Data Backup Digest

The big data boom of the 21st century has many businesses scrambling to solve one unexpected problem: how to deal with all of this information. It's one thing to collect data in such vast amounts – but it's useless without the proper processing, storage, and management. With that in mind, there are many things you can do to optimize your company's data and ensure its accuracy, effectiveness, and integrity.

1. Delete unnecessary or redundant data

Those who use big data most successfully know how to differentiate between good and bad data. In other words, they understand what information can be used immediately, which datasets should be saved later, and what kind of information should be ignored.

Moreover, most data doesn't need to be stored forever. Not only does this limit your storage space over a long-term basis, ultimately prompting you to seek out more and more storage, but it also causes your entire system to slow. Recognizing when to delete data is another key to optimizing your data's effectiveness.

2. Embrace the cloud

Many solutions are moving to the cloud – including apps like Microsoft Office, Salesforce, Wordpress, and countless others. Not only is it easier and more efficient than hosting these apps on your company's internal infrastructure, but it provides an extra layer of security, too. With more cloud-based apps released nearly every single day, it makes sense to complete your company's transition to the cloud as soon as possible.

3. Automate whenever possible

Traditional data analysts and statisticians used to spend endless hours gathering data, verifying information, and creating complex data models. In the 21st century, most of this work is easily automated. Even mission-critical accounting processes, including billing and invoicing, can be streamlined and optimized via software automation.

Automated data collection has many benefits. Not only does it allow you gather and transfer information quicker than ever before, but it reduces costly errors that are often associated with manual data collection processes. According to some studies, digital data capture has the potential to cut data entry and collection costs by 88%.

4. Utilize data in real-time

While companies spend a great deal of time dealing with the long-term storage of datasets, most information is more effective when it's applied instantaneously and in real-time. This wasn't always possible in the field of data analytics, but today's highly connected systems make it possible to collect data, process it, and apply it in the field.

Several different companies can benefit from real-time data analytics, including credit agencies that offer real-time credit scoring, retail stores that want to detect fraud during the check-out process, and any other company that wants to improve their customer service.

5. Ensure your software and hardware is up-to-date

It doesn't matter if your company is on the cloud or utilizing on-premise infrastructure – it's critical that all of your software and hardware is updated to their current iterations. Not only does this ensure that your system is operating as smoothly and efficiently as possible, but it also reduces the risk of a cyberattack, data breach, or ransomware incident. Thankfully, most platforms provide fully automated updates.