You want your business to succeed, and you’ve heard a lot about how Big Data can help with that. But for many, the meaning of this term and its application to growing a business can be a bit unclear. We’ll break down Big Data so you can leverage it for productive, data-driven decision making.

The first thing you need to understand when it comes to Big Data is that it’s a constantly changing concept. Thanks to continually evolving technologies, advancements in data science, and the growing interconnectivity of Internet-based devices, the power and purpose of Big Data is always in flux. At its core, Big Data is concerned with the trail of digital information we leave every time we go online. Every link we click, every post we share, and every purchase we make leaves a footprint that can be traced — including the footprints of your customers and potential customers. Tracking this data can yield incredible insights into what your customers are looking for, what they like (and are unsure of) when it comes to your products and services, how effective your sales and marketing campaigns are and even the usefulness of your customer service.

However, the “Big” in Big Data is not a misnomer. The amount of information available to whittle down these insights is enormous. And alongside the useful data comes piles of information that aren’t directly applicable to whatever you’re searching for at a given time. This is where data analysis comes in. Up until recently, businesses that wanted to capitalize on the value of their data had to hire professional analysts to sort through the mountains of information — but now, thanks to advanced Business Intelligence (BI) solutions, you can generate quick, impactful visualizations out of your own data yourself.

Now, we know what you’re thinking. The thought of looking at your own data has you imagining spreadsheets of numbers stretching farther down your screen than you ever want to scroll. But that isn’t what BI does. Once that data is organized in whatever system you use, you can feed it into your BI program, which pulls that information into visualizations on your dashboards. Your dashboards are organized in the ways that make the most sense for you and your team, displaying only what’s relevant to you in charts and figures that make sense in context.

For instance, does your sales team need to know if they’re hitting their targets? Well, create a dashboard that breaks out sales figures by month, quarter, year, and even individual salesperson. Your marketing team can create a chart breaking down which type of campaign is generating the most leads, or examining which type of lead generation provides the most conversions.

Going one step further, cutting edge BI solutions use machine learning and artificial intelligence to take this data and make predictions for the future. If you’re pulling data from multiple locations about supply use or inventory levels and then placing it into a graph that tracks it over time, BI programs can extrapolate this information and make educated guesses as to what sites will need what materials in the coming timeframe. Applying this information to your own experience helps you make smarter, faster decisions that save you time and improve your bottom line.

When it comes to investing in a BI solution for your business, the options can be daunting. Luckily, Dyntell Bi provides an affordable, easy-to-use, customer service-based platform that can help you create personalized, visually compelling dashboards that empower everyone in your organization to make data-driven decisions. Reach out today to receive a demo and let us know if you’ve found any ways to turn Big Data into insights.