Dark data is a subset of big data, it includes information that companies collect, process and store but don't properly utilize, analyze or take advantage of to monetize.
A 2011 IDC study found that the world's digital data is doubling every two years. Although today’s Financial Services organizations are already capturing plenty of useful transactional data there is still additional customer related information that is relevant (aka dark data), often bypassed since organizations are uncertain about such non-transactional unstructured information. This may include investment account usage behaviors, trends in customer usage of online and mobile products and services, customer services satisfaction levels, demographics, etc.
IBM looks at big data in multiple dimensions: volume (amount), variety (types and sources) velocity (speed of transfer in and out) and veracity (accuracy or integrity of the data). SAP's definition includes those four dimensions and adds complexity.
By mining dark data for its true potential, Financial Services firms can obtain a comprehensive profile of a customer which will allow for targeted incentives on new products and services as well as, the ability to experiment with new product offerings to measure acceptance. Currently there is a great deal of geo-location data that can be tapped into to analyze the daily habits of customers for more effectual marketing, product offerings and lead generation. In the travel industry; hotels and airlines have made good use of dark data-driven insights to determine patterns, to respond to customer loyalty trends and award them accordingly. This kind of insight-driven decision-making is fundamental to an effective, customer-centric marketing strategy especially when social media and voice data is included. Analyzing networking topics that are of importance to customers or followers can be valuable information, especially the subjects that create lots of conversations, shares, likes and overall engagement. Besides the obvious marketing benefits mentioned, having the right analytics discipline and processes in place can also help organizations alleviate the concerns of compliance and risk-management. The added information can be used by compliance officers for regulatory investigations, e-discovery collection etc.
The true potential of dark data cannot be overlooked in Financial Services. Utilizing information or data that does not infringe on customers’ privacy should be a part of every strategic plan to help organizations keep pace with the needs and aspirations of individual customers.
