Live from FOCI 2013: Big Data, Little Data, New Data. aka Evolution
So then when did things blow up into big data?
Fast forward to today, and you have long surveys, declining responses rates, flat lined metrics, very little tie in to business performance and very low actionability. The reason for this is that data is not rare. Exponentially growing with population, it has exploded as both a challenge and an opportunity.
As Larry Friedman pointed out, its an evolution that now needs a new mind set. Old approaches are not necessarily right, and the assumption of truth is often wrong. Its almost like parenting and the generation gap, only applied to an industry. Technology will play a big role here, as he mentioned that SPSS and the likes may not work so well anymore. Multi source versus single source data will be necessary for modeling. Social media monitoring and discussion makes it easier to monitor and track responses to questions that need not be asked anymore, mostly psychographic or tracking related. What people say is acquired from social media, while tracking and timing behavior is found from other sources.
Ultimately its about the integration of different data sources - of which only one is on a survey. Evolution has never been as apparent as it is now.
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Communication & Social Media Research Expert at SKIM, an international
consultancy and marketing research agency, has a background in engineering,
marketing and finance from the University of Pennsylvania, and the Wharton
School and Rotterdam School of Management. Having worked in marketing and
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he now passionately enjoys the world of social media, and can be found on every
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