Can you walk your business without data? They are just a bundle of numbers, right? How can they help my business – wait, you’re not doing it right.
Whether you are a small-scale business or a giant conglomerate your organization is generating a plethora of data every now and then – structured and unstructured. This data helps identify the strengths and weaknesses of your organization. For example, if you are running the business of sports gear and apparel with the main part of operations based on social media, the analytics provided by the social media platforms will help you identify what kind of content has more engagement and what needs your attention and more. To be more concise, in the present competitive environment you need to stay ahead of the curve and data will help you with that.
Big Data
Big data has been around for long that you can imagine, but with the influx of smart technology and Internet of Things it has become a reality for us. Remember Hadoop by Yahoo – one that provided a software framework for processing of big data using the MapReduce programming? It came up in the year 2005, the year when “Big Data” was termed by Roger Mougalas from O’Reily Media. The use of Big Data, however, dates back to early centuries.
Big data is a large and complex set of data continuously generated from a wide variety of sources that are too daunting for traditional tools and applications to handle. Organizations require this massive data to manage, store and analyze. Imagine the myriad of customer databases stored in your system. Getting it?
Big Data can be explained through the 3 Vs –
Volume – this is the amount of data there is. Take the example of Facebook. With over 2 billion active monthly users amounting to massive posts, videos, and images, can you imagine the volume of data generated? It’s huge!
Velocity – this is the speed at which the data is generated. There is an explosion of data every hour, every minute, every second.
Variety – data may be structured, semi-structured, and unstructured. Traditionally, data could be secured from spreadsheets and excels, while in contemporary times, data can be extracted from emails, texts, photos, and videos that are mostly unstructured.
Big Data Analytics
Traditional applications are not capable of handling the massive data generated from a variety of sources. That’s why smart and advanced technologies have been invented to deal with such data. Big data analytics is the way Organizations extract valuable insights like market trends, customer preferences, and more from the complex data for future operations and better decision making.
Let’s take the example of music streaming platform Spotify. With over 300 million active listeners, a plethora of data is generated every day which the company uses to provide customized experience to its consumers, more like the ‘Recommendation’ section of the platform. Similarly, YouTube also provides recommended videos for their consumers based on their search history, past videos and the like.
Big Data Analytics for Decision Making
Are you convinced about the importance of data for your business? Have you wondered how Big Data Analytics can fuel decision-making for your Organization? No? Maybe it’s time for you to do that.
Think about it wisely. Your Organization has stored a massive amount of data in one year. This includes a customer database, social media insights, emails, customer feedback, and more. Now, how can this bulky information help you?
- Drive customer acquisition and reduce turnover
With the ample data lying in your system, you have hands-on knowledge of the wants and preferences of your customers. Leveraging this data will help you offer a seamless consumer experience and reduce customer churns. Customized services and customer retention campaigns can be among the many ways to drive more customers and increase profitability.
- Improve operational efficiency
The reports from the generated data can help improve business operations in different areas of the Organization. Companies gain an insight into the merits and demerits of their operations and services, and likewise, they can make necessary modifications and alterations. For example, the feedback received from customers regarding the delivery service of a company can help the decision-makers to improve their services in a way that benefits their consumers.
Automation has now become a reality, thanks to data. Many companies have now started leveraging chatbots and AI-driven technologies to provide a great consumer experience.
- Discover business opportunities and mitigate risks
Fraudulent activities are on rising and companies find it difficult to implement efficiency on and within. Big data analytics help identify fraudulent activities and discrepancies and eliminate the roots of such activities. Further, Big data has been instrumental in developing risk management models and solutions that help businesses thrive in a high-risk environment.
Big data analytics help businesses harness their data and discover the hidden opportunities that turn profitable for them.
- Faster and better decisions
Data analytics provide organizations with necessary information extracted from the high volume, velocity, and variety of data generated from different sources. This information is necessary for decision-makers to drive effective targeted campaigns, provide improved customer experience, and increase profitability.
Data is the oxygen for business organizations in the 21st century. Say, for example, an advertising campaign targeted towards the wrong set of audience (who has nothing do to with you) is more likely to deplete your company’s time, money, and other resources. Data eliminates the possibility of such wrong decisions, helps attract valuable customers, and creates new products, services, and experiences.
Over the years, many companies have emerged providing solutions to wrangling the huge datasets and crunching the relevant information out of them and training employees to flex their muscles in this domain. Xebia USA is a leading software development company in the USA who help Organizations become AI-literate together with GoDataDriven, a part of Xebia Group. They are a leading Big Data Consulting in the USA housing passionate data driven professionals and helping companies move forward and gain actionable insights and opportunities.
