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Does one size really fit all? It almost never does, despite what advertisers would have you believe. The idea that a single method or strategy will work for everyone proves to be problematic for data analytics just as it can be for clothing, or managing employees. 

Still, if you're shopping for a data analytics vendor, you've probably heard this too-familiar tale: a vendor's analytics software worked successfully for company ‘x’ and company ‘y’, so it will certainly deliver relevant insights to your business, as well. 

This simply is not true.

Every business's goals are different, and their user needs are unique – in fact "custom" is part of "customer." This means taking a cookie-cutter approach to data analytics may not deliver relevant or meaningful and therefore actionable insights.


Delivering Insights That Resonate

A data analytics project's final stretch – the stage after data wrangling and algorithms have been applied, when results are processed and are ready to be presented – is most critical. Yet this crucial "last mile" when insights are delivered, is the point where many analytics projects fail.

Every business and its leaders arrive at an analytics project with a unique set of goals and user needs. For illustration purposes, using the same data, one fast-food company might want to explore how to increase customer satisfaction, while another fast-food company could be interested in exploring something totally different like deciding on a new item for its menu. Each scenario requires analysis of the same data but with results presented to very different audiences. 

In order to succeed, a project's insights must be delivered in ways that is meaningful for each company so they can be empowered to make data-driven decisions moving forward. If these insights aren't presented to the businesses in an easy-to-understand manner using intuitive visualizations and easy-to-use interfaces, the entire project has the risk to be rendered useless. 

The Trouble with Visualization Libraries

An analytics vendor must work collaboratively with customers to gain a sense of how to best deliver insights to company stakeholders. Designing a powerful presentation layer is critical. Each business hopes to achieve different goals with their analysis, and vendors should shape their presentation of insights to meet a client's unique set of needs.

Unfortunately, many analytics vendors are hyper-focused on their analytics software, allowing their presentation of insights to play second fiddle to the backend. Since it is not a priority, vendors often drop an analytics project's results into basic bar charts, line charts, and ineffective pie charts. 

In fact, many vendors use generic visualization libraries or libraries licensed from a third-party vendor. The result? Lack of innovation. Customers are handed a lackluster presentation layer that might not mesh with individual circumstances or goals. Additionally, with multiple vendors sourcing from the same visualization libraries, vendors are unable to provide any differentiation and competitive advantage. 

Moreover, if the customer is unhappy with the presentation of results, the analytics vendor must turn to the visualization library and hope the provider can alter their presentations. In most cases, changes will not be made, and the project at best falters, and at worst, fails – a costly outcome.

Focus on the Frontend with Solution as a Service

Solution as a Service (SolaaS) combines top-of-the-line data analytics software with highly trained data scientists through a single vendor. Collaboration between client and vendor is a priority. The SolaaS approach eschews a cookie-cutter approach to analytics; results are never presented to clients using a generic dashboard.

A SolaaS vendor, such as PolyVista, builds and owns both its analytics software and visualization library. Because there is a seamless relationship between software and analysts combined with a focus on client-vendor relationships, if issues or questions arise, they can be quickly addressed. The vendor will tweak the software's algorithms or manipulate the presentation layer and present a custom tailored product to better meet a company's needs. 

In fact, PolyVista welcomes this type of client input, and willingly adjusts the interfaces in its patent-pending user-interfaces, ensuring that every presentation layer is user-focused and unique.

Summary

One size does not fit all in the tricky world of data analytics. Each business embarking on a project has unique goals. To meet these individual needs, vendors must deliver actionable insights through a user-focused presentation layer. With a focus on client-vendor collaboration, Solution as a Service combines software and analysts, and present results using a vendor-owned, customizable visualization library and user-interfaces.