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1-Page Summary of Small Data

Overview

Today, everyone is talking about big data. It’s the buzzword of internet companies like Google and Amazon, who collect masses of information to try to figure out what people want and how they work. Big data is truly a modern-day Holy Grail for marketers.

Big data is not the only way to market a brand. Small data can also be used effectively for marketing purposes.

The small details of our lives are what make up the data about us. These minor, but telling points can be found in or around our homes and give clues to what we want out of life. Marketing professionals can use this key information to tailor their marketing strategies toward specific customers’ needs and wants.

You’ll also learn how to figure out your personality based on what’s in your refrigerator. You’ll also learn about the importance of saying “oops” and “dood-dood” when you clean with a Roomba robot.

Big Idea #1: Big Data has a hard time predicting the emotions and desires of users.

Big Data refers to the massive amount of data people produce every day. This includes what users search for, watch, and buy online. However, the information this data offers is limited because it doesn’t include how they feel about those things. For example, when a person searches for clothes on an e-commerce site like Amazon or watches a video on YouTube or posts something on Facebook, he is creating Big Data that can be analyzed to determine his interests and tastes but not necessarily how he feels about those things.

Just as being in a car makes you rude to other drivers, it’s easier to be mean online because you can’t see the person’s reaction.

The information people leave online is insufficient to make judgments about them. Big data can’t measure emotions, which are necessary for building desire for a brand.

For example, Google’s algorithms can infer a person’s emotional state based on their writing and typos. But it’s difficult to know whether brands can appeal to people emotionally from data gathered from web browsing alone.

This is important because it gives brands a competitive edge. The makers of BMW know that the desire for their car is fueled by customers’ urge to indulge in the joy of driving, so they understand how to build a highly desirable brand. Where can you find information about consumers?

Big Idea #2: The tiny details of people’s homes say a lot about them and their desires.

Home is a personal space and we have our own preferences for what goes where. We make decisions about how to arrange things in our homes, whether consciously or not.

Details are important. For example, the way we decorate our houses reveals a lot about what’s important to us.

Just like we show off our lives on social media, we also showcase our taste in design and decor by showing off photos, souvenirs and other little details.

The author noticed that people in Brazil displayed beer bottle collections at home. He assumed that this was a sign of their appreciation for beer and freedom. However, our homes also reveal our desires and wishes, whether we’re aware of them or not. These can be found in places like the garage, drawers and fridges.

The author of the passage saw that a lot of people in Siberia have fridge magnets with travel motifs. In his opinion, this pointed to a desire for travel and an escape from the daily grind. The fridge can also be telling us something else: If you put healthy foods like vegetables and low-fat yogurt at eye level and unhealthy, fatty foods lower down, you might wish to lead a healthier lifestyle but don’t.

Now that you understand what small data is, we can move on to the next step in this process.