This research paper is an accumulation of papers that focus on Social Media Analytics (SMA) for business intelligence and starts by defining Business SMA as “..all activities related to gathering relevant social media data, analyzing the gathered data, and disseminating findings as appropriate to support business activities..” One of the more interesting information it provides is that business SMA is beneficial not only for company relations with customers, but also with employees and business partners. A review from IBM, SAS, and SAP of 40 companies that utilize Business SMA shows “..improved marketing strategies (75% of the cases), better customer engagement (65%), better customer service (35%), better reputation management and brand awareness (30%), product innovation (30%), business process improvement (25%), and discerning new business opportunities (20%).” The challenges that are presented here are
Related to Pre-Analytics Processing Activities
- Context & Structure: free-form statements; unclear broader context
- Language Use: special symbols; slang use
- Data Validity: abbreviations, typos, and credibility issues
- Data Extraction: diversity, scope of social media; isolating useful input
- Streaming Nature: continuously flowing data
Related to Analytics Processing Activities
- Analysis Time Frame: time-varying impacts; limited usable data life
- Methodology: integrative, multidisciplinary big data-scalable approaches
Although current technologies used for Business SMA are relatively new and are still being researched, media monitors are in the unique position of already having overcome some of the challenges outlined in the paper (Context & Structure of the information, Language Use: special symbols; slang)
Business Social Media Analytics: Definition, Benefits, and Challenges
