Big data has been a game-changer for marketing. Never before has so much data been available for businesses to use in their decision-making processes. Yet there’s still a looming problem with big data: it’s big. Despite all the advantages big data gives to marketers today, we still need to be aware of the problems created by the sheer volume of data that is now generated, stored, and analyzed.
Privacy
Governments around the world are grappling with how to regulate consumer data. In the EU, GDPR regulations have been implemented to return control of personal data to its citizens. This regulation applies regardless of where companies are located. Any company found to be out of compliance faces a stiff penalty. As governments continue to develop new regulations, marketers need to be aware of how their company’s management and use of big data could be impacted. Steps may need to be taken to ensure compliance across the global market.
Small companies are overlooked
MIT’s Sloan Management Review found that big data disproportionately benefits large companies. Since large companies have usually been around longer than smaller companies and generate more economic activity, they naturally have more data.
Unfortunately, that means that smaller businesses may be overlooked by investors who rely on big data to reduce their risk and inform financing decisions. That’s potentially bad for both the small businesses and investors who may miss out on an opportunity to finance what could be the next big innovation. Even small businesses should look at data as an economic asset. If small business owners are aware that investors use their data to assess them and make financing decisions, they can take steps to ensure they are generating data that will help them compete.
Data management
More data is generated than companies are capable of storing and analyzing. That makes management challenging.
Additionally, since data is generated in real time, companies may struggle to keep up. If they do not have access to updated technology, companies will not be able to make use of real-time data.
Security
Businesses struggled with security issues even before big data came into play. The sheer size of big data combined with today’s increased connectivity makes data breaches more likely. Such breaches can cause losses to both the consumer and the business.
Interestingly, the solution to data security problems may lie with big data itself. Analyzing data for threats can help companies prevent breaches.
A lack of skilled professionals
Big data is growing faster than trained professionals are emerging. That presents a real challenge for companies who wish to take advantage of the insights big data can provide. Training employees is expensive, and there are simply not enough trained data scientists in the field. One way businesses have been able to work around this issue is by taking advantage of AI and machine learning. Outsourcing data analytics to experts in AI allows companies to take advantage of the benefits big data provides without needing to hire in-house data scientists.
If you would like to harness the insights real-time data can deliver to your company, Blueshift is here to help. We specialize in using AI and real-time data to facilitate your marketing decisions.
Whether you want to personalize interaction with your customers or analyze how well your latest cross-channel campaign is performing, Blueshift has a solution. Don’t be intimidated by big data. Let Blueshift show you how to use it to your company’s advantage instead.
