Seagull squawking, "Mine!"Mine! Mine! Mine!

Remember the seagulls in the movie “Finding Nemo?” Each one was claiming ownership. Isn’t that so last decade? Regarding data, it fortunately is. There remain some holdouts, of course. But we’re seeing a growing number of firms share their data with partners and customers. And we expect to see the trend accelerate.

Demand For External Data Accelerates

Decision-makers have been telling us for years that their own data can only get them so far. According to the Forrester Analytics Business Technographics® Data And Analytics Survey, 2020, 70% of firms prioritize expanding their ability to source external data. Another 17% say they plan to do so in the next 12 months. That’s up significantly from just a few years ago. As the chief data officer at Flagstar Bank told us, “With our own data, we can only look internally. We need to see industry benchmarks, regional trends, and what waves we can ride on.” Flagstar Bank uses external data to get a more complete view of their customers to reduce churn and to more accurately predict risk to improve their lending practices.

Data Supply Keeps Pace

Fortunately, data supply is growing as well, with data sources proliferating. Traditional providers have upped their game with new data offerings. Originators scrape websites for pricing and product information. Data brokers help their clients identify new sources and even host speed dating sessions for sellers of niche data to meet potential buyers. Data commercialization is also on the rise with companies developing new data-fueled products and services. And data marketplaces have popped up like mushrooms.

Insights-Driven Companies Learn To Share

Some of those marketplaces are more open or are public markets where buyers and sellers find each other. Others offer data exchange platforms to accommodate more curated options.

I’ll be talking about the rise of data sharing at Forrester’s Data Strategy & Insights Forum, October 13–15. Register now and join us virtually to hear about the trends and best practices for sharing your data. These practices apply to both external data sharing with partners or customers as well as internally across business units. Yes, when it comes to data, some companies do still have a few seagulls squawking, “Mine. Mine. Mine.”

Join us and find out how to convince your company or your colleagues to share.