It’s estimated that around 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are created every day, and that number is only going to increase in the years to come. As businesses become more connected on a global scale, leaders and officers are trying to figure out the best ways to use, store, and improve on big data they receive from customers and from their own employees. Big data not only refers to the sets that must be sorted through via data processing methods, but also to the concept of extracting and analyzing information captured to better predict certain trends and behaviors in consumers.
Smaller businesses might feel left behind or struggle to make use of the information stored. Big data translation can be daunting, considering how massive today’s data sets can be. But whether your business is a one-stop shop or a globalized retail conglomerate, big data is changing the way companies do business. Here are three ways big data has shifted the business world.
Internal Operations
While most think of big data as a way to analyze consumer habits, companies are also using data from their own employees to improve internal operations and company efficiency. IT departments reigned supreme in the former decades as the forefront of productivity and business growth. Now, businesses are developing separate data departments and appointing Chief Data Officers to handle the influx of big data. In turn, we see companies elevating data to a higher priority level. With some of this translation, companies have implemented sensors on their delivery trucks to track how long deliveries take and to better optimize routes. Additionally, companies are using feedback and information by monitoring employees’ tones, stress levels, and how they move around the company to not only improve their working conditions, but to refine the hiring process and narrow down potential candidates.
Narrow Targeted Marketing
A superabundance of data means that, now more than ever, companies are able to create highly targeted marketing campaigns for their consumers and are able to anticipate customer needs. Taco Bell, with its key target demographic being teenagers and young adults, has created a slew of marketing campaigns that have recently rebranded the fast food chain from “Taco Hell” to a satisfying late-night snack destination. Their unique social media platform has allowed for them to turn big data translation into marketing campaigns that continue to draw in and expand their consumer base. Of course, the flip side to companies using their customers’ information to create better marketing campaigns is to create a more secure way to hold and store all of that detailed customer data. Amazon, with their new brick and mortar bookstores, has already exemplified this by implementing a system that prohibits customers to log in or access their personal accounts from their registers when they pay. Rather, the customer logs in to their account from their smart phone, ensuring that none of their personal information is stored in Amazon’s registers.
Enhanced Customer Experience and Products
Ideally, businesses would use their big data to predict what customers are looking for in their shopping experience and what improvements they would like to see in a company’s products. Instead of product designers relying on customer feedback to start to improvement on a product, big data analysis can help companies predict what customers are expecting already. By including sensors that can provide real-time customer reactions and information on how they use their products, some companies can quickly act on those predictions and plan when and how much to produce. This in turn can help cut costs for businesses, as they don’t have to spend as much on production and inventory costs. Additionally, real-time data analysis can aide in customer service concerns, by analyzing a customer’s account and providing one or two potential issues via a voice prompt to help deliver exceptional and informed customer service.
Regardless of whether you’re a small business owner, a curious customer fielding answers on big data translation, or a chief officer for a large corporation, there is no escaping big data and its influence on how business is done today. It can help analyze not only what your consumers want, but how you can further improve your company’s internal operations. Technological tools to access and analyze big data are more than just a benefit – they’re a necessity.
This is courtesy of Adam Pepka. Below is his bio.Adam is a real estate doyen and finance guru currently residing in Tucson, Arizona. His real estate investments in several states keep him constantly on the go, and his passion for writing has found him penning pieces with unique insights on everything from landlording issues to investment advice.