William Murray MK390

     Week four was a little different than the previous weeks in terms of structure. This week there was no reading due which gave us more time to work with Simmons and learn all about how to work with the analytical data that it provides. I enjoyed learning about this and how the website can be so helpful.      The first subject that we researched in class on Simmons was Oreo consumption. There is a whole lot of data all separated by demographics such as age, sex, or what ever it is that you plug in and are looking for. Simmons provides exact data with percents and totals.      Simmons is really good for company's because you can really research anything. In class we saw researches on Oreos, Netflix vs Hulu, and even cigarette usage. Learning how to use a database such as Simmons is huge for any kind of research. It could be for starting up a new business, doing research for a business that is already owned or anything where data is neces...

      One of the topics discussed that caught my attention was predictive analytics. Businesses more often use this knowing how effective it can be when predicting sales. It can be anything from text analysis to even forecasting. The weather is a major predictor for sales on a day to day basis and marketers know this using predictive analysis to their advantage. I found this interesting knowing that certain purchases are made more frequently based on whether or not it is a sunny, cloudy or rainy day. Although, not all data is good data, you have to know which data to study which can be difficult to understand.         While reading the chapters, it talked about how while using a bigger sample size, it was less likely for you to get random results. Random results done skew your data as much with a sample size that is much larger. If there is a random result in a smaller size then you have to consider it may not be too random. If there is one random re...

      In the second week of classes we had more discussions revolving around the readings. We read chapters 2 and 3 of the Harvard Business School book and also chapters 4 and 6. All of these chapters had to do with discussing data and analytics. In class, our discussions are very helpful to get a better understanding and recap of what we learned.         Chapters 2 and 3 were big in discussing what data is good data. It is essential to collect data, especially the data that is cheap to attain and useful for your company. Some data is very expensive to collect and not always the most useful. Companies need to learn what to focus on when collecting data because sometimes it tends to be a waste of money. Not all data is relevant depending on what company you are working for.         The next readings, chapters 4 and 6, focused more on data vs metrics. After reading these chapters, we were able to enhance our topics from class on T...

Week One Recap:         Every Tuesday and Thursday this semester we will start our day in the small class of Marketing Insights. So far we have started both classes in unique ways. Day one, we walk in to see three ping pong tables set up and got a little wake up exercise of table tennis. Professor creatively turned it into an analytics exercise by having us recreate a dashboard of what is most important to take note of when discussing ping pong. Things to consider were speed of ball, energy of player, best spot to hit and more. This was a fun and simple way to introduce the subject for the first time. The next class we had Play-Doh sitting infront of us for a way to keep us focused. Many students, including myself, enjoy having something infront of them to play with while listening to discussion.         Analytics is a necessity to success in modern day marketing. All major companies are hiring students who are knowledgeable in this subject. A...

1.         One of the most efficient ways to complete every day tasks is to complete them as a routine. Once you are in a routine, there is a lot less thought that needs to go into the work making it quite easier. Businesses use processes that are the same nearly every day. It speeds up work and reduces the chance of mistakes. This is what Edwards Deming means when he speaks of the Lather, Rinse, Repeat method. Every day when we take showers we don't even think about our routine, but go through the motions. This is just as businesses do when they are always completing their day to day tasks. 2.         Measuring metrics is a huge part of improving your business day in and day out. There are certain metrics that mean more than others depending on what company you work for. Some metrics that are most important to look at may be focus on objectives, measuring efficiency or measuring effectiveness of an action. Marketing's set of metrics...