Group subscriptions for B2B data is not a new thing, and Datamyne is a great example of this, having offered them since 1992 (albeit with modems). CEO Brendan McCahill and Lisa Wallerstein, VP of Marketing & Product Development, spoke with Insider about how the site cleans and standardizes international trade data from countries all over the world and then tailors its subscription packages for each organization, allowing them to charge anywhere from $3,000 a year to $10,000 a month. Plus, discover how the site is driving conversions with a free demo and in-person sales calls.
Company Profile
Founded: Online in Montevideo since 1992; Website launched 1997. US site launched 2005.
No. of Data Products: 1, but divided into multiple verticals.
Employees: 93 full-time — 20 in Argentina, 50+ in Uruguay (where data processing center is), about 20 in US.
Business Model: Mainly subscription.
Paying Subscribers: 1,000 companies in the US, 2,200 in S. America, close to 7,500 users.
Location: Miami, FL, with offices in Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil.
Website: http://www.datamyne.com/
Target Market
Datamyne’s target market is mid- to large organizations interested in international trade data. The specific type of data, just like the type of organization, can vary — from warehouses interested in global transport data to the energy sector interested in oil, gas and other commodities, to chemical and food industries.
A secondary market consists of government institutions, like the Department of Homeland Security, who use data to further their enforcement and regulatory activities.
Content
Datamyne primarily collects what are called customs manifests — detailed reports of what is being shipped into and out of seaports around the world. This data thus offers a goldmine of sales prospecting and competitive intelligence data — once it has been thoroughly cleaned up and organized.
Subscribers can search data by industry, country, product, or company, and can even rank the data through a dashboard-like application. Below is a snapshot of the type of information the site provides to subscribers:
The site’s content is pay-worthy because the data it receives from all over the world has been cleaned up to be as consistent as possible across countries and industries. For example, General Electric may appear as different names in different reports. (Datamyne has a relationship with Dun & Bradstreet and incorporates DUNS numbers into the data.) There are also frequent typos or mistakes that Datamyne uses algorithms to correct — such as a cargo container being listed as weighing 900,000 lbs. when 9,000 is much more realistic. The content is also pay-worthy because of the many tools online that allow for easier analysis and insight.
New data is added to the site daily, and usually comes from customs, census or commerce bureaus via CD-ROM, FTP site, or a secure download site. All of the data is legally mandated at the country level, which means that some countries offer more or less data according to their own internal laws. For example, Datamyne will publish price per unit from some countries, but not the EU where such data is not made available.
Datamyne has roughly 40 people working on cleaning and standardizing data.
Revenues
Datamyne generates just under $10 million annually. The company is privately-held with private equity backing. Nearly 100% of revenues come from subscriptions, in particular, site license sales.
Datamyne’s pricing is quite complex. It can range from $3,600-$4000 a year to $10,000 a month. That’s because Datamyne charges organizations according to the type of data they need (transport, food, energy, etc.), the number of countries they need access to, and the number of users. The average subscription price is $500/month.
Transportation is by far their most popular vertical with 80-90 site licenses (the average with 35 seats, and the range between 10 and 200). Smaller, mid-size companies pay about $4000/year for two to three users. Larger multinational companies often have librarians and 10-12 users scattered across the world.
Datamyne also has an on-demand option where a user can get access to 50 records for a one-time payment of $79.
Most overseas companies pay for subscriptions using credit cards, although the company also accepts wire transfers and will send invoices.
Acquisition Marketing
Datamyne acquires most of its new subscribers through direct sales with an in-house sales team, consisting of 10 Business Development Managers.
The site also employs a number of online marketing tactics:
- SEO: Datamyne recently moved their website over to a WordPress platform, which is more SEO friendly. They’ve also incorporated a number of WordPress plugins to increase search rankings. Most of the organic traffic is to the site’s blog.
- PPC: Datamyne’s PPC ads link to the site’s conversion page for a free demo, not its homepage, which is a best practice other sites should adopt.
- Blog: Datamyne blogs about timely topics related to international trade (such as the Lululemon yoga pants fiasco and how it affected supply chains.) Other B2B and data sites should look for ways to incorporate similar trending topics into their blog posts since it can be a great traffic driver.
- PR: Datamyne issues press releases and monthly newsletters, and some media outlets have used the company’s data for articles, but the site doesn’t have a full-time staff member working on PR.
- Trade Shows: Datamyne is a familiar presence at many industry-specific trade shows (such as the Economic Development Council or the American College of Research Librarians), mainly as an exhibitor. McCahill will occasionally give talks at industry events as well, such as SIIA.
- Social Media: Datamyne has modest followings on Twitter and LinkedIn, which results in some acquisitions.
- Affiliates: Datamyne has a partnership with Web Port Global — a trade portal associated with several World Trade Center organizations. Their subscribers can get access to some Datamyne data on the Web Port Global site, and then get a discount for a full subscription to Datamyne.
Conversion Tactics
Datamyne observes a lot of best practices on its homepage and landing pages to drive conversions, such as having a big button with a strong call-to-action, a button to chat (that’s static as a site visitor scrolls) and “catfish” navigation bar (i.e., the navigation bar is also static as you scroll down). The site also offers lots of free downloads in exchange for an email address.
The demo is the Datamyne’s best conversion tactic, and a prerequisite to getting a subscription price quote. The demo is handled using webinar software with the client, and focuses on how Datamyne can help the company achieve its expressed business objectives.
The demo recipient then has to be the “internal champion” to get the company to buy a site license, but “usually, the person who gives his or her time for a demo is a person in logistics or marketing and has the authority to pay,” says McCahill.
After the demo, Datamyne’s 10 US-based sales staff will then follow up with phone and email. Demo recipients are added to the in-house email list announcing product upgrades. The sales staff may also follow-up in person, taking trips to see customers. There are even dedicated sales staff to follow-up within 20 minutes on Saturday and Sunday.
The chat feature is run by the company’s Customer Care team, of which there are photos and contact info for individuals on the website. Wallerstein told us that the chat feature has really taken off — people seem to prefer online chat to calling their account representative (anyone who subscribes to Datamyne also gets a dedicated Account Care individual). Datamyne has staff attending to chats from 8am to 8pm EST (in order to accommodate West Coast customers), although account care staff usually monitor chat via their smartphones on weekend and attend to any emergencies if they pop up.
Retention Tactics
The average company renewal rate is about 80%, but some sectors see renewal rates closer to 95%. Datamnye is not sure of its average account lifetime, but some accounts have been around since the US division launched in 2005.
The company employs two main retention tactics:
- Contacting “sleeper” accounts and offering them another training or personalized support to use the site. The site generates monthly usage reports, and will contact any customer who hasn’t logged in in that time.
- Sending sales staff to customers’ offices to make sure people are getting the most out of the product. The same aforementioned usage reports are evaluated three months before renewal to note any changes in usage, and the contact person for any one account is either called or sent an email to alert them about renewal. On occasion, renewals are handled via off-site meetings.
Cross-Sells and Upsells
Datamyne often upsells its existing subscribers, charging more for access to more types of data or adding more users. They tend to target larger companies, and then use marketing automation tools to track how often users in those organizations are opening emails, reading the blog, using Datamyne’s tools. Datamnye will then reach out with an email.
About Brendan McCahill & Lisa Wallerstein
Brendan McCahill got his start as a deep sea container operator, but was looking to get out since the industry was becoming consolidated. As a data user, he understood how important data was and how much it could help a business, so he actively sought to move into data side of the business.
His biggest lesson was how dirty most of the data is and therefore, how important it is to have best practices with cleansing and processing. “You don’t want it to be ‘pretty good’ — you want it to be excellent, logical and designed for high usability.”
Lisa Wallerstein started at Dun & Bradstreet, where she learned a lot about information while managing their risk management products. Then she went to PIERS for a few years before joining Datamnye, which she felt was a more innovative operation.
Her best advice to other database site owners is that the technology is changing frequently, so “you always have to be thinking about the next way that people will be consuming information. I’ve seen things go from paper to CD to Internet and now it’s mobile.”
Vendors & Technology
Hosting — A2 Hosting
http://www.a2hosting.com/
Payment processing — Heartland Payment Systems
http://www.heartlandpaymentsystems.com/
Marketing Automation — Manticore (now Sales Engine International)
http://salesengineintl.com/
Web design & development — Decision Council, Balboni & Associates
http://decisioncounsel.com/
http://www.balboniassociates.com/
Content management — WordPress
http://www.wordpress.org/
Analytics — Google Analytics
http://www.google.com/analytics/
Subscription Site Insider Analysis
First, we love that Datamyne has evolved its business to keep up with technological innovations. Too many times, B2B companies get used to one delivery platform and fail to innovate. We also like that the site is leveraging its existing relationships and in-person sales calls to convert subscribers instead of relying on online interaction and engagement. That said, Datamyne has also been smart enough to offer clear and easy support through its chat feature and by posting its Customer Care team’s names, email addresses and photos. Their retention tactics are also pretty strong.
Although the site is very strong, Datamyne might benefit from a quick optimization consult. For example, it should remove the navigation bar from any conversion pages. And they might want to reduce the number of buttons on the home page (i.e., the client login button could be turned into a text link). The reliance on “internal champions” is a bit unsettling, and Datamyne could segment this tactic by identifying and contacting decision-makers at companies themselves, or by providing their internal champions with materials and resources to help make the sale (such as a list of the top 10 benefits to subscribers, or a three-seat trial like GenomeWeb did).
