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"Analytics have been around for more than 20 years now, and yet the demand for analytics has never been greater. The problem is the traditional analytics approach was not designed or intended to handle the breadth of channels, devices, volume, and speed that fuel today\u2019s digital interactions. \nThat's why the industry must take an evolutionary step forward. At our firm we believe the answer may be digital intelligence. Digital intelligence essentially supports the collection and management of digital marketing and business data across all channels, and makes that data available to analytics applications. \n\nSEE ALSO: The Game Mechanics of Customer Loyalty\nDigital intelligence is appealing to many, but it\u2019s equally daunting because no simple solution exists for handling massive volumes of diverse data, tracking visitors across digital channels, and directly connecting insights to actions. But one industry does stand out as an early adopter: the gaming industry. \nGaming firms have significant incentives to master analytics because game usage data is their first and best feedback loop into the health of their businesses and the needs of players. Don't believe it? Consider this: Zynga's SEC Form S-1 registration statement that preceded their 2011 IPO is filled with references to analytics as a core competency and competitive differentiator. Gaming firms leverage digital intelligence extensively to rapidly introduce and deliver visibility to their business, evaluate product enhancements, and inject intelligence directly into player experiences. \nThe gaming industry\u2019s mastery of four strategic digital intelligence capabilities provides a model that other organizations can learn from. Here\u2019s a brief outline of each.\n1. Manage Big Data \nDigital intelligence is predicated on the ability to collect, process, store, and distribute data, an increasingly difficult task as growth in data volume, velocity, and diversity continues. Gaming firms are big believers in adopting a comprehensive technology strategy to support data management. \nThe first key factor is managing data at the user level to tie together longitudinal, multichannel customer experiences. The second key factor is reducing latency to support dynamic decision making. By delivering accurate and timely insights, data supports the ultimate goal of improving products and acquiring and retaining customers.\n2. Develop The Analytics Team \nDigital intelligence requires people in addition to technology. To meet the parallel requirements of advanced, exploratory analytics while providing accessible insights to business stakeholders, firms must consider how to organize the analytics function. \nGaming firms start by investing in staff, spanning a comprehensive set of skills including analytics, development, and engineering. And they embed those resources into the business to ensure the delivery of highly relevant, effective analysis. By cultivating a comprehensive staffing model and integrated organization, firms can support analytics at the pace and depth required by the business.\n3. Evaluate Complex Customer Experiences\nTraditional digital marketing measures such as number of sessions, time spent on a site, and new versus returning visitors are no longer sufficient for fully articulating complex interactions. Gaming firms leverage a wealth of data sources, constructing a full view of the customer across multiple touchpoints and interactions, to develop metrics that correlate to business objectives such as player lifetime value. Deep metrics allow firms to track trends, customer segments, and business outcomes. This helps them efficiently fix problem areas and quickly capitalize on opportunities.\n4. Continuously Optimize\nDigital intelligence utilizes statistically sound experimental techniques to apply order to a complex digital ecosystem where guesswork and intuition fail. Gaming firms employ iterative, data-driven testing approaches to refresh, improve, and expand user experiences to keep players coming back. \nFirms can enable continuous innovation by leveraging data directly in user experiences for automated personalization and targeting, and by empowering business users to perform experiments to accurately assess the impact of content, promotions, and product features."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2012/07/03/gaming-industry-analytics/>