A Primer for Defining and Implementing Big Data in the Marketing and Advertising Industry

Prepared for the Council for Research Excellence by Gerard Broussard, Principal, Pre-Meditated Media
October 23, 2014

FOREWORD

The practice of audience measurement and, more broadly, media research, is transforming rapidly. Not too many years ago we worked in a world where data were scarce and our capacity to extract useful information was limited. Today, data are growing ever more plentiful and our technology to mine those data is mind numbing. We are limited now mostly by our skills and imagination. At every media and marketing company, data resources are becoming a critical strategic asset. Where do marketers, media owners and advertising service firms begin in transitioning their businesses for the “big data” world? What critical skills do traditional researchers contribute to this data-rich landscape?

The Big Data Committee of the Council for Research Excellence commissioned Premeditated Media to produce this primer. It is intended to help orient advertising and media executives around the opportunities and challenges that present themselves as we go from megabytes of data on PC’s to petabytes of data in the cloud.

It is always the challenge of a primer as to how much reader expertise should be presumed. This primer is not written for budding data scientists, but for practitioners who are competent in current standard research practices and who want to upgrade their knowledge and skills. Readers will engage a new vocabulary, learn about new applications, and discover resources for continued learning.
It is the intention of the CRE that this document will grow in wiki-fashion to keep the industry updated. If you are interested in joining the learning community that will take on this task, please let us know at info@researchexcellence.com