Most businesses do many activities every day. Those activities–we can call them transactions–may be related to sales or prospecting, customer support, email confirmations, or any other of a host of processes needed to run the business.

Each of those transactions typically requires its own software (for example, Salesforce, Marketo, or Outlook). And each of those programs typically stores data related to those transactions (e.g., sales records, email converations, website form submissions), in a way that enables them to best process the transactions. 

The resulting data from those systems is called Transactional Data. The purpose of Transactional Data is to support day-to-day operations of the business and it is exceedingly valuable for that purpose.

In contrast, Analytical Data is used for managerial analysis and decision making. That is, although the day-to-day operations are essential, people higher up in an organization typically need to see the bigger picture. They do not necessarily need to know that this is the third call for a particular prospect but they do need to know that their marketing efforts are working or that their revenue forecasts are on target. Similarly, they need to understand the current state of the business and trends to make better decisions.

Analytical Data often starts with the individual Transactional Data, organizes it, and processes it in a way to create useful insights. Although you cannot have analytical data without transactional data, you will also face many challenges if you use transactional data for analytical purposes. Each serves a distinct purpose.

Contact us today to find out more how Click360, our analytical platform for sales and marketers, can help your company.