How To Perform Data Sourcing For Your Business
Introduction
Data and information can be a great key to the success of your business. However, businesses need to have good data sources in order to get insightful and actionable data. Primarily, you also need to know how to perform data sourcing for your business.
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- What is data sourcing?
- Examples of Data Sourcing
- Benefits of data sourcing
- Types of Data sources
- Examples of data sources
- Importance of data quality
- Processes and strategies of data sourcing
- How to choose good data providers
- Challenges of data sourcing
- Best practices and tips for Data Sourcing
- Conclusion
What is Data Sourcing?
Data sourcing is the process a business uses to extract and integrate data retrieved from different internal and external sources. Thereafter, such data is used to handle daily workflows and achieve business objectives.
Examples of Data Sourcing
- Usually, before they launch schemes, governments collect ans source data.
- Data sourcing from multiple sources are used by security agencies for crime prevention.
- Businesses use data sourcing to understand and analyze customer behavior.
- Marketing and advertising agencies retarget ads using data sourcing.
Benefits of data sourcing
You can use big data analytics to measure all aspects of internal and external business environment. In turn, you can translate this into competitive advantage and executive decision making. In this way, knowing how to perform data sourcing for your business begins to yield great dividends.
Here are some other benefits of data sourcing
- Generally, you can better generate quality leads.
- In addition, it can help the business improve conversion rates and sales.
- Furthermore, it assists in predicting market trends
Types of Data Sources
Generally, you may consider data sources as being either primary or secondary.
Primary data
Your business generates this data source using instruments such as questionnaires, interviews, surveys. Basically, this data source is used to tackle specific problems and get elaborate feedbacks.
On the other hand, secondary data is generated by a different party for the business. Thereafter, the business extracts and utilizes the data. You could use sources like websites, government institutions, and books.
In turn, secondary data can be classified into external data and internal data.
Secondary data
External data
This is also referred to as alternative data. Such data is collected manually or through data providers from publicly available information.
Internal data
Already collected by the business, internal data usually contains data such as customer records and transactions. You may find them in the CRM platform.
Examples of Data Sources
In another vein, there are other types of data sources. They include the following:
- Databases: Examples include MSAccess, SQL, Oracle, and Amazon SimpleDB.
- Flat Files: most commonly, many businesses use Microsoft Excel spreadsheets as data sources.
- Web services
- Various other sources like RSS feeds
Importance of Data Quality
Clearly, you have to prioritize data quality when performing data sourcing. This can affect the usefulness of the data. Simply, you can consider metrics like the age, validity, and consistency of the data as useful criterias. In other words, you should be interested in the data gathering methods of data suppliers. Feel free to ask them about the age of the data.
Processes and Strategies of Data Sourcing
Surely, it is useful to have a good plan before commencing the process of data sourcing. After all, the process can be complicated and have multiple stages. Basically, here are the strategies you can follow in your data sourcing process.
Provide specifics of information
Again, it is important to have specific answers to ‘wh’ questions such as the following:
- First, what details are needed?
- Second, which topics should be included?
- Third, what data sample size should be targeted?
- Furthermore, what are the goals and objectives?
- Moreover, what are the questions to ask?
Restrict data collection within fixed time-frame
Meanwhile, it can be important to restrict the data collection to a fixed time frame. Ultimately, this makes for easy data analysis.
Proper method of data collection
In addition, you should choose an appropriate method for your data collection.
Factors in choosing method of data collection
Specifically, you can use the following factors to choose the method.
- The type of Information needed
- The time-frame
- Intended platform to use
- Budget for the project
Methods of data collection
Here are some common methods of data collection you can use.
- Surveys – both Online and Offline
- Online Traffic Tracking and Analytics
- Tracking of transactions
- Data from Marketing Analytics
- Data from Social media Traffic Monitoring
- Registration, Subscription, and conversion based data collection
Collect the data
Previously, you nailed down your process and strategy. Now, you can begin the actual data collection. First, set up a schedule and be consistent with it. Then continue monitoring your progress and updating your schedule.
Data analysis
Finally, you can begin converting your raw data into actionable information.
Remember, this critical step has to be implemented carefully. Thereafter, feel free to implement your findings and improve your business bottom line.
How to Choose Good Data Providers
First, take a look at the accessibility options they offer. Some providers let you access their data through APIs. In that case, check the filtering solutions provided. In addition, take a look at the data formats if they are convenient.
Second, good data providers should be able to offer different data types and multiple sources. This can help improve accuracy and ensure diversity.
Third, make sure they prioritize quality data.
Challenges of Data Sourcing
- Usually, constant quality control efforts are needed to mitigate uneven quality of data.
- In addition, manual data collection is susceptible to inconsistencies, breaches, and duplication.
- Besides, legal quagmires pose a challenge. For instance, the legal rules of data management can be complex. More so, data governing regulations are not uniform globally.
- Furthermore, sensitive information may not be properly secure. Consequently, sophisticated data security measures are needed.
Best Practices and Tips for Data Sourcing
- First, let your desired business objectives dictate your data requirements.
- Second, work with source data that fulfill the data requirements.
- Third, the data you are going to source should meet your requirements.
- In addition, your data provider should have the needed knowledge about your business and data profiles.
- Preferably, use system extracted data rather than manually prepared data. This will reduce compromises on data quality and accuracy.
- Ideally, you should collect data from the original source.
- Furthermore, only extract useful data and leave out unwanted data. This will help reduce complexity and distraction.
- Finally, emphasize data quality. Use necessary filters to access high-quality data.
Conclusion
Insights you generate from accurate raw data can significantly increase the growth of your business. As such, you should not undermine how important is to know how to perform data sourcing for your business. Moreover, most entrepreneurs rightly pay great attention to data sourcing. After all, it helps businesses in their business intelligence, decision-making, and long term business planning.
