7 ways how data analytics will help you prevail in the post crisis world

The world economy has suffered greatly during the COVID-19 crisis, but with data analytics, one can prevail and help thrive in the upcoming new world.

In the past, we’ve seen hundreds of examples where companies have turned themselves around by using their data. Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Facebook also turn their data into a competitive advantage. Now is the best time to focus on improving each business by the use of data analytics and focusing on the future – increasing market share and creating an ecosystem that will help intelligent and data-driven decision making.

It is important to understand that you don’t have to be a dominating enterprise to turn data into a competitive advantage.

But it is more of turning the already available data into decision making machine. Data is already a commodity and every brand is capable of developing their own unique data assets because every brand is different to that of their competitors. This difference is what should be used to give a competitive edge. Of course, this is also the time to reflect if what you are collecting, is helping you in your mission. If it isn’t, then the focus should be on creating those data assets as soon as possible. In the longer run, this will be the one thing that actually helps you out of this crisis.

A study by Winterberry Group & IAB found that data gave the surveyed panellist a competitive advantage. More than 90% of panellists reported that their organization had achieved at least some competitive advantage through their use of data, with almost a third of them saying that their use of data drove substantial competitive advantage.

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This should reflect that any sized organization can make a change and make their data beneficial. The question is how to approach this and how to make the most of it.

How to make the most out of the situation?

Current situation has given a good opportunity to understand our clientèle, their behavioural patterns, analyzing their usage trends etc. Everything you are measuring is valuable. If previously you’ve ignored that data then now is the time to start looking into this to prepare for the post-crisis situation. Here are some use cases where data is helpful:

  1. Marketing & Social campaigns: By knowing what the users are doing, it is easier to target them with marketing. E.g. As a telecommunication company, analyze your users usage patterns, make changes to your policies & packages and communicate this out with campaigns. This will allow you access to a broader network and segments who might benefit from these changes.
  2. Feature implementations: Have your users voiced a concern that something is missing from an app or site? You can analyze user sentiment to see if you could develop additional features. Seeing that a brand or a company is listening to its users, shows that they care and this helps with brand loyalty. You’ll be able to keep your current users happy and they’ll be able to bring in new users to your platform.
  3. Restructure your data assets: Do you feel you are missing data? Leverage this to implement new KPIs and spend time building an understanding of your clientèle even further. Collecting more data doesn’t mean that it will bring in insights, but it will give a readiness for the future. E.g. Start-ups bring in a lot of data, but what they are missing is decision making on this. Looking through their data assets and vision is essential to see if they can extract valuable data. If the answer is no, then both data assets and strategy should be revisited.
  4. Understanding user behaviour: If you have an app, it is time to look at the implementation of your features. What are the most used features that drive your user-base? Maybe there is a way to make improvements to these features that will make them more intuitive and easier to use. Similar approach can be used in retail, where you can analyze previous seasonal trends and stock up on hot items. This will make it easier to restock and even do pricing changes accordingly to attract more people.
  5. Just explore the data: Exploratory analysis can sometimes yield interesting results, just let analysts do their thing and find their way around the data. If they succeed, they might deliver great results that will help thrive the overall business.
  6. Develop right expertise: Up-skilling is crucial in the changing data world and it will help in the long run as people with knowledge around the area, will be able to deliver the right technologies and solving the right problems. Knowledge is critical in any data and analytics journey.
  7. Review your data strategy and play a part: In a survey from McKinsey & Company in 2016, executives said that senior-leader involvement and right organizational structure are critical factors in how successful a company’s analytics efforts are. These are even more important than its technical capabilities or tools. So as an executive or a leader, play a role in developing these capabilities and direct your company to use the available data assets.

These are just some of the highlighted points that will help you along your journey towards a data-driven future. As I said in the start, now is the right time to use analytics, as it will help you prepare for the post COVID-19 economy. And if you happen to need any help with your data strategy or analytics, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us at bi@helmes.com. We will be glad to offer you our assistance and help you along your data journey!