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For decades, businesses have relied on data analysis to study trends and discover market insights. However, with the huge influx of data today, this manual process has been replaced with sophisticated technology. Big data analytics is the driving force behind organisations, allowing them a competitive edge not just over their competitors but also a foray into the demands of the future. Today, even the most subjective decisions are based on data insights.
Having access to so much data presents a targeted way of finding patterns, customer preferences, user behaviour, and other crucial information that can help organizations make informed decisions. Today, not just businesses but governments, public administration departments, and organisations across different sectors depend on data analytics to examine volumes of consumer and public data to predict future trends and devise important solutions.
Of these, the industry sectors and trends that are majorly driven by big data analytics are likely to do so in 2019 as well are:
Healthcare
Data analytics help improve healthcare in various ways. Huge volumes of public health data allow for a comprehensive study of the population’s medical history. This assists with in-depth research to identify disease patterns and track any kind of disease outbreaks so that precautionary and preventive measures can be brought into action at the right time.
Retail Trade & Marketing
Identifying consumer preferences is the core aspect of retail. If a business fails at it, there is no way it can survive in the long run. By using analytics, businesses can gather insights about consumer preferences, adjust pricing, tailor products accordingly, and engage in target-based marketing to attract and retain customers.
Banking and Finance
Banking and Finance are not typically tech-savvy sectors, but they are increasingly turning to data analytics to improve their services. In fact, a study points out that in India, Finance and Banking are the largest sectors that utilise analytics followed by marketing and advertising. Besides, having information about customers’ usage patterns can help in identifying banking frauds, customizing offers and more.
Transport
Big data analytics are increasingly being used to improve transportation through better route planning and traffic management. Public Transportation departments rely on it to improve operations and detect equipment failure. At present, the Indian railways utilize analytics to predict ticket confirmation and booking status to keep their passengers informed.
Predictive Analytics
Predictive analytics (commonly used by Google/Gmail to generate user responses) and Internet of Things (IoT) will continue to be among the major trends in 2019. Moreover, Predictive analytics integrate technology with various domains and its implementation could improve public safety in terms of detecting and preventing crime.
Internet of Things (IoT)
Driverless cars, wearable technology and home automation- IoT will continue to grow and so will the number of connected devices. This only means that organisations will rely on data analytics more than ever to achieve detailed business insights. The early adopters of IoT are well on their way towards experimenting with the technology.
Cloud Solutions
In 2018, cloud storage was one of the major reasons behind the boom of big data analytics and will continue to be so in 2019 as well. Big and small organisations have already begun migrating and it won’t be long before even the most vital data activities move to the cloud. Low storage and maintenance costs, on-demand capacity, and effective tools will continue to attract businesses to the cloud.
Understanding Artificial Intelligence
Although many companies switched to AI and machine learning for data-driven decisions in 2018, the credibility of these decisions could not be ascertained, as these applications did not offer the logic they were based on. However, as AI continues to be accepted widely, more transparency about these AI algorithms and implementation will be demanded by the users.
Data is available in all forms and formats today. The ability to use it effectively will be the key determinant of success. Global organisations such as Facebook, Google, Apple and Tesla have been working on data analytics and have successfully leveraged it using artificial intelligence. Another prominent example in India is a leading telecom operator, which has gathered significant amounts of data that can be utilised for advertising and forecasting the demands of the users to gain benefits, such as new revenue opportunities and compelling marketing strategies.
There is enough proof that future businesses will thrive on data.
