Data-driven services marketing in a connected world

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide insights into the benefits of data‐driven services marketing and provide a conceptual framework for how to link traditional and new sources of customer data and their metrics. Linking data and metrics to strategic and tactical business insights and integrating a variety of metrics into a forward‐looking dashboard to measure marketing ROI and guide future marketing spend is explored.Design/methodology/approachA detailed synthesis of the literature is conducted and contemporary sources of marketing data are categorized into traditional, digital and neurophysiological. The benefits and drawbacks of each data type are described and advantages of integrating different sources of data are proposed.FindingsThe findings point to the importance and untapped potential of data in its ability to inform tactical and strategic marketing decisions. Future challenges, including top management support, ethical considerations and developing data and analytic capabilities, are discussed.Practical implicationsThe results demonstrate the need for executive service marketing dashboards that include key metrics that are service‐relevant, complementary and forward‐looking, with proven linkages to business outcomes.Originality/valueThis paper provides a synthesis of data‐driven services marketing and the value of traditional and contemporary metrics. Since the true potential of data‐driven service management in a connected world is still largely unexplored, this paper also delineates fruitful avenues for future research.