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NameSearch is Experian Data Quality’s premier matching solution that can accurately and efficiently identify duplicates within your systems. NameSearch uses fuzzy matching to identify records that lead to the same individual, despite the misspellings, nicknames, typos, extra, or missing information across a single or multiple databases. It’s useful for organizations in any vertical that might require a matching solution, and, because of that, it is highly customizable.

Reading the statistics on cart abandonment rates can be quite sobering. Sixty-seven percent of online carts are abandoned before a purchase is made and, apparently, about 97 percent of mobile carts are abandoned. The reasons oft quoted are myriad but one of the bigger issues is simply the time it takes to check out; the longer it takes, the more likely that your customer will become distracted. Plus, when the shopping process requires any significant amount of typing on a mobile, forget it! Although you have to find a way to enable accurate address capture and to collect other important information, requiring customers to input too much is surely one reason that the mobile abandonment rate is so high.

The digital economy is coming, says IDC, and traditional organizations will need to adapt in order to stay relevant—and fast! This new economy, which is facilitated by technologies such as the cloud, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, and augmented and virtual reality, is rapidly changing the way business is done both here in the U.S. and abroad. According to IDC’s research, 33 percent of the current U.S. economy is digitized, and by 2020 (just three years away) they predict that 50 percent of the global 2,000 will see a majority of their businesses digitized.

This week I was able to attend the Gartner Data and Analytics Summit in Dallas. For those of you who weren’t able to join this meeting of data professionals, I thought I would share a few of my key take-aways from the event.

At Experian Data Quality, we’re passionate about giving back to our community and building the next generation of leaders. On February 16, 2017, we did just that by hosting a fundraiser to support a local nonprofit, YouthBuild. The Boston-area organization helps low-income individuals reclaim their education and build the skills they need to thrive in employment. According to the organization, there are “at least 2.3 million low-income 16-24 year-olds in the United States who are not in education, employment, or training.” YouthBuild aims to service this population and help to unlock their potential.

I recently received an email from Hubway, the bike-share program here in Boston. The subject read “Join the 2017 Hubway Data Challenge presented by Microsoft – over $7,500 in prizes.” Now for a little bit of background information, I am a regular user of Hubway. I live next to a docking station, so to get to work every day I take it to the nearest subway stop, which also has a docking station. I do this again on my way back home each night. On the weekends, I sometimes take it to the gym, which conveniently has two docking stations within walking distance. On a few occasions, my wife and I will bike from Fenway Park after a baseball game to the closest Red Line subway station to avoid the foot traffic. Let’s just say I use it a lot.

When it comes to data management practices, government agencies today have their work cut out for them. As the breadth and volume of data entering organizations continue to grow, harnessing this information for strategic initiatives becomes increasingly elusive—even for the most advanced agencies. One such area where data is heavily relied upon is in the transportation sector, which is typically responsible for maintaining roadways and airways in addition to issuing permits for both residents and companies. As you can imagine, transportation departments have a lot of information that requires strong data management practices.

In my role, I frequently talk to retailers and I find that many are facing challenges with disparate, sometimes outdated systems. Oftentimes they are using multiple vendors for their necessary technology solutions. This can create a headache when retailers have data initiatives that span these multiple platforms. 

If you’re an educational institution that receives lists of prospective students on a weekly basis or a retail organization that is preparing for a direct mail marketing campaign, it is important to have the proper tools in-house to ensure that your addresses are being cleansed and standardized for your marketing initiatives.