{"id":9040,"date":"2015-04-14T10:30:16","date_gmt":"2015-04-14T15:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/?p=9040"},"modified":"2023-03-13T16:17:43","modified_gmt":"2023-03-13T21:17:43","slug":"7-hidden-sources-of-big-data-that-you-probably-have","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mrc-productivity.com\/blog\/2015\/04\/7-hidden-sources-of-big-data-that-you-probably-have\/","title":{"rendered":"7 \u201chidden\u201d sources of big data (that you probably have)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Education\"Summary: Many businesses assume they don\u2019t have \u201cbig data.\u201d But, they unknowingly generate (or have access to) large data sets that just go unused. Where is this data, and how can you turn it into a competitive advantage?<\/em><\/span>
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\nIf you\u2019re like most companies, you don\u2019t generate terabytes of data. You have no need for Hadoop or \u201cbig data\u201d processing.<\/p>\n

Or do you?<\/p>\n

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photo credit: geralt<\/a> via pixabay<\/a> cc<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As it turns out, businesses generate (or have access to) more data than they realize. They\u2019re sitting on a gold mine of information that they never use.<\/p>\n

Just imagine:<\/p>\n

What if these businesses started using this data? What if they turned this data into meaningful management information?<\/p>\n

They could answer new questions about the business. They could discover better ways to reach customers. They can learn new ways to improve efficiency.<\/p>\n

The big question:<\/p>\n

Where is this data? How can a business access this untapped potential?<\/p>\n

Here are 7 \u201chidden\u201d sources of big data that you probably have (or can access):<\/p>\n

1. Public domain data<\/h3>\n
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photo credit: geralt<\/a> via pixabay<\/a> cc<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Even if your company doesn\u2019t generate \u201cbig data\u201d, that doesn\u2019t mean you can\u2019t use it. Big data is everywhere, and much of it is free for the taking.<\/p>\n

How so?<\/p>\n

Data placed in the public domain is freely available to any business. The problem is, many businesses either don\u2019t realize it exists, or choose not to use it.<\/p>\n

For example, here\u2019s a list of freely available \u201cbig\u201d data sources<\/span>. How can your company use this data to your advantage? Look for ways to combine this free data with your existing data. What insights can you pull out of these sources?<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s one great example: This company explains how they used freely available census data to boost revenue.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn a recent campaign we ran in Nashville, TN , we ran pay-per-click (PPC) Adwords campaign with one ad targeting the entire metro Nashville area,\u201d says Bryan Clayton, CEO of GreenPal<\/span><\/a>. \u201cThe headline read \u2018Local Lawn Pros in Nashville are a click away.\u2019 and I thought the performance of the ad was good with a click through rate of over one percent and conversion rate of over 10 percent on the Nashville landing page but we needed to improve on it.<\/p>\n

We thought, how can we make this more contextual and relevant to the viewer? So we researched census data, looking at the average income and home values throughout the Nashville area.<\/p>\n

We found that East Nashville, an up-and-coming neighborhood, was populated with more working class, and a creative class demographic and we hypothesized this customer segment would be price sensitive but still not want to cut their own lawns. So we segmented those zip codes and only ran a specific ad for them, with a headline \u2018The Cheapest Lawn Mowing in Nashville. Lawn mowing from $20.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

We then created a matching landing page. After running the ad for one month, on-page analytics proved the guess to be true. We saw over 200 percent lift in click through rate and and 30 percent lift in on-page conversion.<\/p>\n

Studying the data your own business generates can tell you which of your online marketing campaigns works best. Do the ads appeal to your target market or another market altogether? The data may also point to completely new areas of customer interest.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

2. Energy metering<\/h3>\n

How much data does your office building generate? What if that data could help you save money every month? As explained below, this is a direction many companies are heading.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne often-overlooked source of big data for companies is energy metering on their structures,\u201d says Douglas R. Briggs<\/span><\/a>, Director, Business Intelligence at Washington University in St. Louis. \u201cWhile many companies with legacy structures have only building-level energy and utility metering, many more are installing metering locations to provide more granular collection and control of energy usage data. With granular data information collected by vendors’ systems, it’s possible to feed dashboards showing both real-time and trend resource usage, which can be used to influence occupant behavior or highlight opportunities for conservation.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

3. Emails and Memos<\/h3>\n
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photo credit: Hebi65<\/a> via pixabay<\/a> cc<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It\u2019s estimated that 400,000 terabytes of new email messages are created every year. What are you doing with all of that email data?<\/p>\n

Many companies place strict email storage size limits on their employees. But, what if–instead of making employees delete their emails–you stored that email data in a file system like Hadoop?<\/p>\n

What would that do for you?<\/p>\n

First, it gives your employees a way to go back and search through old emails (rather than deleting them). You never know when you might need to access an email from a few years ago.<\/p>\n

Second, it opens the door for analysis on that email data. For instance, this company<\/span><\/a> learned that employees worked less on Mondays and Fridays from analyzing email volume. Another example: As explained below, data contained in email can help you understand employee sentiment.<\/p>\n

\u201cOrganizational emails and memos are often good sources of data, enabling companies to understand employee grievances and general buzz about ongoing events within an organization,\u201d says Durjoy Patranabish, Senior Vice President – Analytics, for Blueocean Market Intelligence<\/span><\/a>. \u201cTracking these data sources and their analysis helps organizations understand the current buzz in the organization and how people and executives have reacted to changes or the general environment.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

4. Customer Requests\/Queries<\/h3>\n

How much data does your support department generate? From phone calls and emails with customers to support tickets, you can glean all types of information.<\/p>\n

For instance, this data could highlight:<\/p>\n