Big Data – What Is It and How Can it be Used?

The mention of Big Data still begs the question: what is it? and how can it be used?

At first, facing this overwhelming amount of information may be a daunting task, and Big Data’s ongoing growth, constantly expanding every second doesn’t make it any easier. But it does make the subject all the more fascinating.

With that in mind, we thought we should explore the subject of Big Data and all its benefits:

What Is It?

Big Data can offer behavioural, attitudinal and transactional insights, stemming from multiple places like websites, marketing campaigns, loyalty programmes, and social media to name a few.

Social media stands as one of the most prominent sources of data. A report by CMS Wire shows that 90 percent of the available data in the world was recently gathered in the span of the past two years, and more importantly, the 80% of that data comes from “unstructured” sources such as social media.

How Can it be Used?

Big Data can play a key role in marketing when it is teamed with an integrated management strategy.

A significant impact can be seen in the following areas:

Customer Engagement

Capital One is a great example of using big data to improve customer engagement; the company analyses customer demographics and spending patterns through a deal optimization engine, and the results help them decide how, where and when to place offers in front of people.

With these answers in hand, brands can treat customers like individuals with different motivations and preferences, and no longer like demographics. The end result is positive for both parties: your companies’ revenue increases, and customers feel listened to by getting timely and extremely relevant messages.

With these answers in hand, brands can treat customers like individuals with different motivations and preferences, and no longer like demographics. The end result is positive for both parties: your companies’ revenue increases, and customers feel listened to by getting timely and extremely relevant messages.

Customer Loyalty

Big Data flags up and highlights all of the factors that can create customer loyalty, and hence makes it easier to fortify relationships and avoid losing customers.

For instance, T-Mobile used it to reduce a common problem faced by the telecommunications sector; customer turnover. T-Mobile used insights such as usage patterns, geographical usage trends and more, and in-turn managed to reduce customer turnover by 50%.

Competitive Edge

Big Data is indeed the business world’s newest and biggest toy, providing all companies that use it an invaluable competitive edge. Getting fully acquainted with the subject, and especially with your own data is the way to increase productivity.

A study by Accenture shows that 83% of business leaders have pursued Big Data projects in order to attain a competitive edge. And it doesn’t stop there. There are great expectations for the future of the technology as well, as 79% of business leaders agree that ‘companies that do not embrace Big Data will lose their competitive position and may even face extinction.’

Conclusion

It is now ‘evolve or die’ for many businesses, with the studies above making a compelling case in favour of Big Data, showing one can reap excellent fruits from the emerging technology.

Moreover, it’s no secret that in this day and age consumers are more empowered and hold higher expectations from the brands they purchase products and services from.

Fortunately, big data’s influx of information has also given marketers a new sense of agility at meeting these demands, and simultaneously brings benefits to their own companies. When the in-depth insights available are put to excellent use, it can lead to more solid and positive interactions between brands and consumers. It makes for an easier landscape to work in, brands are no longer in the dark like before, and they can now earn customers’ trust a lot quicker.

What are your thoughts? Do you have any predictions for the future of Big Data? Send an email and let us know!