The advantages of data are numerous; however, established data analytics tools and processes are needed to access these benefits. While raw data has a lot of potential, you need data analytics to unlock the power to grow your business.
Here, we’ll discuss what data analytics is, how you can leverage it, the skills needed to obtain and finally, how it can benefit your business.
What Is Data Analytics?
The name data analytics refers to the act of analyzing datasets in order to derive conclusions from said data. For businesses, the data they collect might be historical data or new information gathered for a specific project. Moreover, the data used can consist of information about an audience’s demographics, interests, behaviors, and more.
Organizations can collect information in different ways:
- First-party: collecting data about its own customers
- Second-party data: obtaining data from a known organization
- Third-party data: buying aggregated data from a marketplace
Data analytics techniques enable a business to take raw data and uncover patterns to extract valuable insights. As a result, data analysis helps companies make informed decisions, create a more effective marketing strategy, improve customer experience, streamline operations, among many other things.
How to learn data analytics
There are different programs one can enroll in. When it comes to data analytics, The BS program in Data Science at Bay Atlantic University prepares students with knowledge in scientific methods from statistics, computer science, and data-based business management to extract knowledge from data and drive decision making. Some of the subjects cover:
- Introduction to Programming
- Data Structures and Algorithms
- Machine Learning
- Exploratory Data Analytics
- Analysis of Algorithms
- Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
On the other hand, the Master of Science in Big Data Analytics program provides mastery of data analysis. This program provides students with frameworks for critically looking at data, interpreting and visualizing data, and applying that knowledge in real-world applications. Some subjects are:
- Big Data and Analytics
- Artificial Intelligence
- Machine Learning and Pattern Recognition
- Marketing Analytics
Skills
Businesses require personnel who can handle, organize, and assess digital content as they store and evaluate more information online or in databases. Nowadays, many data analytics approaches rely on specialized systems and software that combine machine learning algorithms, automation, and other features.
Data analysts benefit from developing specific skills. The following are some of the essential skills needed for a data analyst to master in order to be successful in this field:
- Excel
- Programming languages (SQL, R)
- Data visualization
- Machine learning
- Data warehousing
- Research
- Business intelligence tools
The Benefits of Data Analytics
Data has the potential to give a lot of value to organizations, but the analytics component is necessary to uncover that power. As the importance of data analytics grows in the corporate world, it becomes increasingly important for firms to understand how to use it. Let’s see what some ways to do so are.
Informed & improved decision making
When big data joins forces with artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data mining, companies are better equipped to make accurate predictions. For example, predictive analytics can suggest what could happen in response to changes to the business, and prescriptive analytics can indicate how the company should react to these changes. Additionally, enterprises can use data analytics tools to determine the success of changes and visualize the results, so decision-makers know whether to roll the changes out across the business.
More effective marketing
What makes organizations stand out is the unique approach they choose to market their products. By using data analytics, companies can pinpoint precisely what customers are looking for. Data enables businesses to do in-depth analyses of client trends, which companies can then utilize to develop successful, focused, and targeted marketing.
Better & personalized customer experience
By sharing their data, customers expect companies to know them, form relevant interactions, and provide a seamless experience across all touchpoints. Being able to react in real-time and make the customer feel valued is only possible through advanced analytics. Data allows for interactions to be tailored to the customer’s personality, thus helping to understand their attitudes in order to deliver personalization in a multi-channel service environment.
Streamline operations
Data analytics may also enable enterprises to identify possible ways to optimize processes and increase revenues. It assists in identifying potential issues, thus preventing them from happening. This allows enterprises to see which activities have produced the best overall outcomes under different circumstances.
Mitigate fraud
Adequate data analytics capabilities will provide the highest levels of fraud protection and overall security for your firm. Using statistical, network, path, and data methodologies for predictive fraud will ensure that real-time threat detection methods, automated warnings, and mitigation drive fast reactions.
If you’re unsure which path you want to go in IT, learning data analytics is an excellent place to start. Thanks to data analytics, the world’s most successful companies are constantly growing. So, If you see yourself working on these challenges and are driven to help business in these areas, pursuing a Data Science or Big Data Analytics degree will be the first stepping stone in your career.
