Data Analytics for Beginners: A Simple Guide

Data Analytics as a whole, has many aspects to it and so for a beginner it might get overwhelming to know where exactly to start from. Some of them might look at the analytics side of it and how it is used to solve business problems while others might get into the programming languages side of it that is used for the purpose of analysis.

We have put together a simple guide for beginners that will help them navigate through the world of data analytics and get a basic understanding. If you find this interesting, then you can deep dive further into the topics for better understanding by enrolling into any of the best data analytics courses that are on offer, both online and offline.

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What is Data Analytics?

The use of processes and technology, like some kind of analytics software that is used to extract meaningful insights out of various datasets forms the crux of what data analytics is. The insight that is derived, is applied in multiple ways depending on the business, the industry and the unique requirements of both. There are multiple online and offline courses offering analytics training for beginners. Also you can become a skilled portfolio manager by taking SAFe Lean Portfolio Management training.

Why is Data Analytics Important?

Data Analytics is important because a lot of businesses are becoming data-driven as they have understood that they can make important business decisions that are supported or back by the use of data. It is also important because it is helping many businesses predict problems or roadblocks before they even occur and map out possible answers and solutions for them. It is enabling the business to be ready for uncertainties that they might face in the future and how to combat them.

The Data Analytics Process

The process of data analytics essentially consists of five steps from start to finish. These steps are:

  • Define why you need data analysis – what exactly is the problem that the business is facing which you are looking at solving through the help of data analytics. Are your customers satisfied with your service? Why are sales figures dropping? Why is my production cost increasing? These are certain questions that need to be laid out and identified before starting with the process.
  • Start collecting data from various sources – there are both internal and external open sources through which businesses collect data. Some of the internal sources might be CRM programming software, marketing automation tools, ERP systems and more. Open source data might be going through economic and finance datasets to identify some trends that are prevailing in the market right now.
  • Clean through the unnecessary that has accumulated – once the data has been collected, it is important to sort through it and clean any duplications, outliers and inconsistency that might result in the analysis getting skewed.
  • Start analysing the data – there are a number of ways through which you can do this. Some business intelligence software could help in generating reports and charts for better understanding for the decision makers. There are also a number of data mining techniques that can be applied for deeper analysis. The steps undertaken depend on the resources and requirements of the business.
  • Interpret the results and appropriate application – once everything has been done, it all boils down to putting your analysis into action. The way the results are interpreted is crucial for any business to resolve whatever business problem that they had looked at solving and had defined in the first step of the process.

We hope this has given you a basic understanding of what data analytics essentially consists of.