Data Analytics and Marketing

Being able to examine data, especially on social media platforms, analytically, has brought about a revolutionary change in marketing efforts. Companies now understand their target audience better than ever before and thus are able to tell which marketing strategy would be best suited. Social media produces a huge amount of data which is deciphered by the professional to check a business' potential and its customer base. From a marketing perspective, this data is gold.

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A company now knows what its audience likes and what they don't like. They know who is interested in their product. They know their target audience, their gender, their age group, their geographical region. Using this knowledge, a company can target the right audience with the right marketing strategy to increase its outreach and sell their product.

How data analytics helps small businesses:

Data analytics has a nearly infinite number of uses and helps businesses become more productive and efficient. It provides them with detailed insights into all their operations. These businesses are now adopting the modern techniques of data analytics to compete with the digital world. Some of the top trendy techniques in analytics used by small businesses are:

· Deep learning: A technique of data analytics that helps them in decision making.

· Machine learning: A technique of data analytics that has revolutionized the marketing techniques brands use.

· Dark data: It's the data that companies collect and store but are never able to put to use. 

1) Deep learning

2.5 quintillion bytes of data are produced every single day. With deep learning, machines have become more adept at putting this data to some use.

Deep learning work in a similar manner to the functioning of a human brain, and utilize artificial neural networks that learn from data — this way, they solve highly complex problems with precision.

An example of deep learning is chatbots that are now able to intelligently answer many of the questions of costumers and create healthy interactions. Deep learning is what enables them to build upon knowledge so that it keeps growing continuously.

2. Machine learning:

It's the process by which a machine learns information through training algorithms. Some of its examples include Netflix, Facebook, and Amazon. These apps generate suggestions based on previous queries and activities.

It's now reaching new heights and opening new doors for companies as the network that makes up the design of machine learning is becoming more and more advanced. With time machine learning and deep learning are becoming integrated, which is also highly beneficial for the businesses. Machine learning, too, is revolutionizing marketing techniques.

For example, companies can now use the technique of machine learning to analyze marketing data and create a personalized message. This message is referred to as "hyper-personalization. Brands can deliver customized promotions based on factors like the audience's location, whether they're new or re-visitor. Similarly, the recommendation algorithms also allow these brands to send the audience promotions depending upon what they might be interested in like in Netflix, etc. when it suggests you show.

3. Dark data

Dark data is simply the information that companies collect, process, or store but fail to put to use.

For example, unused customer data opened and undeleted email attachments, etc. This data is predicted to account for almost 93% of the total data, and because of this, the companies are trying to find ways to use it. One of this techniques best example is using the data from a customer support log to find out which medium they used and how long the interaction lasted. This allows the companies to contact the customer via that medium for a better customer service experience.

The future of the business world and the role of data analytics in it:

Two out of every three companies is now resorting to the techniques of data analytics. The process is a revolution in the world of business, and more and more brands want to utilize it every day. The three major techniques mentioned above of machine learning, deep learning, and dark data demonstrate exactly how powerful the concept of data analytics is and how it can make any business or system more efficient by transforming its operations.

Whether it's mimicking the functioning of a human brain or using the unused data to look right through your mind, a businessman of the 21st century understands the importance of data analytics and its applications in this new era. It's time the businesses stop asking themselves whether they need analytics or not and start asking themselves how and where they can get analytics from?