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Business intelligence is the set of techniques and tools for transforming raw data into meaningful and useful information for business analysis purposes. Do small businesses need it? Previously, only large corporations had the resources and manpower to make calculations and use software.
Business intelligence tools are no longer expensive and require resources. Technology has evolved to be lightweight, powerful, and accessible for small and medium-sized businesses. These advancements have provided business intelligence solutions that do not require coding skills to create dashboards and explore data. It’s unrealistic to expect small business owners to worry about technicalities when there are other, more pressing matters like serving customers and managing staff. These business intelligence tools have analytical functions that can be easily accessed, displaying important data.
Many intelligence solutions are also provided by outside companies that specialize in data analytics. This can greatly reduce costs, and priorities and capital are diverted to other important business investments. Advances in intelligence software have also made data processing faster and faster.
Business intelligence can help smaller companies compete with larger corporations. In the long run, it could even help small businesses increase their market share and generate income from unexpected avenues. Data analysis helps business owners make informed decisions that could affect the well-being of the business. The data includes analysis of market trends and changes in consumer behavior and appetite.
More of these solutions are now targeting a younger audience. It is designed for collaborative decision making, visualization, and iterative scenario analysis. Younger entrepreneurs want business intelligence solutions that are easy to use and don’t require extensive training.
However, to use these solutions effectively, there must be enough quality operational data to process. If your dataset is small, all you need to do is look at it to determine the results, then business analysis tools are not for your business.
Cloud computing is a word that many people use today. But it is a reality. Cloud computing-based business intelligence solutions have gained traction among small businesses due to their self-service analytics. Requires minimal IT intervention.
Before embarking on these intelligence solutions, it is important to determine the data you want to obtain. You need to know the questions you want answered, not just get the latest fancy software. Otherwise, it is a huge waste of time and resources to fight in the dark.