In recent years, the field of data science has been advancing in leaps and bounds. In most enterprises, executives are aware that they need to be doing more with both internal data and external data by leveraging advanced analytics. They understand that machine learning and artificial intelligence will be rich sources for competitive advantage in the years ahead. The challenge for many is the question of exactly how to get started.

Many companies have begun to collect their data and ensure that it is stored where it can be put to use at some point in the future. That often includes text data, semi-structured and unstructured data including service tickets, user reviews, and social media posts, as well as more traditional sources like ERP transactional data. Simply by gathering, organizing, and ensuring that this information is preserved in such a way that it can be used later, these businesses are laying the foundation to gain future advantages from data analytics.

Many of them may already be well-positioned to gain significant business value from their existing data. Data enrichment makes that possible. It provides the “low hanging fruit” that produces powerful business insights, which, in turn, can drive immediate value.

According to a 2021 survey by Transforming Data With Intelligence (TWDI), approximately 30% of enterprises are already using external data. Just as many intend to begin using external data sometime within the next year. Trends surrounding geospatial data show a similar pattern. About one-third of companies are using location data in one way or another, and more than 25% of the remaining enterprises responding to the TWDI survey intend to start using geospatial within the next year.

Those trends illustrate a growing awareness that for companies seeking to elicit value from their corporate information, data enrichment provides a natural starting point. In a recent webinar co-sponsored by Precisely, experts from TDWI, Ironside, and Precisely discussed these trends, including how companies can get started leveraging data science more effectively to produce better business results.

This post was originally written and shared by our partner Precisely.