Data Analytics for Small Businesses

Authored by Amna Ahmed, Shaila Vester-Skinner, and Hayden Davis King

CIAG Data Analytics for Small Businesses.pdf

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Introduction

In recent years, big data and data analytics have been revolutionizing the business world, allowing companies to gain valuable insights into their operations. Big data is a relatively new term that has arisen describe data that is too large to analyze using traditional techniques. Analysis of big data has the potential to make your business more profitable, improve customer experience, and identify and solve unique business problems. Innovations in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have made it much easier to analyze data that is unstructured or unprocessed.[1] This has allowed companies to analyze vast amounts of previously unusable data. While large companies with the infrastructure and technical know-how have been early adopters of big data analysis, small businesses can take advantage of innovations in data analysis as well. Unlocking novel insights from hard-to-process data with AI and ML has the power to set your company apart from its competitors.

What Are Data Analytics?

Data analytics is a multidisciplinary field that overlaps with statistics, computer science, operations research, and business. Data analytics involves analysts (and algorithms) collecting, aggregating, transforming, and analyzing data to make recommendations that improve business processes. Using big data augments data analytics by analyzing huge, often unorganized or unprocessed, data to arrive at insights that could be found no other way.

Benefits[2]

●      Dashboards can be set up to analyze and visualize your business’ data in real-time, providing a competitive edge in fast-paced industries.

●      Big data analysis excels at providing actionable insights to reduce inefficiencies such as storing too much inventory or wasteful production processes.

●      Big data can give you a sense of where your marketing is working and where it is falling short, allowing you to tailor a more effective marketing strategy.

●      AI and ML systems can reduce risk by detecting fraud and mitigating operational risks.

●      Big data can help custom-tailor client/customer experiences to improve satisfaction and retention.

Types of Data Analytics[3]

Data analytics can be implemented in different ways for different purposes:

●      Descriptive analysis summarizes data to understand the past.

●      Diagnostic analysis finds patterns in the data to understand why key metrics change and establish causality.

●      Predictive analysis predicts what will happen in the future.

●      Prescriptive analysis seeks to provide recommendations about key business decisions.

Resources to Get Started

●     SAS Viya: An AI platform that utilizes modern technology to leverage speed, cost, and scalability to visualize key data.

●     Tableau: An AI analytics program which transforms data into simplified action insights.

●   Google Analytics: A free platform which seamlessly combines customer data across devices to better understand a customer’s view and better the marketing process.

●     Kissmetrics: An affordable platform which consists of a simple dashboard that visualizes customer insights by using simple integrations.

●    Sisense: A platform which allows you to integrate AI-powered analytics into other applications with low code, pro code, and no code options.

●     InsightSquared: A sales forecasting and analytics platform. Consists of self-service, no code, and a fast path to predictable revenue growth.

●     Watson Analytics: IBM planning analytics consists of business analytics software, data science, and text analytics.

How CIAG Can Help

●      CIAG aims to provide tailored data strategies for small businesses by outlining key data sources that will align with a business’s objectives.

●      Our agency integrates various data sources such as sales, customer, website, and social media analytics to form a cohesive data management system

●      Our consultants aim to simplify the often burdensome process associated with data analytics. Seasoned industry professionals aim to integrate various data sources which will leverage our clientele’s competitive advantage.

Conclusion 

As time goes on and businesses continue to expand, big data and data analytics will prove to be a valuable source in gaining valuable insight within their companies.  Data analytics can help build stronger relationships with business partners, support strategic planning, and help make better decisions. CIAG integrates various data, simplifies tedious processes, and provides tailored strategies. We encourage customers to use the resources listed and to research others that might fit better for their businesses. Providing our clients with the best setup for growth and further knowledge of data analytics will solidify long term connections.       Clients, present and future, that choose to work with Cambridge International Advisory Group are provided with this guidebook to further their knowledge on how to be the most successful.

[1] Chatterjee, S. (2024, February 26). 5 Key Data Analytics Benefits you should know about. Emeritus Online Courses. https://emeritus.org/blog/data-analytics-data-analytics-benefits/

[2] Dublino, J. (2023, August 17). How small businesses can take advantage of Big Data. business.com. https://www.business.com/articles/data-analysis-for-small-business/

[3] Baker, K. (2023, September 17). Data Analytics for Small Business: A Complete Guide. Podium. https://www.podium.com/article/analytics-for-small-business/