Business is having a love affair with big data. In the last few months it seems that every conference and webinar I come across has “big data” on the agenda.
Big data is the allure of more. More information. More access to behavior. Opportunities for more sophisticated analysis. The thinking goes likes this: If we know every move people make then we not only know everything, but we can predict everything. As business people we love it because the information is finite, scalable and measurable.
Chances are, you’re not a data analyst for the federal government, McDonald’s, Wal-Mart, AT&T, NASA or Google. Provided my guess is right, here’s what you need to know about Big Data: Nothing. Ignore it. It won’t effect you … at least in your job.
Still, around every corner is another business, tech or social prognosticator saying that Big Data is the next big thing. Certainly, for international retailers needing to understand META trends in purchase behavior and governments (from local to Federal) around the world trying to understand infrastructure issues like transportation surface decay and crime rate fluctuations, Big Data is important. To think it isn’t would be ignorant. But for 99.9% of all professionals, especially marketers, Big Data is an infuriating waste of brain power. Don’t try to understand it or solve it or see how it applies to your business. It won’t.