Big data is not only a buzzword. It is indeed a very important concept which has a considerable impact on the business.

Big data is a vast collection of various kinds of structured and unstructured data gathered from inner and outer resources which, after processing and analyzing, can be turned into valuable insights.

Conventional database techniques can’t be applied to big data processing.

In today’s information- and technology-dependent world there is a burning need for new effective techniques to handle the data and make most out of it. Real-time collecting of data gives the opportunity to know about the customer preferences in real time. Big data enables segmentation of customers, customized approach and ability to target audience more precisely and in a more well -prepared way.

Those who keep abreast of the time and keep up to date with technology changes will benefit from the information influx most.

However, Big Data offers both golden opportunities and big challenges for big data startups.

Those challenges can be divided into two categories:

1. Big data challenges:

First of all, all those oodles of information need sensible attending to:

• Identifying the correct filters is crucial. The amount of information is overflowing but not all of it is relevant or useful. Not all of the available information needs to and should be ingested and processed. Setting the right filters which won’t let you miss the important data will define the ultimate success of the analysis.

• Big amounts of extraordinary data call for big data environments because traditional data computing and processing won’t do here. For efficient analysis big data processing should be performed automatically. Big data startups should elaborate an appropriate approach to storing and structuring information in the most efficient way.

• Automatically produce metadata to enhance research.

• Error-related challenges: computer systems may have defects and cause false results.

• There is an urgent need for high-qualified and talented people who can handle the data, analyze and structure it. Innovation is progressing really fast and information is streaming from multiple resources. To develop a smart approach to prioritizing and processing big data is a vital thing to beat pressing competition. It is quite difficult to find people who possess the right skills.

• Identifying if the data are reliable and can be used in the analysis.

• Big data startups should consider privacy and security issues as well.

• Managing the pace at which the data is produced and processed.

2. Business-related challenges

• Another important thing big data startups should consider is channeling resources smartly and focusing first of all on areas of business your big data startup will most benefit from.

• Startups need funding and developing useful relationships with businesses, which may be a tough task at the beginning.

• Defining a proper business model and smart approaches to managing and using big data.

Developing an efficient approach to managing big data will let you increase ROI by more than 200 %. Taking advantage of the pools of information enables businesses to predict the customer behavior patterns, collect demographics data and preferences which will make up an overall picture of customer buying habits and give better understanding of customer needs and wishes. This helps to foster product marketing strategies and increase amounts of sales.

Big data technologies prove to bring cost-cutting benefits. The speed of retrieving and processing data accelerates decision-making process. Big data analytics enable creating new products and services for target audience.

Data can be fractional according to the sources from which it was retrieved.

If approached smartly, big data can become a competitive advantage to outperform the others and get the guidelines to create innovative products and services.

A takeaway is that big data offers immense opportunities for using vast amounts of data and turning it into valuable insights. This is relevant especially now, at the time of information overflow.

However, it is quite challenging to handle it correctly. There are various pitfalls and bottlenecks startups face when dealing with big data.

It is a truly daunting task to deal with oodles of data and not get lost in it.