Is big data a good source of customer intelligence, or is it just adding to the noise? Many marketers and market researchers are actively debating the usefulness and application of big data, specifically whether it provides real insight that can improve business processes and increase sales.
In our point of view, big data can provide value to companies—but only if it’s used in conjunction with other forms of customer intelligence. As Tyler Douglas, CMO at Vision Critical, writes in the ebook Big Data and Beyond: How Companies Can Find Insight in Big Data, “In a world in which data governs so much of our lives and drives decisions, engaging directly with customers becomes ever more vital.”
For a deep dive on big data, we collected useful infographics and slideshares below that clarify what big data can—and cannot—do for companies today.
What is big data?
Best-selling author and LinkedIn Influencer Bernard Marr has put together a very informative slideshare that clearly defines what we mean when talking about big data. As you can see from the deck, big data includes data from people’s digital activities, conversations, gadgets and appliances, among others. The slideshare includes real-world examples of companies that use big data to provide value to customers.
The Four Vs of Big Data
Not all data qualifies as big data. As this helpful infographic from IBM shows, big data requires four Vs: volume, variety, velocity and veracity.
Big Data Use Cases
Big data is only useful when it meets specific business needs. In a popular slideshare, technology company Dell provides specific case studies of companies that are using big data to solve real business challenges. The deck includes examples from 25 companies across eight industries, including retail, manufacturing, banking, financial services, telecom, healthcare, government and oil and gas.
Small Data: Why Big Data Needs A Paradigm Shift
E-commerce solutions provider aCommerce debunks some big data myths in this slideshare. Sheji Ho, the company’s CMO, argues that bigger doesn’t always mean better when it comes to data-collection.
The Big Data Crisis
Companies collect a huge amount of data but struggle to use that data into actionable insight. In this infographic from Vision Critical, we reveal how smart companies are leveraging customer engagement to get more from their big data projects.
Conclusion
We are in the midst of the big data revolution. To make sense of all the data available at their disposal, companies need to be cognizant of the limitations of big data and use complementary forms of customer intelligence to bridge the gap—including engaging directly with your customers to better understand the “why” behind the “what”. When done correctly, this deep immersive learning and multifaceted analysis can turn big data into big insight.
