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The Negative Side of

AnalyticsBy Jessica Cooke

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Marketing analytics and the use of Big Data enable companies to make in depth insights about

consumer behaviour patterns, best strategize according to findings, and maximize their profit

(Murthy & Blackstone, 2016).

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It’s use has become so large, in fact, that

companies not using algorithms to filter a selection of products for consumers are left behind, as explained in

the Globe and Mail article on the Next

Issue magazine app (Alang, 2013).

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However, Big Data and analytics in marketing can also have extremely negative effects…

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…This concept can be a breach of

consumer privacy when it occurs on an individual level, and negatively impact industries at a time.

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The (sometimes) positive side of data analytics in marketing for consumers is that, when they are browsing online, they are often exposed to media and products similar to what they have previously consumed (Chatterjee, 2013).

"Just wait. We'll be sending you coupons for things you want

before you even know you want them”– Andrew Pole

(Chatterjee, 2013)

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In industries such as reading, though, this may have a negative effect on consumer

satisfaction, as the most meaningful product to consume next is often one that challenges

you to see the world in a different light.

(Ratti & Helbing, 2016)

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Since the introduction of eBooks, large corporations such as Amazon have had the ability to track readers’ preferences, all the way down to which pages they skipped or spent most time on, and which sentences they highlighted (Prose, 2015).

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As stated by Francince Prose, “Solitude has always been an essential

component of reading”…

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…Many people enjoy reading for the relief they get when escaping into a story knowing that no one is watching.”

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But the continual improvement of the analytical system threatens to overwhelm innovation and

democracy. This could lead to exposure of individuals’ unique actions, removing any and all anonymity without generalized consent (Zheleva, 2011).

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“We are quickly approaching what Italian

writer Italo Calvino presciently called the

“memory of the world”: a full digital copy of our

physical universe”(Ratti & Helbing, 2016)

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If this occurs, it removes all solitude

from reading and steals the joy of escaping into

a great novel. Some readers may even

modify their actions, knowing that they are

being monitored (Prose, 2015).

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The progression of marketing and big data analytics is also certain to change the game of

business… (Zhenning,

Frankwick, & Ramirez; 2016)

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Large booksellers may start to compensate authors by pages turned rather than by

books bought or borrowed (Wayner, 2015).

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A large industry change of the sort would result in very different writing practices. As Peter Wayner says, “A system with per-page payout is a system that rewards cliffhangers

and mysteries. It rewards anything that keep people hooked”.

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Effectively, the use of big data and analytics would work it’s way through the entire supply chain, modifying the entire industry and completely altering the reading experience for the end consumer (Tang, 2016)

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How do we handle the situation?

"We need to slow things down, to give our institutions, individuals, and processes the

time they need to find new and better solutions…

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… Do not push the privacy envelope. Companies that use

personal information in ways that go well beyond the practices of

their competitors risk crossing the line from responsible steward to

reckless abuser of consumer privacy.”

- Paul Ohm (Chatterjee, 2013)

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SourcesAlang, N. (2013). Why the Next Issues magazine app is not the future of publishing. The Globe and Mail. Retrieved from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/technology/digital-culture/why-the-next-issue-magazine-app-is-not-the-future-of-publishing/article14639381/

Prose, F. (2015). They’re Watching You Read. The New York Review of Books. Retrieved from http://www.nybooks.com/daily/2015/01/13/reading-whos-watching/

Wayner, P. (2015). What If Authors Were Paid Every Time Someone Turned a Page? The Atlantic. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/06/amazon-publishing-authors-payment-writing/396269/

Ratti, C., Helbing, D. (2016). The Hidden Danger of Big Data. Project Syndicate. Retrieved from https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/data-optimization-danger-by-carlo-ratti-and-dirk-helbing-2016-08

Chatterjee, P. (2013). Big data: the greater good or invasion of privacy? The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/mar/12/big-data-greater-good-privacy-invasion

Tang, C. (2016). The Data Industry. New Jersy, USA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Zheleva, E. (2011). Privacy In Social Networks: A Survey. Department of Computer Science at the University of Maryland. Retrieved from https://link-springer-com.proxy.queensu.ca/chapter/10.1007%2F978-1-4419-8462-3_10

Zhenning, X., Frankwick, G. L., Ramirez, E. (2016). Effects of big data analytics and traditional marketing analytics on new product success: A knowledge fusion perspective. Journal of Business Research. Retrieved from http://journals2.scholarsportal.info.proxy.queensu.ca/details/01482963/v69i0005/1562_eobdaapsakfp.xml#body-s0035