Big Data isnt specific to any one industry, meaning its universal in usefulness. Using Big Data analytics to learn key information about your market and consumer behavior is just as important to financial firms as it is to fast food chains. However, while broad in its application, Big Data can certainly be more valuable to some companies than others.
Obviously, Big Data isnt some kind of crystal ball or tarot card (though its sometimes hyped up to be). However, that doesnt mean Big Datas accolades arent well-founded. Its ability to identify determinants that influence markets and audience behavior is invaluable in a day where competition between businesses is fierce, and everyone is fighting for our attention.
The following are a few industries that stand to really benefit from a solid data strategy, and will most likely seek greater Big Data adoption in 2015:
E-Commerce Needs Big Data
There are a number of reasons why eCommerce needs to incorporate Big Data. For one, it helps make much more informed decisions. Business decisions and business strategies rely on market insights, which are only intensified and clarified with Big Data, as opposed to hunches and assumptions. However, one of the most important elements for online retailers is to provide a customized experience.
Big Data allows companies to develop personalized, tailored content that is more likely to lead to conversion. Companies like Amazon are great at accumulating data from user profiles, and learning to make recommendations and suggest bundles based on the search and purchase behaviors of its millions and millions of shoppers. Simply, Big Data allows companies to learn who is buying what, and which incentives are likely to lead to a sale.
Digital Advertising Needs Big Data
Our world moves at an incredible speed. We hate stop lights and slow connections, mainly because weve become so used to instant gratification. Sure, patience is a virtue, but speed and real-time analytics are a digital advertisers dream. In the past, processing and analyzing large data sets was slow and often yielded stale results. Fortunately, even with much more information, improvements in data analytics grant marketers access to insights and important information in real-time. This not only improves time to market, but allows marketers and advertisers to make adjustments to campaigns on the fly.
Big Data and the increasing number of sources from which to glean it has lead to an era of micro-segmentation. These smaller groups, or micro-segments, allow marketers to create more tailored and targeted content and services. The more direct and customized an approach is, the higher its potential for substantial returns. In the digital ad space, the marriage of Big Data and mobile technology allows for hyper-localized advertising. Advertisers can now target audiences in specific areas and push relevant ads right to their mobile devices at the optimal time. That means companies like Walmart or Target can send you offers and promotions the moment you approach one of their stores.
Gaming Companies Need Big Data
Weve come a long way since the days of Atari. The electronic gaming industry is now worth more than 90 billion dollars. And it isnt just the major companies like Sony or Microsoft who are contributing to the industry. The market is saturated with thousands of smaller developers and new designers as well. Big Data can play a number of roles for video games companies. The main one of course, is the ability to create a game people will play. Just like movie companies use data to make a great film, so too will video game companies learn more about gamers, and rely on data to avoid spending a ton of money only to design a flop. This is why consoles like Xbox One or PS4 require online accounts to play games. It allows Microsoft and Sony to track gamers more closely.
In addition, Big Data will help the gaming industry come up with more effective ways to monetize their games. This is especially true for smaller developers making games for social media and mobile devices. There are many different ways to monetize games, like merchandising or offering pay-to-play, and its important to determine the method your audience will respond best to.
