data analytics for understanding business better

Every business owner looks for different ways to make the business work better, to grow, and to become a top-one on the market. There are tons of different ways to understand your business better, Data analytics being one of them. In the following article, we will explain to you what data analytics really is, and we’ll give you valuable information on it. 

There’s one major and important part that comes before the analysis and that’s- data collection.

 

Data collecting- the step before data analytics

To dive into data analytics, you first need to collect valuable data. Lots of different companies and firms do this, and people got used to it, and are happy to participate in it. So, what exactly is data collection and what does it include?

Data collection is gathering information about the client’s preferences, unique patterns, searches, and all the things that are important to the company gathering the info. 

The approach to data collection is different for different fields of study. In the following, we will present some of the most used methods of data collecting, as well as the pros and cons of each one of them:

  • Mail survey
  • Phone survey
  • In-person interview
  • Online survey

 

  • Mail survey is a great method that reaches different groups of people, but it can be quite expensive.
  • Phone surveys can give valuable info and it reaches a variety of groups, but you cannot do it by yourself, so you need to hire an agency for this one. 
  • In-person interview– yet another method of data collecting and it gives high-accuracy info, but it is quite time-consuming and it can turn out expensive. 
  • Online surveys are something that is taking an upward spiral lately, and people are happy to engage with them. It is maybe the best method of data collection out there- it reaches lots of people in a short time and it is a cheaper option than the ones above.

Pay close attention to the focus groups

Before even beginning with the data collection methods, you need to determine what your focus group is. That depends on your company and the products and services you offer. 

Make it successful

To make data collection successful, you need to pay attention to the following steps:

  • Pay attention to the info that you’re trying to collect.

Before even approaching the data collection, you need to determine what are the most valuable things related to your business. That way, you’ll be able to determine the information you’re trying to gather. 

  • Arrange the information, ranking from the most important to the least important one.

As a business owner, you’re definitely curious about different topics related to your company, so you want to know more about them. That’s why, after completing the first step, you need to put a number in front of each and every info. 

  • Think of short, easy questions that require short answers. 

The questions you’re about to ask need to be simple and easy to be answered. Pay attention to not over-do them. You don’t want them to be long and confusing. Also, you need to establish an order between them, that is you don’t want to misplace them. You want them to be connected with each other, and to have a flow among them. 

  • Do not stick to data that you don’t actually need.

If you don’t want any excess data, you might want to reconsider the first few steps. We will explain this in a bit. For now, we’ll only say: Never ask for more than you need! It will make your future work harder. 

  • Set a time-range. 

Simply, you need to determine the time when the data collection will take place. For instance: a few days, a week, half a month, whole month… 

  • Collect info from at least 30 people. 

For more accurate data analytics in the future, you need to collect info from as many people as you can. The more- the better! Anyway, it would be best if the number of participants reaches 100 and above. 

 

Also read: Artificial Intelligence for Successful Mobile App Development

 

After data collecting, comes data analytics

Once you’re satisfied with the amount of data collected, you need to go on to the next step- data analysis. 

Data analysis is basically analyzing all the collected data from the previous step. It helps businesses improve themselves and to become more oriented towards their clients and their preferences. 

With data analytics, you can easily determine what content will bring customers closer, and what are the main things that make them back away. 

Here are a few things to remember when it comes to data analytics: 

Know what you need

Modern technology gives companies a lot more data than they need. This can be quite overwhelming, and firms won’t be able to do the data analysis the right way. 

That’s why you should never stick to worthless information, and should only focus on the info that gives you material to work with. 

It is true that sometimes, extra data can be of great help, but for starters, focus on the important things.

Helpful tools in data analytics

While data collecting can be easy, data analytics is a bigger, more complex process. You get tons of information and you need to separate valuable from worthless info, put them into few groups, analyze each and every one of them, and after that, you need to come up with a certain result from the whole process. 

That’s why it is smart to invest in a tool that will help your data analytics process. This is where we present to you the data analytics dashboards

Data analytics dashboards must have the function to gather and analyze data in real-time, separate the data, and give out accurate and quick results.

Remain objective and focus on clients needs

The main reason to do the whole collecting and data analytics thing is to get feedback from your clients. Sometimes the results from the data analytics may not be what you’ve been hoping for. You mustn’t jump to a conclusion and deny the outcome. Instead, try focusing on the results given, and look for ways to improve them. You might want to do a few changes in your business, in the products or services that you offer, etc. 

Always remember that data is valuable info to your company, and it can determine your business success- use it wisely. After the data analytics, the rest is on you. The last step of the analytics is giving the results. But, it can’t do the rest of the work. That’s completely on you and your will to improve your company and make it more successful. 

 

You might be interested in 8 Thing you Didn’t Know About SaaS Development

 

Conclusion 

With data collection and data analytics, you’ll be able to see if your business is going in the right direction. Data analytics is a big, complex process that involves few steps- separating, organizing, as well as analyzing data. Giving valuable results is the last and final step. It should be a part of every successful company. With data analytics, you get info about the insides of your company as well as its weaknesses. That way, you can improve them by including some changes. 

 


Aneta P

Aneta is a Passionate Content Writer with knowledge of various fields & writing SEO friendly articles that meet all requirements. Also, writing pieces of content that promote the products/services of your business.