'Data-led communication represents a fundamental shift in how we operate'

At the 15th edition of exchange4media IPRCCC 2024, David Lian, Regional President of Zeno Group, delivered a thought-provoking keynote session on “Data-led communication and its relevance in today’s evolving communications landscape.” 

He started the session with a personal nostalgic remark, stating how far technology has evolved, “When I first started my career, international conference calls meant dialling an ID number... and huddling around a speaker phone. I hope today, 10 years on, I am much clearer and hopefully in high resolution which brings me to the topic of today: data.”

“Analog transmissions via the telephone are now being replaced by digital bits. And the beauty of this is that we can now capture, store and study the bits of data in a way that informs the communications and campaigns we run,” Lian expressed.

He pointed out that while the industry has long spoken about the potential of data, as early as 2014 when 25% of global CCOs were hiring big data analysts, a consistent gap remains between aspiration and action. Lian highlighted various studies that while 78% of PR professionals in Asia deemed data competence important, only 45% felt they possessed it. In the US and Canada, 40% of PR practitioners found that they had data competency.

He then presented a challenging question to the audience: “If you had to choose between a hunch and a headline backed by data, which would you trust to lead your next campaign?” 

“Data-led communication is not just a new buzzword. It represents a fundamental shift in how we operate. For me, this means we need to consider a radical retooling of our communications apparatus where data forms the very foundation of everything we do,” he answered. He further emphasized that while instincts built over time are valuable, institutions must embrace data infrastructure to make faster, smarter decisions. 

Moving ahead, he introduced his “Four T’s of Data”: Tooling, Targeting, Telling, and Tracking as a framework that can help communicators to embed data into their communications strategy.

First, he explained the first T - Tooling. He defined “Tooling is about setting up your data infrastructure, asking the right questions, deciding what to track, making data accessible, and deploying the right technology to track that.”

Next, he highlighted the role of targeting stating that it leverages rich audience data to move away from generic messaging. “The data might reveal that it’s not a press release that changes behaviour, but a direct engagement,” he underscored.

In Telling, he talked about how data uncovers white space opportunities and shapes storytelling. “By looking at search data and topical trends, we find areas where audiences are looking for insight and no one is providing it,” he further adds.

Lastly, in Tracking, he urged communicators to focus on a shift from static reports to dynamic, organized data systems. “Media monitoring should feed a living, breathing database. Only then can we extract meaningful insights and eventually enable AI to do so as well.”

Concluding his session, Lian urged communicators to evolve with technology stating, “If you look at data more closely, invest the time to understand and tool it better, magic can happen.”