How to use Data to Make Your Content Meaningful With Crayon Data CEO Suresh Shankar

TL;DR

Crayon Data simplifies consumer experiences by making data relevant.

Transcript

we believe uh eric that digital irrelevance is the mosquito in our digital lives it's always hovering around and buzzing you know you're seeing something there's so much spam coming at you in terms of ads in terms of choices in terms of things that are being thrown at you which you don't want and eventually you want to buy something and you end up ... Read More

Key Insights

• Crayon Data aims to combat digital irrelevance by providing personalized consumer experiences, thereby reducing time spent on irrelevant content.
• The company primarily serves large enterprises like consumer banks and airlines, helping them utilize customer data effectively.
• Crayon Data's revenue model includes annual subscriptions, a share of incremental income, and professional services for integration and customization.
• Suresh Shankar emphasizes the importance of understanding customer data to create better experiences and products, drawn from his extensive sales and management career.
• The transition from a SaaS model to a more service-integrated approach allowed Crayon Data to work closely with large enterprises, embedding their platform deeply.
• Shankar's journey highlights the shift from traditional sales to a data-driven approach, recognizing the potential of analytics early in his career.
• Crayon Data's approach involves engaging deeply with enterprise systems to provide personalized solutions, requiring patience and understanding of long sales cycles.
• Suresh Shankar is accessible through LinkedIn and hosts a podcast, 'Slaves to the Algo,' focusing on AI and data demystification.

Questions & Answers

Q: What problem does Crayon Data aim to solve?

Crayon Data addresses the issue of digital irrelevance, where consumers are bombarded with irrelevant content and offers. By making data meaningful, the company helps businesses provide personalized experiences, reducing the time consumers spend sifting through irrelevant information and enhancing their overall digital experience.

Q: Who are the primary customers of Crayon Data?

Crayon Data primarily serves large enterprises, including consumer banks, airlines, and retailers. These organizations have vast amounts of customer data but struggle to utilize it effectively to engage customers with personalized content and offers. Crayon Data helps these businesses harness their data for better consumer interactions.

Q: How does Crayon Data generate revenue?

Crayon Data's revenue model comprises three streams: long-term annual subscriptions based on customer numbers or portfolio value, a share of incremental income generated from merchants, and professional services for integrations and customizations. This diversified approach allows Crayon Data to offer comprehensive solutions to its enterprise clients.

Q: What is Suresh Shankar's career background?

Suresh Shankar has a 35-year career in sales and management, focusing on helping companies understand their customers better. He transitioned from frontline sales to product management, advertising, and eventually entrepreneurship, founding an analytics firm in 2000 to leverage data for customer insights and personalization.

Q: How did Crayon Data's business model evolve?

Initially, Crayon Data aimed for a SaaS model targeting mid-sized companies. However, the need for deep integration and change management in enterprises led to a pivot towards a service-oriented approach. This shift allowed Crayon Data to work closely with large enterprises, embedding their platform across multiple systems for personalized solutions.

Q: What challenges does Crayon Data face in enterprise sales?

Enterprise sales involve complex systems, multiple stakeholders, and long sales cycles. Crayon Data embraces these challenges by understanding the intricacies of large enterprises and maintaining patience throughout the sales process. The company focuses on deeply integrating its platform to provide substantial value, which aids in securing large deals.

Q: What insights did Suresh Shankar gain from his career journey?

Suresh Shankar realized early on that data and technology would be pivotal in understanding customers and providing personalized experiences. His career evolved from traditional sales to a data-driven approach, culminating in entrepreneurship, where he founded an analytics firm to capitalize on the untapped potential of customer data.

Q: How can people connect with Suresh Shankar?

Suresh Shankar is active on LinkedIn, where he shares his contact details. He also hosts a podcast, 'Slaves to the Algo,' which focuses on AI and data demystification. Through these platforms, he engages with a broader audience, sharing insights and experiences from his career and work with Crayon Data.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Suresh Shankar, CEO of Crayon Data, discusses how the company helps large enterprises make meaningful use of customer data to provide personalized experiences. He highlights the importance of reducing digital irrelevance by connecting consumers with relevant content and offers.

• Crayon Data's business model includes subscription fees, income sharing from generated traffic, and professional services. The company shifted from a SaaS model to a service-oriented approach, facilitating deep integration with enterprise systems.

• Suresh Shankar shares his career journey from sales to entrepreneurship, emphasizing the transformative role of data in understanding customer needs. He offers insights into enterprise sales cycles and the importance of patience in securing large deals.