundant data from view.

Content Catalyst’s flexible licensing capability facilitates one-off sales and time-limited access to certain exhibits or reports. Additional in-platform tools, such as homepage promotions and personalised content notifications, allow platform administrators to promote specific content to individuals or groups of subscribers.

Analyst questions lead to more revenue opportunities

To stand out and remain a trusted source of insight, analyst firms should leverage data visualisation tools to create new data products, enrich reports, and prompt conversations.

Analyst enquiries are the starting point for relationship-building and revenue-generating opportunities. Aside from selling data products, conversations that start with questions about data can lead to more considerable revenue opportunities, such as bespoke consulting work or training.

Data Visualisation options with Content Catalyst

The Content Catalyst platform supports data visualisation tools that allow analysts to embed interactive data products into reports, and configure fully searchable datasets. The market research publishing platform makes it easy to pair expert analyst narrative with interactive data visualisation tools, turning knowledge into actionable insights that add value to your offering.

Contact us to discuss data visualisation integrations that maximise the value of your insights.

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