Big Data has been propelled to the forefront of marketing executives’ priorities in recent months. The phrase refers to the collection and analysis of large data sets in order to spot trends that ultimately lead to more efficient business operations. While the term applies to a variety of different industries, marketers in particular can benefit by studying how consumers are receiving and reacting to promotional materials, what they are spending their money on and how their overall shopping experience can be improved.
Small businesses in particular also stand to benefit from the proliferation of data collection and analytics tools. Returns on investment (ROI) are even more essential to the operations of small business owners than they are to large conglomerates. Using big data, managers can come up with more targeted mailing lists, craft more efficient promotional campaigns and generally implement more efficacious marketing strategies for small business.
According to Business Insider, one key piece of information that big data can reveal about consumers is price sensitivity, or how much a customer is affected by the price elasticity of certain goods and services. Once a small business has figured out just how much influence the price changes affect a customer’s spending habits, it can then implement different marketing strategies. For instance, customers who leave their holiday shopping until the last minute would be less concerned about price fluctuations. Marketers should then focus on sending this group of consumers more promotional materials as the holiday season nears.
Another key asset about big data that would benefit small business owners in particular is its affordability. According to Inc. Magazine, a handful of start-ups have begun developing big data analytics tools geared toward small and medium sized businesses. Gaining access to these tools would play a tremendous role in closing the gap caused by economies of scale between smaller companies and larger ones.
“[Affordable big data software] has been a massive help to our business, because we’re providing better value to our clients,” Eli Portnoy, the CEO of ThinkNear, told the news source. “Data ultimately wins in our business. The companies that have the best data and the quickest way to manipulate it succeed.”
Small business owners should consider some of the data tools available to really enhance the efficiency of their business operations.
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