Transform Raw Social Media Data into Real Competitive Advantage Theres real competitive advantage buried in todays deluge of social media data. If you know how to analyze it, you can increase your relevance to customers, establishing yourself as a trusted supplier in a cutthroat environment where consumers rely more than ever on public opinion about your products, services, and experiences. Social Media Analytics is the complete insiders guide for all executives and marketing analysts who want to answer mission-critical questions and maximize the business value of their social media data. Two leaders of IBMs pioneering Social Media Analysis Initiative offer thorough and practical coverage of the entire process: identifying the right unstructured data, analyzing it, and interpreting and acting on the knowledge you gain. Their expert guidance, practical tools, and detailed examples will help you learn more from all your social media conversations, and avoid pitfalls that can lead to costly mistakes. Youll learn how to: Focus on the questions that social media data can realistically answer Determine which information is actually useful to youand which isnt Cleanse data to find and remove inaccuracies Create data models that accurately represent your data and lead to more useful answers Use historical data to validate hypotheses faster, so you dont waste time Identify trends and use them to improve predictions Drive value on-the-fly from real-time/ near-real-time and ad hoc analyses Analyze text, a.k.a. data at rest Recognize subtle interrelationships that impact business performance Improve the accuracy of your sentiment analyses Determine eminence, and distinguish talkers from true influencers Optimize decisions about marketing and advertising spend Whether youre a marketer, analyst, manager, or technologist, youll learn how to use social media data to compete more effectively, respond more rapidly, predict more successfullygrow profits, and keep them growing.