Thanks to the technological advances of recent times, large volumes of data or big data are gradually entering the day to day business transactions and the general functioning of companies.
The possibilities offered by the analysis of these gigantic repositories of information are really incredible and, without a doubt, they will end up transforming both the internal functioning and the structure of the companies much earlier than expected.
This article lists 10 of these possible changes or ways in which big data will transform companies …
1. It will improve business intelligence
Business intelligence is the set of data analysis tools that allow a business to be better analyzed. Until recently, the possibilities of analyzing these tools were quite limited, also providing limited answers. However, this is changing.
With the recent development of tools capable of analyzing large repositories of data or big data and the increasing accumulation of information due to new factors, such as the arrival of the Internet of things, the growing use of social networks or the widespread implantation of mobile devices in all areas of our lives, business intelligence has resurfaced as a profession of the future, capable of analyzing a business in depth and of giving extremely precise and enlightening answers to very diverse questions.
For example, identify which are the most valuable customers of a large multinational with hundreds of millions of customers, or how to improve the service to each of their customers with personalized offers based on their tastes or interests.
The new big data analysis tools allow us to examine a wide range of very diverse data sources, which provide structured information, such as purchase histories, CRM data, data provided by third parties. As unstructured information, such as that obtained from social networks, blogs, videos, etc.
2. Better targeted marketing campaigns can be carried out
One of the most obvious achievements of the big data analysis is the possibility it offers to design better targeted marketing campaigns. As we mentioned in the previous point, the analysis of these large repositories of data allows companies to know much better their customers, their tastes and interests, their employment, family and / or economic situation, etc. And this detailed knowledge greatly facilitates the work of marketing departments, which can use this information to design marketing campaigns perfectly adapted to the needs of each segment of customers.
3. The customer service will be more proactive
The analysis of the big data will completely transform the customer services of the companies. Among other things, because this deep knowledge of the clients, their interests and their needs, will allow the companies to know exactly what the client needs before he even expresses it directly and the demand arises. In this way, companies can anticipate the requests or complaints of their customers and solve possible problems, offer a product or make an offer that meets their needs even before the customer requests it.
4. Products adapted to the needs of the client will be designed
This deep knowledge of the customer, obtained from the analysis of big data, will also irremediably influence the design of the products of the companies, since there is nothing that sells better than a product that satisfies a need and, thanks to the analysis of big data, companies can know in advance the needs of their customers, both present and future. Adapting the products to the needs of the clients in the design phase will save a lot of money to the companies and will improve their income in the marketing stage. In addition, it will allow the company to achieve higher levels of customer satisfaction and thereby increase its prestige as a brand.
The analysis of big data also allows us to improve the design of the product continuously depending on how the customer’s needs evolve or of possible problems detected. For example, sometimes a product that seems perfect does not achieve the expected success when it reaches the market. The difficult thing, in these cases, is to find out why. And that’s where the analysis of big data comes in. Through a detailed monitoring of the use that customers make of the product, it allows us to identify if there is a design problem and solve it as before.
5. It will considerably improve the efficiency of the processes
Companies are composed of processes: design, manufacturing, communication processes, etc.; and it is the task of industrial engineers to study these processes in detail to achieve the highest levels of efficiency in each one of them. However, to carry out this study, the data is fundamental. The arrival of the analysis of big data puts in your hands an invaluable analysis tool, considerably increasing the possibilities of improvement and improvement in the efficiency of those processes.
6. The costs will be reduced
The analysis of big data provides companies with valuable information on various aspects of their business and that information often reduces costs. For example, some of the things we have already mentioned, such as improving the product in the design phase thanks to the in-depth knowledge of the customers or making the company’s processes more efficient, can save a lot of money in costs the company.
In addition, some companies are already using big data to identify trends and predict future events in their respective sectors that could affect their business. Knowing what is going to happen in advance allows them to anticipate the facts, find solutions with time to possible problems and improve their forecasts and planning. Obviously, this also reduces costs.
7. Critical decision making will be done in an informed manner
Information is a fundamental tool in decision making. However, many companies still base important decision making solely on the intuition or experience of their CEO. Obviously, that hunch can work, but it can also lead the company to the most absolute disaster. In the next few years, with the arrival of big data, this will change completely and good CEOs will be the ones who make their decisions after performing a thorough analysis of all the large repositories of available data.
8. New business processes will be created
The combination of big data analysis with the ubiquity and immediacy provided by mobile devices will completely change the way of doing business and it will be necessary to redesign the internal processes of the company. New processes will arise and others will be modified or disappear. The internal communication chain will also be affected. The employees and managers of the company will have all the information they need in real time wherever they are and it will be possible to develop new tools that combine these and other current technologies, such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, to improve performance.
For example, a transport company can develop intelligent tools to automatically manage deliveries in the most efficient way, from chain pick-ups and deliveries so that each delivery person makes the shortest journey in the shortest time possible, anticipating possible traffic congestion in certain routes to certain hours of the day or devise a new route in case of an accident that collapses the usual route.
9. The Data Departments will emerge
The arrival of the big data will not only modify the business processes but also the departments. Some departments will need more personnel than they need today, others will need less or will disappear and the data will reach so much importance that they will require a department of their own, independent of the Technology Department.
Some companies have already started to create this Data Department that is under the supervision of the Data Director (CDO), an executive director specialized in analysis, processing and data mining, who reports directly to the CEO.
In addition to analyzing these large repositories of data, you also have to protect them. A security breach can cost a company millions, so it is essential to avoid it. In these Data Departments, cybersecurity will acquire a critical role. Proof of this is that some large companies have already begun to incorporate famous hackers into their templates.
10. The big data analysis will tend to outsource, contracting it as a service
Creating a giant department of big data internally capable of storing petabytes of information in long lines of powerful servers and hiring a whole team of data scientists is not available to any company. However, having this type of information will be essential for a company, so many will have to resort to an outsourcing, hiring the services of third-party specialists in this field.
Obviously, it will not be cheap, but it will be much more affordable and viable than the option to manage it internally. In addition, there will be no other option. That is, the question that will be asked by companies will no longer be whether they can afford to hire the services of an expert company in big data, but to what extent they can really afford not to do so.
