Blue Sky Thinking
Sky TV New Zealand’s Head of Corporate Core discusses how data integrity has helped the company respond to the changing needs of its customers and successfully move into new, innovative services.
Ask most people how they spent much of the past two years, with the many months of social distancing and national lockdowns, and most would answer that they were streaming content. Whether that was on their TV, laptops or computers, our digital devices have proved invaluable over an unprecedented period of instability.
As the Covid-19 pandemic changed the world beyond recognition outside, inside we were comforted with favourite programmes recommended to us by our providers, escaping the uncertainty through tailored entertainment and connecting with loved ones using reliable, consistent broadband. At a time when social distancing was a priority, we craved a more personal experience. This, says Quinton McKenzie, Sky TV New Zealand’s Head of Corporate Core, was made possible through data integrity - good quality, contextualised and accurate data.
“Data is key, McKenzie explains, “it really allows the understanding of your business and your customers, specifically within our industry. Customers want to be talked to personally, the days of sending out blanket emails or comms or even putting customers into segmented groups is gone.”
As one of the country’s leading broadcasting companies (with no relation to the UK telecoms company) supplying media streaming, pay TV and broadband services in a highly customised way is vital in today’s digital services market, which is saturated with providers. It’s what sets a company apart. “People, especially the younger generation want to be talked to personally. Data is a key strategy that enables us to do that.”
Speed of change
The acceleration of technology development since the Covid-19 crisis began has been staggering, and the share of digital or digitally enabled products in company portfolios has accelerated by seven years, according to research by management consultancy McKinsey & Company. This means the way customers consume media, and what they expect from it has also transformed, having a particular impact on broadcasting and broadband companies. Media consumption has risen dramatically. Research by data analytics and brand consultancy Kantar has revealed that web browsing has increased by 70 per cent, while TV viewing went up by 63 per cent and social media engagement grew by 61 per cent over normal usage rates.
The pandemic has pushed Sky TV New Zealand’s data strategy forward, “probably by a couple of years,” McKenzie explains, although he is quick to note the journey was already well under way. “We were in the process of transforming the way in which we take our data, consume it, and use it to better understand our customers. We had a very disparate cluster of data warehouses that were focused on specific areas of the business, so it was very isolated, and a challenge to report on and run adequate analysis over.”
As the company made the decision to break through into new digital spaces and expand its services, an overhaul in the management of its vast data lakes was required, says McKenzie. “For us, specifically, because we have so much data spreading over 30 or so years, it's been very difficult to ensure that we have data integrity. It's something that we've struggled with over the years.” With a renewed focus on this, the business has been able to use upgrades to take anomalies out of the system, confidently moving into broadband services and reacting to changes in real time.
This has been underpinned with US software company Snowflake’s cloud data warehousing, which has allowed Sky to replicate and merge data, and use accurate reporting tools. “It has enabled us to get better insights about our customers and given us an advantage as we've moved into broadband. It means we could target them in a more accurate way, and we've been pretty successful at that today.”
Evolutionary road
With more than 900,000 billing relationships, Sky is a leading player in what is a constantly changing, competitive, and rapidly developing industry – and one, as consumers, we have come to value extremely highly in light of recent events. Digital disruption is something that is being seen more and more frequently, and the rate of reaction is a critical component of a successful business in this sector. Being able to harness and leverage the data Sky has available is vital in today’s landscape.
“Our business is evolving. We're still on the trajectory. With all of the gains that we've made, we're really only at the very beginning of what is probably going to be a never-ending journey.” And, as month by month, new areas of business are explored, the company continues its transformation. “We need to really look far and wide to understand where our next revenue streams are coming from. Being able to understand the data and understand our customers really does help us figure out where to go next.”
Data integrity has enabled the business to be able to move forward rapidly in ever-changing times, McKenzie says, and respond to the evolving needs of the marketplace while expanding its products and offerings. “All the pieces of the puzzle are coming together now. Data is really a fundamental pillar of this.”
