When it comes to understanding all the contributing factors and advanced innovations of the impending digital era, it is more than fair to say that we are all striving to contribute in our own way. For some, that means teaching themselves how to code. For others, it is taking on the commitment of a post-graduate program in AI and ML. No matter what one?s individual contribution to the ever-looming digital era, seemingly big or small, the point remains the same: we are propelling towards the digital era at full speed, and we should all do what we can to make sure that we are adequately prepared. There is no wrong way to prepare for this certain approaching reality, and the truth of the fact is that every contribution counts, and every digital innovation is important moving forward. One of the most important innovations in recent human history is none other than analytics. Widely referred to as the ?fabric of the future?, analytics has been tipped as the leading building block of the not-so-distant-future. But why? What is so special about analytics, and what makes it as important as everyone deems it to be going forward? Understanding the fabric of analytics Analytics is the discovery, exploration, interpretation, and communication of data patterns. Additionally, analytics refers to the process of then applying uncovered patterns towards effective decision making. Put simply, analytics is the lifeblood of data; analytics is all the resulting information that comes forth from the in-depth analysis of statistics, data, or other important information. At the core of it all, analytics allows for the in-depth exploration and further understanding of data sets. Down in layman terms, it basically analyses data for you and breaks it down into easy to understand information. Imagine it as though instead of a car mechanic having to check every single part of every single car, there is a software which can detect any abnormalities and compile it into a comprehensible report. The importance of analysing data We live in a modern world that is continuously edging towards a digitalised future. Data is the core of digitalisation and technological advancement. And because analytics is the heart of data discovery, exploration, and understanding, it is going to be at the centre of the digital era, driving it ever-forward. Data harvesting has become so prevalent in our day to day lives ? consumers are often worried about their personal security and many are realising that their data is being sold to corporations, etc ? but without analytics, data is virtually useless. A gold mine who nobody is mining. Affecting content and change for the benefit of businesses Consider the impact analytics will have on businesses, for example. The collaboration of historical and real-time data, in addition to the analysing and merging of all the above information, will combine to give businesses a sharper edge against their competition. This is just one example, but it is one of the strongest ones there is. Understanding your demographic is one of the first things a blogger or a web content producer looks at because they need to know who they are publishing for. Who is it their content appeals to and how do they continue being relevant to that particular group of people? It is doubly important for companies and businesses to collect data because they need to know who their audiences are and whether they need to tweak their publicity campaign in order to include those they want to target (in the event their current outreach program does not reach the audiences they hope for). It would not do for a lingerie company to be largely targeting men in their forties, for instance. Unless they are branded in such a way that encourage men to purchase innerwear for their wives, in which case they are winning at the game of reaching their target audience. Analytics go hand in hand with the digital era If we think analytics is important now, this is nothing compared to the role that analytics is going to play the further we barrel into the digital era. Data is instrumental to the digital era and its longevity and success, and without analytics there can be no strong understanding of all that data. From the clothes we wear to the technology that has permeated our culture and society ? without big data, it would not be the same. Everyone would be creating things blindly, hoping that they come up with something that hopefully appeals to someone. Whereas today, with a little bit of market research, companies know exactly what we are looking for even if it is not yet available on the market and will strive to fill that gap. There is something to be said about the power of analytics meeting the structure of data, and that is that both are valuable on their own, but their collaborative efforts are worth their weight in gold. In the near future, analytics will be the fabric of every application, in every business, across every industry, in the entire world.
Analytics and Its Effect on Data Dissemination and eCommerce
Rehan is an entrepreneur, business graduate, content strategist and editor overseeing contributed content at BigdataShowcase. He is passionate about writing stuff for startups. His areas of interest include digital business strategy and strategic decision making.
