"Game changers - changes to the game such that the game can never be played the same way again." - Robert California.
For Marketing Cloud Intelligence (MCI) Admins, the game has changed. Bulk updating is finally here. If you're like us, you've been thinking about this for quite some time. But now that it's here, it's worth a pause to fully understand what this newfound power means.
It all makes sense, I mean why would you make one update 15 times when you could make all 15 updates at once? But what does bulk updating actually look like in the context of MCI data streams and what will the Bulk Updater for Data Streams application ultimately do for you as a MCI admin? Well, we got answers.
The Setting
Data streams are the lifeblood of any MCI workspace. The way in which your data streams are setup will directly impact the amount of value the MCI platform can deliver to your organization. Think about it, if your data streams don't bring in the right data in the right format, there's not much the rest of the platform can do...
But having the right data in the right format is easier said than done. The digital marketing landscape is constantly evolving. Advertising platforms, MarTech providers, advertising placements and more are cropping up by the day. On top of this, the strategies and plans of your marketing team are also fluid and evolving to meet the ever-changing needs of your organization's audiences.
Your workspace must be just as flexible and fluid as the digital marketing landscape and marketing strategies in which it operates to support. This why the ability to make bulk updates is so valuable. Without bulk updates, you're forced to update each your data streams one-by-one in seclusion. This is a time-consuming and piecemeal approach to data stream management, with updates being made gradually at different times and often in different ways, rather than carefully planned and executed.
The Solution
Bulk updating is here to save the day. With Bulk Updating, MCI admins can move away from this piecemeal approach. Instead of thinking about how one data stream should be structured to meet the needs of their organization, they can ask how the data streams across their entire workspace should be structured.
One great illustration of this is with MCI's addition of story insights to the Instagram by Facebook data stream type. Let's say you have a brand manager ask if MCI can report on the performance of organic Instagram stories. "We sure can!" you exclaim...
Without the Bulk Updater for Data Streams Application
You then proceed to update the extended properties and mapping in that brand's Instagram by Facebook data stream. In the back of your head, you know this is an update you should make to the rest of your Instagram by Facebook data streams, but those brand managers haven't asked about this data yet and you have a million other things to do. So you'll cross that bridge when it comes. Over the course of the next month, you spend an hour here and an hour there making this same update over and over again until people stop bothering you about it.
With the Bulk Updater for Data Streams Application
Being the savvy Admin you are, before updating the Instagram by Facebook data stream for this one brand, you ask yourself what's best for the entire workspace? You quickly realize this data will be needed across all of your brands. So you hop into the Bulk Updater for Data Streams Application and make the same update as above, but you apply this change to all your Instagram by Facebook data streams.
So the same update that normally would take multiple hours (over the course of the month if you procrastinate like our imaginary Admin) can be made in minutes with the Bulk Updater for Data Streams application.
Here's a list of a few of the benefits the application provides:
Time Savings: This alone is plenty enough of a reason to purchase the application. The cost savings from not having to make updates over and over again over the course of the year is going to add up real quickly.
Better organization across your workspace: With the Bulk Updater for Data Streams application, you can easily update fields such as custom attributes, channels and even the names of your data streams to ensure metadata is used consistently across your entire workspace.
Consistent data stream field formulas: Your workspace is dependent on the thousands of mapping field formulas in your data streams. Many of these fields will contain custom logic to ensure the data fits into the context of your organization. It's imperative to ensure consistency so that your dashboards show the data everyone is expecting. Without the Bulk Updater for data streams application, you're left to spend hours updating each data stream's mapping when changes are required. With the application, you can take any updated formula and apply it to all your data streams in seconds.
Keep up with the changing digital landscape: As highlighted in the Instagram by Facebook use case above, the extended properties of data streams will constantly change to reflect marketing platform enhancements. Without the Bulk Updater for data streams app you're dreading any of these updates because you'll have to update the same setting over and over again, taking up hours of your day. With the application? These same updates take seconds.
Keep up with your business: There will come a time when the person that owns the Facebook account you used to authenticate all your Facebook Ads data streams will leave the company. With the Bulk Updater for Data Streams application, you can update the authentication of any data stream in seconds.
Make it your own: The beauty of it all? The application is built to be flexible. Every MCI workspace is unique and every MCI workspace will use the application to do different things. That's why we're so excited to get the application in your hands. We can't wait to hear the cool stuff you can come up with and the value the tool provides to you.
With all this said, we'd love to get time with you to answer any questions and get you started on your bulk updating journey. Feel free to reach out at the bottom of this page, we're looking forward to hearing from you!