As an online retailer, you know how important data tracking is for your business. It’s one of the basic building blocks for business intelligence (BI). On its own, data is simply a set of figures, statistics, or facts. It doesn’t do a whole lot until it is gathered and analyzed so that it makes sense. This is where BI comes in: It refers to various tools, including software, reports, graphs, and charts to provide you with detailed information about your business. With this intelligence, you can make better decisions for your company.
There are several SAAS (Software as a Service) platforms that can give you data on consumer behavior, such as Google Analytics, MailChimp, and Amazon (if you are a reseller on the platform). With so many options available, it is easy to get caught up in gathering data using multiple tools.
1. The Difference Beween a Data Lake and a Data Swamp
It can be difficult to picture how data-gathering, if left uncontrolled, can have a major impact on your business. Let’s use an example that’s easy to imagine: Picture a beautiful, pristine lake with a sandy shoreline. It’s surrounded by trees and the natural beauty is undisturbed except for a few plaintive bird songs, the soft sounds of buzzing insects, and the occasional wave coming into shore.
Next, try to imagine a swamp. The water is green and stagnant. There are birds singing and insects buzzing, but the environment is not pristine at all. It is not welcoming. You may even see algae growing on top of the surface of the standing water.
If you picture each of these virtual “places” as environments where your business data could be stored, there’s no question that a data lake would be the best option. It is neat, clean, and well-organized. No one wants to wade through a data swamp looking to retrieve the numbers or facts they need, especially if they have to dig around to find them in places where they may be hidden.
Unfortunately, it’s very easy for a business to develop a data swamp if it is not kept under control. It takes a managed, diligent effort to keep a data lake intact and stop it from deteriorating into a data swamp.
2. HOW TO REACH THE DATA LAKE
Here are some tips to keep in mind if your goal is to reach the data lake:
Start by listing the kind of analysis you would like to conduct, such as marketing, fraud, business analysis, etc. This will help you define exactly how you want to use your data. You should also have a list of the main KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) that you have to follow each day, along with the ones that have to be followed weekly, monthly, and at other intervals.
Be sure that you aren’t duplicating your data-gathering tools. The best way to avoid this is to use only one tool for this purpose. Payment is the most important data for e-merchants. You can use it to perform all the analyses you wish using a single tool (marketing, fraud, business, and financial analysis, for example).
A data swamp can end up being a complete mess for your business. It can bog down your operation, or you can end up implementing the wrong strategy. Please contact us to find out more information.
3. HiPay CONSOLE : THE PAYMENT DATA AT THE CENTER OF YOUR STRATEGY
HiPay CONSOLE is a business intelligence tool designed for and by our merchants. This back office, centralized and unique, will allow you to visualize, to manage and to analyze all of your transaction and payment data easily.
Thanks to HiPay CONSOLE, all your teams will be able to conduct great analysis in line with their activities, from the marketing department to the finance department, including your fraud team.
Our tool has been designed to answer all the needs of our merchants : web, physicals and omnichannels.
Contact us to get more information on HiPay CONSOLE and to reach the Data Lake !
