Data deduplication is a common necessity in the business world. Avoiding duplicated records often involves making decisions about how to combine the data from the records involved. However, just as combining medications or therapies without proper analysis can lead to adverse effects, mixing data without a clear approach can result in disastrous outcomes. It is essential that the treatment aligns with the specific information needs.

Imagine a patient self-medicating by combining a pain reliever with an anticoagulant without medical supervision. This mix can lead to serious complications. Similarly, in the data realm, applying a mixing method without adequate analysis can result in incorrect or misleading information. The key is to understand the essence of each data point to decide how they should be combined in each situation.

Essential Data: Crafting the Recipe for Opportunities

When discussing data mixing, it is vital to understand the intended use of each data point to be combined. For instance, if we are mixing two sales opportunities, we must decide how to merge the essential data: should the resulting opportunity be a combination of both, or do we prefer to keep only one? This decision has significant implications for revenue planning and forecasting.

In solutions like Consolidate, specific mixing actions can be configured to meet the business's needs. With customizable functions, users can set specific criteria for the merging process, ensuring that each combination is suitable for their particular requirements. However, it is crucial to define how the data to be combined will be handled.

​Preserving Internal Notes in Opportunity Mixing

If you want to retain annotations made in internal notes, choosing the "Concatenate" merging method will prevent the loss of valuable information previously recorded in this field.

Choosing the Method for Projected Revenue Mixing

Projected revenues in the new opportunity can take the minimum, maximum, or sum of both:

• Minimum Value: This method will take the lowest revenue of all elements involved in the mix. It can be useful in situations where potential revenue is used for sales projections based on a pessimistic approach. However, it may underestimate the projected value, which could affect investments and growth strategy. ​

• Maximum Value: Using the maximum value could lead to an overestimation of revenue, resulting in unrealistic financial planning.

• Sum: This method is helpful when the mix is used to unify two opportunities that will be treated as a single proposal, where the expected revenue is the total offered in the independent opportunities.

The method chosen will depend on the company's sales forecasting strategy, so it’s essential to coordinate with the sales management on the method they wish to apply.

Conclusion

Lack of clarity in the appropriate mixing method for each situation can be detrimental. Just as a doctor needs to understand a patient's condition before prescribing treatment, businesses must carefully analyze their data before combining it.

Lack of clarity in the appropriate mixing method for each situation can be detrimental. Just as a doctor needs to understand a patient's condition before prescribing treatment, businesses must carefully analyze their data before combining it.