Business intelligence technology is now more accessible than ever, being no longer limited to big companies, like it used to be for years. With the rise of the Internet and cloud-based technologies and the software-as-a-service software concept, simple business intelligence for small businesses has become a viable solution for small companies across industries. Still, there are plenty of myths about business intelligence that detract small businesses and organizations from adopting it.
Myth #1: Business Intelligence Is Complex
It used to be, but today business intelligence solutions are available as cloud-based, online applications such as DataQlick, which integrate with your QuickBooks accounting and inventory tools and present the essential data you need in a straightforward, easy to digest format. Replete with visual analytics and interactive reports in the form of charts and graphs, these solutions drive the adoption of business intelligence tools for businesses that a few years ago would have not even dreamed of performing sales analysis or forecasting.
Myth #2: Everything Has to Be Analyzed
Successful sales data analysis and sales forecasting isn’t the result of a complete analysis of all existing data, as it is sometimes thought. A huge chunk of data creates a long report that because of its clutter and density can be hard to interpret. Even with powerful analysis tools, analyzing everything can be a time-consuming, unnecessary process, especially for a small or medium-sized organization. Some data is more important than other, and organizations that make the most of data analysis are those that focus on platforms that provide simple business intelligence for small businesses.
Myth #3: Business Intelligence Is For Senior Staff Only
While the business owner and management team do need business intelligence reports to make the right decisions, business intelligence can help all departments of an organization, at any level. Every type of decision in a small business, whether it is relevant to customer support, marketing strategies, or product development, can benefit from the analytic context that business intelligence provides.
What’s more, the development of user-friendly, cloud-based business intelligence and sales forecasting inventory tools makes access to important report data easy to email and share with all the employees who can benefit from it.
If you run or manage a small business but don’t yet harness the power of business analytics, you may be losing customers and sales. Follow the major business intelligence trend and adopt a cloud-based business intelligence solution such as DataQlick, which comes with powerful yet easy to understand presentations, enabling you to keep track of sales data and view sales performance for individual items with ease.
