CognitiveDATA (www.cognitivedata.com), a wholly owned subsidiary of  Merkle (www.merkle.com) that provides strategic database marketing services for national retail merchants, announced today the appointment of Cindy Marshall as Chief Marketing Officer. The appointment is in support of the company’s commitment to provide innovative technology and full-service data management solutions that meet the needs of multichannel retailers.

Marshall joins CognitiveDATA at a time when the company is expanding its product offering and technology solutions by providing merchants with a fully integrated customer relationship marketing (CRM) solution. The company’s investment in strategically-led database marketing innovation provides merchants with embedded strategy and analytics across traditional and digital channels. The results allow marketers to optimize their customer portfolio. As CMO, Marshall will be responsible for steering that brand vision and will oversee all aspects of the company’s marketing and public relations.

“This is a perfect time to lead an innovative brand like CognitiveDATA,” said Marshall. “For the past decade, marketers have been adjusting to the new digital era of deep customer engagement and the intense analysis required to know which marketing programs work effectively. CognitiveDATA can provide simple solutions for busy retail executives who struggle with the exponential increase of customer data and analytics.”

Marshall comes to CognitiveDATA with over 25 years as a leader in multichannel retailing in a number of marketing leadership roles with major brands. Most recently she served as CMO of Performance Bicycle, the largest specialty bike retailer in the U.S. that operates over 100 retail stores, two websites and a catalog business.  Marshall has a strong background in retail, digital marketing and data solutions, having been president of Pace E-Commerce, a division of Pace Communications, and leading marketing and e-commerce of both The Vermont Country Store and Ross-Simons, as well as holding senior marketing roles at L.L. Bean.

CognitiveDATA founder, president and CEO Rod Ford said, “Cindy’s experience and success as a merchant for brand-name, multi-channel retailers is a huge asset to our team. She will help us achieve our goal of making our customer relationship marketing (CRM) solution the most effective fully-integrated data management solution in the market. We are passionate about new innovations that help retailers gain insights from every customer touchpoint and disseminate that insight into actionable results that drive profit.”

Merkle Chairman and CEO David Williams said, “In today’s retail market place, consumers are adopting innovation as fast as technology is changing. CognitiveDATA’s technology continues to evolve to integrate digital data in order to meet merchant’s needs. I am excited to have Cindy join our executive team to help build the brand vision and communicate our story. I look forward to the growth and advancements that CognitiveDATA will experience as a direct result of this move.”

About CognitiveDATA – A Merkle Company

Founded in 2001, CognitiveDATA is a marketing technology company recognized as a leader in new innovations that improve the accuracy and effectiveness of direct marketing activities. Companies in the retail, communications, insurance and publishing sectors, as well as associations and nonprofits, benefit from CognitiveDATA’s innovative approach to marketing optimization. CognitiveDATA has been recognized multiple years by both Inc. magazine and the Deloitte Fast 500 for its impressive growth, and its core technologies have won multiple industry accolades. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Merkle and is headquartered in Little Rock, with offices in Baltimore, Minneapolis, and San Rafael, CA. For more information, visit www.cognitivedata.com.