17 May
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We are in the midst of a digital and data world where organisations hold tonnes of information. Data about employees, customers, and products, the list is somewhat endless. They probably have information on our cats or dogs as well!
Jokes aside with all this data constantly input into marketing systems on a daily if not minute-by-minute basis it is important to ensure that when handling the different data sources that data integrity isn’t compromised.
What is data integrity?
According to Harvard Business School, data integrity is the “accuracy, completeness, and quality of data as it’s maintained over time and across formats. Preserving the integrity of your company’s data is a constant process.”
In other words, in the modern data-driven world it is an ongoing mission for organisations to maintain the trustworthiness of the information they hold. This entails guaranteeing that the data is correct, comprehensive, and of high calibre as it is kept up to date and across different formats. This also includes regulation and compliance, such as GDPR compliance.
Data security is not the same as data integrity but is related. Instead, it involves protecting data from external and internal threats.
What are the threats to data integrity?
There are numerous threats to an organisation’s data integrity but commonly the following can frequently occur:
- Human error: Manual data entry is a pain, not only can data be input incorrectly it can be duplicated and even accidentally deleted.
- Format inconsistencies: A data set may rely on referencing in Google Sheets however in a different format it may not allow cells to be referenced.
- Transfer/Collection error: The data that is collected or transferred is incorrect or lacks the necessary information to paint a full picture.
- Data breach: Data is altered, deleted or stolen this could be malicious intent from external or internal individuals.
Power outages: Computer or system crashes are perhaps indications of the hardware being compromised. As a result, the data it is collecting, transferring or rendering may be incorrect or incomplete.
Why is data integrity important?
Data integrity is important as it can help an organisation save time, money and effort. For instance, data-driven decisions are made based on the data an organisation receives. Therefore it is essential this data is strong and safe. Otherwise, it could result in a negative and long-lasting impact.
This leads us nicely to why data integration is important. As well as how it can be achieved to make these data-driven decisions whilst keeping data integrity.
How do you maintain data integrity when integrating multiple data sources?
Firstly, data integration is a transformation process that combines data from multiple different sources into a singular view. For example, automating when new customers have been added to a CRM system. Then also adding them to a marketing application for email communications if they have opted in.
Data integration is, therefore, an important process as it provides a full single pane of truth for your client.
The integration of multiple data sources can be achieved by connecting to third-party APIs. It can be done natively (in-house) or externally from an iPaaS vendor. An iPaaS can save users time and resources as developing native automated processes is immensely resource intensive.
When using an iPaaS the automated workflows will extract the data required from multiple sources. Next, the data will be loaded into a data warehouse and then transformed into the correct data format. It can then be presented in a single view and inform business decisions.
Data integrity is maintained via an iPaaS because the platform eliminates the risk of any human error when manually inputting and transforming the data from multiple sources. As well as implement a standardised process for retrieving and formatting data.
The integrity of clients’ data is further protected when the marketing iPaaS vendor is GDPR and SOC II Type 2 compliant. This will ease the threat of data breaches and power outages.
How would this look in a marketing context?
An organisation has tonnes of marketing information about customers so as a marketing agency organising this data is not only useful but essential for removing data silos.
The image below depicts a workflow demonstrating how you, a marketing agency, can automate and manage your client’s specific data. By building this automated process the data from different sources is extracted, loaded and transformed for the client to view in a single dashboard. This information will then inform their decision-making.
ConnectorEngine a Marketing Services iPaaS
ConnectorEngine is a marketing service iPaaS that can handle different marketing data sources whilst ensuring data integrity. Users can install connectors (APIs) to third-party applications, and drag and drop elements to build automated workflows that process client data all in a single ecosystem.
Do you want to learn more about how you can handle different marketing data sources while keeping data integrity?
Chat with a member of the team to learn how an iPaaS can securely and simply help you handle your client’s data.
