Marketers and decision makers have been longing for greater insight into customer behavior, and the era of big data has finally arrived. More facts, figures, information, and insight are now at our disposal than ever before. Data is exploding, with companies gathering intelligence through a myriad of sources and customer interactions – from credit card transactions through customer survey responses, web server logs, and social media activity. But all of this data is only valuable for the companies that can distill it and convert it into meaningful and actionable analytics.
To make this data meaningful, IT solutions need to not only manage the sheer volume of information now available through various applications and channels but also the constant inflow. Data and metrics arrive continuously in real time, and this volume, variety, and variability exceeds the capabilities of traditional relational databases and business intelligence (BI) software. Companies need to make use of structured data, like customer records and spreadsheets, along with semi-structured and unstructured data like image files, PDF files, videos, web pages, emails, and word processing documents.
To meet these complexities, companies are turning to newer and more sophisticated technologies like Hadoop, MapReduce, Hive, and Pig for data collection all the way through data visualization. These solutions not only handle greater data complexity but can also return results faster – making real-time insight attainable.
With advanced big data analytics, companies can use the information they already have to enhance decision-making, track trends, and boost their competitive edge. They can gain actionable insight into today’s customer behaviors along with the ability to forecast future correlations, patterns, and market trends. Companies are also able to use big data to support geo-targeted and personalized marketing initiatives, assess and improve customer service processes, explore new revenue opportunities, and launch proactive offers based on predictive behavioral modeling. Determine how you can capitalize from Big Data.