In today’s fast-paced professional world, it is difficult for businesses to attain and retain success. The marketplace that we currently operate in is changing at a digital speed. Millions of disruptions and inventions have led to the creation of a highly competitive world. Burgeoning technological advancements have contributed tremendously to boosting the dynamics of the workplace arena. Thus, to help an organization thrive, entrepreneurs are always on the lookout for new and advanced means that could help their business flourish.
Big data is one of the most promising technologies available in today’s world. It has myriad benefits associated with its usage. Many industries are using big data for various purposes. Wondering how it can be useful for boosting your business? Read on to find out all your answers related to Big Data.
1. Customer Satisfaction
In a world of “Caveat Venditor”, the customer is supreme. With several options available to choose from, customers are now exposed to various means of convenience shopping. Not only is it important for businesses to offer pre-purchase ease of buying but also pay due attention to post-purchase nuances, lest, the customer should use readily available social media platforms to his advantage. Business owners have no option but to oblige the demands of their customers. This is where big data impacts marketing. It can be used to study customer profile and past purchase patterns. This information can then be used to offer relevant products to the customer across the marketing environment. As a result, the chances of a potential customer purchasing the product increase exponentially as the customer’s requirement is already known.
2. Cost Saving
Hadoop and a few other cloud based analytics big data tools help in saving costs incurred on running businesses. Big data is used by companies all across the globe to identify methods of carrying out business more efficiently and economically. This is primarily true for companies that require large volumes of data to be stored.
3. Customer Segmentation
With soaring customer acquisition costs, organizations are focusing more and more on targeting promotions to specific market segments. Information pertaining to a customer’s buying behavior is obtained from sources like social media. Big Data uses this information to identify potential customers for the product in discussion, based on the purchase history of customers. Once the segmentation is done, promotional offers are sent out to these targeted customers. This helps in increasing lead conversion chances and also reduces customer acquisition costs by about 30%. To understand this better, take into consideration the classic example of Amazon. Notice that the products recommended to you on Amazon are different from those recommended to your friend. This is because Amazon uses your browsing history to recommend products that are of relevance to you.
According to a publication in the Harvard Business Review, businesses have achieved 70% improvement in conversion rates by using big data analytics.
4. Fraud Detection
Many organizations face challenges related to fraudulent claims, financial crimes and data breaches. Before big data analytics came into being, fraud prevention was a problem that severely impacted industries all over the world. However, with the advent of big data analytics, organizations are now able to detect and eliminate internal as well as external fraudulence. For example, the analysis algorithms of big data can identify unusual behavior patterns on transactions made using debit or credit card. This can be used to alert banks of the possibility of the card having been stolen. As a repercussion, the bank can hold any further transaction till the owner of the card is contacted, thus preventing monetary loss to the customer.
5. Revamp Products
A primary benefit of using big data analytics is that it lets business owners understand how their brands and products are being perceived in the marketplace. Big data can be used to conduct customer sentiment analysis to find out what the customers feel about a brand, irrespective of their diverse geographical locations. This helps brands identify their position in the market and also adopt corrective measures to ensure a positive brand image among customers. This can be done by adding or subtracting attributes to an existing product or creating an all-new product taking into consideration the requirements of the target market. Big data analytics also helps companies understand how minor variations can impact productivity and in the long run, profitability.
6. Risk Calculation
Setting up any kind of a business involves risk. The intensity of risk is often determined by various economic and social factors impacting the industry that one operates in. Entrepreneurs use big data analytics to analyze ongoing trends and changes constantly taking place in an industry so that they can be prepared for the future. This proactive approach helps them foresee contingencies such that they are able to adopt appropriate measures at the right time.
By Bella Williams
