Business Intelligence Tool Taps Social Media to Model Consumer Behaviour

By Misha Waheed

Using the Web for data analysis purposes has become a common marketing strategy for businesses. Analysts have relied on social media outlets in order to understand and predict consumer trends. However, the methods that are usually used for data analysis are not comprehensive enough to keep up with the vast sea of information available online.


The Mass Opinion Business Intelligence System


WiseWindow
is a company that has tried to solve the problems faced in online data analysis. The relatively new start up created a system called Mass Opinion Business Intelligence (MOBI), that combines a variety of research techniques to generate more accurate data analysis results for their clients.

Instead of searching for particular keywords or answers to certain questions, MOBI combines results from all over the Web, such as Facebook, Twitter and Google+, to see what people have to say about a topic at any given time of the day. It simply collects all the information that is available on the Web and then uses this data to answer more specific questions that clients might have. This provides a better representation of the consumer market and what people are thinking or doing at any particular time.

WiseWindow has helped make predictions about trends in several industries, ranging from the entertainment business to political campaigns. The company has demonstrated how MOBI is even useful in determining stock market trends and has recently secured two global investment banks as major clients.

Start ups should use MOBI

MOBI can be an extremely useful tool for entrepreneurs in the start up stages as well. It can help them:
        Increase their knowledge of the market and understand what the big companies and other start-ups have to offer.

–      MOBI can be used with traditional business intelligence to build models of your consumers’ behavior
        Analyse market trends to gain insight into what consumers really want and how they feel about existing products.

By providing this information, MOBI can assist start ups in knowing what to expect during the initial stages of their business and to avoid mistakes that could potentially become very costly. By understanding the demands of consumers and responding to them accurately, start ups can gain an extra edge to help them get ahead in the game.

Misha is a fourth year undergraduate student majoring in Communication, Culture & Information Technology and Psychology at the University of Toronto Mississauga. She is currently interning at the RIC centre as an Assistant Communication Officer and is responsible for developing content for the RIC website.

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