Big Data in E-Commerce: Explanation and Use Cases

Table of Contents

1/ What is Big Data?

2/ Use Cases of Big Data in the E-Commerce Industry

2.1/ Customer Insights

2.2/ Inventory Management

2.3/ Price Optimization

2.4/ Customer Service

2.5/ Product Management

2.6/ Competitor Analysis

2.7/ Marketing and Advertising

2.8/ Performance Monitoring

3/ Netrivals, Expert in Big Data for E-Commerce

Big Data & E-Commerce FAQ

1/ What is Big Data?

​​Big Data refers to the massive volumes of data that are generated every second from various sources including social media, online transactions, researches, and more. This data can be structured, semi-structured, or unstructured and is characterized by its high velocity, volume, and variety, often referred to as the 3 Vs. 

The analysis of Big Data, using advanced analytics and machine learning algorithms, can reveal valuable insights and patterns that were previously hidden or inaccessible. Through proper analysis, Big Data informs decision-making, optimizes operations, and provides a competitive edge in various fields. The potential of Big Data is immense, making it a critical asset for organizations aiming to leverage data-driven strategies in today’s digital era.

2/ Use Cases of Big Data in the E-Commerce Industry

The key benefits of Big Data for brands and retailers are various: cost optimization, enhanced efficiency, competitive pricing, innovation, local market analysis, and online reputation management are part of it. The role of Big Data in making informed decisions, designing tailored products/services, and fostering innovation by extracting valuable insights is crucial. Through Big Data, companies are also able to monitor and adapt to market trends and improve their online reputation, which is crucial for brand perception.

Here’s how it plays a significant role in various aspects of e-commerce:

2.1/ Customer Insights

Through behavior analysis, brands and sellers can scrutinize the interactions and behaviors of customers on their platforms to discern preferences and buying patterns. For instance, if a significant number of customers frequently buy athletic wear, it’s an indicator of a preference trend.

Harnessing Big Data further facilitates personalization, where shopping experiences are tailored to individual customers by suggesting products aligning with their previous purchases and preferences. Imagine logging into an online store and finding a selection of products that suit your taste, making the shopping experience more engaging and less time-consuming. 

Moreover, Big Data empowers merchants to segment their customer base into distinct categories, which in turn, enables targeted marketing and promotions. For instance, sending discount offers on baby products to recent parents. Through such segmentation, promotions resonate better with customers, enhancing the likelihood of purchases and fostering a more personalized connection between the e-commerce platform and its users.

2.2/ Inventory Management

Through demand forecasting, Big Data aids in predicting the demand for various products, which in turn assists in precise inventory management. For example, by analyzing past sales data and current market trends, an e-commerce platform can forecast the demand for winter jackets during the cold season, ensuring an adequate stock is maintained to meet customer needs. This level of demand awareness minimizes the risks of overstocking or understocking, which could respectively lead to increased holding costs or lost sales.

Secondly, logistics optimization is another arena where Big Data proves invaluable. By analyzing and predicting traffic patterns and delivery times, logistics operations are honed to ensure timely deliveries. For instance, by leveraging Big Data, a logistics manager can plan routes that avoid traffic congestions, thereby reducing fuel costs and ensuring timely deliveries to customers. Additionally, analyzing delivery times and feedback can help in selecting the most efficient courier services.

2.3/ Price Optimization

Pricing plays a pivotal role in attracting and retaining customers, and Big Data analytics emerges as a key tool for optimizing pricing strategies. Particularly, Big Data facilitates dynamic pricing, a strategy where prices are adjusted in real-time based on a variety of factors such as supply, demand, and competitor pricing. For instance, consider an online retailer selling electronics. Through Big Data analytics, the retailer can monitor the supply levels of a popular smartphone model, the demand for it, and the prices at which competitors are selling the same model. If the demand spikes or if a competitor lowers their price, the retailer can adjust the price of the smartphone in real-time to stay competitive and maximize revenue.

2.4/ Customer Service

The amalgamation of Big Data, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and machine learning substantially elevates the quality and efficiency of customer service provided by e-commerce platforms. One notable manifestation of this integration is the deployment of automated chatbots. By employing AI-driven chatbots, which are continuously learning and evolving through Big Data analysis, a brand can promptly address common queries regarding order status, product details, or return policies without human intervention. This not only expedites response times significantly but also frees up human customer service representatives to tackle more complex or nuanced issues.

The insights garnered from Big Data analysis can help in understanding common customer issues and improving the overall support framework. For example, if data analysis reveals that a significant number of customers are facing challenges in navigating the website, the e-commerce platform can take steps to enhance website usability.

2.5/ Product Management

Effective product management is a linchpin for success, and Big Data analytics serves as a robust facilitator in this domain. One of the crucial aspects is product assortment, which entails curating a balanced mix of products that caters to the diverse needs and preferences of customers. By delving into sales data and customer preferences unearthed through Big Data analytics, e-commerce platforms can astutely determine which products resonate well with their audience and should therefore be featured prominently. For instance, an analysis of sales data might reveal that eco-friendly products are garnering significant traction, guiding the platform to augment such offerings.

On the flip side, Big Data also plays a pivotal role in the sphere of new product development. The wealth of insights derived from customer feedback, market trends, and competitor analyses, all facilitated by Big Data, provides a solid foundation for conceptualizing and developing new products. For example, if Big Data analysis unveils a rising trend in fitness and health-conscious consumer behavior, along with positive feedback on existing health-related products, a brand may decide to develop and introduce a new line of fitness trackers or health supplements. This data-driven approach ensures that new product offerings are well-aligned with market demands and customer preferences, significantly enhancing the likelihood of their success post-launch.

2.6/ Competitor Analysis

Big Data analytics facilitates competitor analysis by providing a lens into the market dynamics. For instance, by analyzing market data, a brand can identify a competitor’s successful marketing campaign or a trending product category. These insights, in turn, aid in making informed decisions, whether it’s adjusting marketing strategies or diversifying product offerings to align with market trends and stay competitive. Through Big Data, e-commerce platforms can thus maintain a keen awareness of the competitive landscape, which is indispensable for strategic agility and sustained success.

2.7/ Marketing and Advertising

One significant advantage of Big Data is the facilitation of targeted advertising. By sifting through customer data, e-commerce platforms can craft advertising campaigns that resonate with specific customer segments. For instance, analyzing shopping behavior data might reveal a group of customers with a penchant for outdoor gear, enabling the creation of tailored advertising campaigns promoting hiking boots or camping equipment to this segment.

Furthermore, Big Data extends its utility to the realm of performance analytics. Post-campaign analysis powered by Big Data can unveil the effectiveness of marketing strategies, highlighting areas of success and aspects needing refinement. For example, if a particular social media campaign drives a surge in website traffic and sales, it can be a cue to allocate more resources to similar future campaigns.

2.8/ Performance Monitoring

Big Data plays a crucial role in performance monitoring, particularly in analyzing website performance. By scrutinizing website data, such as page load times, error rates, and user engagement metrics, e-commerce platforms can find issues that may be hampering user experience. For example, if analysis reveals that a particular page takes too long to load, actions can be taken to optimize the load time, thereby improving the user experience. Whether it’s tweaking the website design to make navigation more intuitive or fixing bugs that cause shopping cart errors, the insights derived from Big Data analysis are instrumental in optimizing website performance.

Through vigilant performance monitoring powered by Big Data, e-commerce platforms can ensure their websites are operating efficiently, providing a smooth and enjoyable shopping experience for their customers, which in turn, contributes to building a loyal customer base and achieving long-term success.

3/ Netrivals, Expert in Big Data for E-Commerce

Netrivals, Lengow’s big data solution, is a significant player in the sector, specializing in providing data-driven insights to help brands and retailers build effective pricing and product strategies. With the capability to scan over 900 million products and over 3.2 billion images daily across more than 31,000 e-commerce sites from over 50 countries worldwide, Netrivals provides a comprehensive view of the market dynamics.

At the core, Netrivals compiles online product data, which can later be analyzed either on their platform or through other business intelligence tools. This data aids in better business decision-making. The data is collected from various online stores, updated multiple times daily, ensuring real, timely market information. Customizable data collection frequency based on specific criteria like sellers or product categories allows for detailed market analysis. The platform displays and compares your product prices with competitors’, assisting in evaluating your market competitiveness.

Netrivals helps many brands and e-commerce players succeed with Big Data. Here are three examples:

• The perfumery online store Julia was able to take better business decisions and increased its CVR by more than 50%.
• Fluidra, the multinational group leader the swimming pool and wellness sector, optimised it data quality and implemented an intelligent stock availability strategy through Netrivals’ Big Data.
• The sustainable D2C marketplace Productpine increased its sales for highly-competitive products by 15%.

Big Data & E-Commerce FAQs