With the advent of business analytics, data is the most critical raw-material for any business, and information is the new oil for the economy of every country. Managing data and making the best use of available data is one of the key objectives of every organization. With the rapid spread of digitization and greater accessibility to the internet, obtaining data has become much more hassle-free than ever. The amount of data that can be accumulated has also become vast. To manage such abundant information, businesses need a more systematic and advanced technology to analyze data and draw inferences from it.
Data Analysis is the new age backbone of most flourishing businesses; today, companies study consumer behavior to formulate their strategies. Even a platform like Facebook offers analytics support to brands, as these reports provide a better understanding of the brand managers of how the customers are engaging with the brand and what their preferences are. All in all, such analytics offer a clearer picture to the brands on how their messaging is impacting the customers and contributing to the brand’s growth.
Thus, businesses invest in new technologies with a purpose. The purpose is to create maximum customer value and retain stakeholders’ trust by making informed and smart investments. Today, a lot of companies have invested in artificial intelligence. Still, the money invested in technology is also a wise choice, since it helps the company gain maximum insight into their market and derive accurate results. The human-driven survey method used in the ’90s was neither transparent nor reliable. Additionally, the cost involved in hiring individuals was high. The new-age technology-driven business analytics tools are more efficient, and in the long run, they prove to be truly cost-effective.
Becoming a business analyst requires training and proper guidance, even the best data analyst believe that a business analytics degree is mandatory to understand the art of turning data into dollars.
Once you master the science of data management, you will be to deliver the below attributes perfectly:
- Quick and correct reporting
- Provide valuable business insights
- Understand Competition better
- Analyse and create Reliable and Strong Data
- Build Greater Customer Trust
- Gain detailed insights on market trends
- Accelerate operational processes
- Bring greater Profits with minimum investment
Data is critical and complicated; thus, most data scientists refer to successful case studies to evaluate the impact of strategy and data. So, we understand the importance of Business Analytics, with the help of a few successful case-studies:
1. Coca Cola Amatil
The Problem:
We have all heard of the brand Coca Cola Amatil; it is one of the largest bottlers of non-alcoholic beverages in Asia. Previously, the company was dependent on manual procedures for measuring the stock availability in stores and the customer response. This process was time-consuming, and the analysis drawn out of the manual survey was merely 50% effective.
The Solution:
Later the company adopted the Trax Retail Execution technology that enabled the brand to shift from a speculative strategy to a more real-time data-driven planning. Now with the help of the Trax, the entire process of store handling was digitized. The software enabled the company to take real-time images of the store with the smartphone’s available storage space. The images captured were analyzed the software, and detailed analytical reports were sent to the area sales representatives. This enabled the sales representatives to make quick decisions and replenish the stock immediately. Further, it also kept the management informed about the exact status of their business.
The Impact:
The impact of the implementation of technology was seen in just five months. The overall sales figures rose by 10-15% in the entire Asia Pacific. This was a promising victory, which shows that the right technology, driven by the proper analysis, can bring immediate profits to the organization.
2. Netflix:
The Problem:
We all know that today Netflix is the largest video and internet-television online network platform, but this too had its humble beginning. In 1997, Netflix was merely an order-based DVD company. In just two decades, the company has more than 50 million members in about 60 countries. However, to provide equal visibility to all the content showcased on the online platform was the biggest challenge. Hosting over 14000 content, taking every content to its respective audience was the most difficult task in hand.
The Solution:
Have you ever wondered how Netflix provides you with recommendations of the similar types of movies that you just watched? If you have attended a family movie, it will provide you with choices of similar types of videos. With this feature, Netflix tries to provide maximum visibility to its content. This feature is made possible with the help of Data Science. Netflix uses the latest data analytics tools to understand its customers and increase its subscriber base. With the personalized recommendation feature, Netflix has been able to foster greater customer engagement and has become the most preferred entertainment partner for the stakeholders.
The Impact:
The most-watched content on Netflix is now presented as recommendations to the customers; this is possible only through Data mining and analysis. This feature gave customers more ease of finding the right content, and by providing maximum visibility to every accessible content, it became the top choice for all content producers.
With these two popular case studies, we have understood the importance of Data Analysis for businesses. Today, business intelligence tools are the talk of the town; they have made data a fun thing to handle.
Understanding types of Business Analytics:
- Descriptive Analytical Process – Every business lays down some Key Performance Indicators; these KPI’s demonstrate how an organization has been able to achieve the key goals and objective laid by them. The KPI metrics measure the success of the organization. The descriptive-analytical process tracks these set vital goals and helps businesses to measure their yearly progress.
- Predictive Analytical Process – This type of analytics measures the historical data trends to understand the expected outcomes in the long run.
- Prescriptive Analytical Process – As the name suggests, it is an authoritative report which studies the past data and evaluates the performance of a strategy or product in the past and creates recommendations to manage similar scenarios in the present and the future.
Some benefits of Business Analytics:
- Helps you track the Set Goals
Business Analytics helps organizations measure the performance of every department from time to time. Based on these analyzed reports, the organization can identify the factors that need to be corrected to reach the set business goal smoothly. The data obtained through analytics also allows the employees of the organization to gear up their work, understand the grey areas, and work effectively.
- Keeps your budget under control
The marketing budget of every company is limited, and the biggest challenge of the marketing team is to achieve its marketing goals in the set budget. With the help of the business analytical tools, companies can make the most of every penny and base their strategy, plans, and communication on consumer behavior and the ever-dynamic consumer needs.
- Informed Decision making
The decision of the 4Ps of marketing is extremely vital for all businesses, i.e., Which product to make? How to promote the product? Where (Place) should the product be marketed? What should be the price of the product?
With the help of Business analytics, companies can study the market behavior and decide on the 4Ps. The strategy based on this informed data will bring immediate and guaranteed profits.
- Keeps Businesses Updated
The world of marketing, business, and the overall customer needs to keep changing every day. Thus companies need to stay updated about the latest trends and needs of the market. Based on customer preferences, they can modify their products or strategies. Overall, Business Intelligence helps companies to serve their customers better and be their No.1 choice.
The Final Word:
Undoubtedly, there are many amazing tools for business data analysis like Tableau, SAS, Google Analytics, etc. However, to use these tools you need a proper knowledge of how they work and keep yourself constantly updated about the latest upgrades. For instance, in 2018, Google Analytics reported a total of 3000+ updates, which means almost 8-9 upgrades per day, thus you need to study the subject from a renowned and credible source. Today there are many online analytics courses available, even with your job, you can pursue a business analytics degree and give yourself a career boost.
Business Intelligence is the future of the financial world, and data analysis is the most scientific way to understand consumer needs. Business analytics provides a holistic approach to every aspect of the market. There are multiple business analytical tools available in the market, but before you use these tools, it is essential to learn how to use these tools.
