Companies have boosted IT spending in order to collect more customer data. But they aren't necessarily reaping the benefits of the increased information, because they aren't actually analyzing and using all that data. Some customer initiatives are succeeding, such as collecting and sharing customer feedback, and creating a consistent customer experience. Companies are also utilizing customer information from their loyalty programs. But activities that depend on high-quality, well-integrated data still aren't meeting expectations, and the old goal of a "single view of the customer" seems further from realization than ever.

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Companies can obtain more satisfactory results by improving alignment between IT and the sales and marketing functions, analyzing more of the data they collect and—most of all—improving their data analysis. Simply stockpiling data isn't enough; companies need to make better sense of it.

For more data and analysis, see CIO Insight's Research Center blog at go.cioinsight.com/researchcentral

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