In my continuing series on marketing superpowers, we're now ready to tackle Data Man! Of course you'll continue to see updates from each of the superheroes below, and I'll make sure you have links to each blog post for your convenience. Here is what we've covered so far, and what is yet to come:

• Wonder Vision-The power to see what no one yet can see
• Alchemist-The power to blend art with science in a way no one can ignore
• Super Voice-The power to reach millions at the same time
• Data Man-The power to turn piles of data into competitive insights and deliver real marketing value
• Mega Mentor-The power to get the most from others

Now let's get up to speed onData Man!

Are you ready to "be what's next?" One way to ensure you are what's next is to have the information you need to identify market opportunity. It's not just enough to have the data though, you must be able to analyze it properly, and that is where Data Man fits into your organization.  

Delivering insights into what's actually important in that huge pile of data is crucial to your marketing success. What is important? What matters? These are the questions Data Man can help you answer. Analysis of your data can give you insights into customer behavior, buying patterns, sales and purchase cycles and new sources of revenue. Data Man is a key member of your superhero team.

As I mentioned in my last blog about Super Voice, while we were in Chicago this year at Cisco Marketing Velocity, we saw a fabulous presentation from David Meerman Scott. While I highlighted this presentation when talking about Super Voice and the focus on social media it applies to Data Man as well. I do recommend watching the replay if you have not yet watched it. There is great information in it with regards to data and the insight it can bring to you marketing team.

David talks about reaching the customer at the right time, and with the right information, during their buying decision. With an excellent Data Man on your marketing team, you'll be able to determine just what you need to show them and when. This in turn increases your revenue, hence our tagline about "the power to turn piles of data into money in the bank!"

Just as importantly, Data Man can help create a much better experience for your customers, as they will be presented with pertinent information when it matters. These are areas where Data Man's analysis can truly give you a competitive advantage.

Having an excellent Data Man on your team also allows you to:

• Test your marketing approach
• Learn from the past
• Optimize not your content
• Optimize the automation in your channel

Using feedback from your data to optimize your channel is exactly what we discussed in my series on revenue generation marketing.

We have some excellent sessions coming up in our Marketing Velocity series that touch on many of these same subjects. If you can attend either, or both sessions, I urge you to join Accelerating Revenue Marketing: Steps to Success on September 23 or Marketing Automation: Implement technology, process, and strategy to reap the rewards of revenue marketing on October 7.

Each session is about one hour long, and we will leave time for questions as well. On September 23, we will do our best to cover items from a focused list of the most important steps to realize repeatable revenue marketing success.

We will follow that up on October 7 by showing you how a solid analysis of your data helps you understand the technology that would allow you to take what you've learned from revenue marketing and install it into your marketing automation operation.

Data Man is a vital team member who has the power to make sense out of the piles of data you have on hand. Be sure to join us in our next couple of sessions to learn more. In the meantime, let me know what you think of Data Man in the comments section.