What are To B data products and operations?

In recent years, with the continuous popularization and application of big data , various data products have emerged in an endless stream. At present, the design and operation theories of C-end products have gradually been improved, but the operation methods of B-end products, especially the operation methods of B-end data products, are very few. Based on my past operating experience , I would like to share some of my thoughts and insights here. I hope you will point out any shortcomings!

1. Concepts related to data products

1.1 What are data products?

Data products refer to products or software forms that are based on internal and external data of an enterprise, have the characteristics of content , value , and automation , and can provide better data services to the enterprise.

(1) Content

As the name suggests, data is presented in a content-based manner. Data products can organize data into content in a clear and easy-to-understand form, and provide it to the demanders on demand, so that the demanders can easily obtain the data. Generally speaking, internal and external data of an enterprise are basically stored in various data warehouses. For front-line employees who do not understand technology, they can use related products to effectively reduce the difficulty of obtaining data, such as BI self-service data acquisition tools , recommendation systems, reporting systems, etc.

(2) Value

Data can only create value if it is used . After being content-based, data can be easily used by users and truly applied to various demand scenarios, creating data value in combination with business needs. For example, the recommendation system can convert data into “list + product + strategy”, and the user portrait system can convert data into a “360-degree panoramic portrait”, enabling companies to have more agile marketing analysis.

(3) Automation

It is called a product because it makes "automation" possible, which is also the essential difference between data products and data analysis reports. Data analysis reports also have the characteristics of "content" and "value", but due to differences in goals, variables, and models, it is difficult to achieve "automation". Data products can easily respond to different needs in a self-service manner. For example, the reporting system can automatically update report data every day, and the recommendation system can automatically generate different recommendation lists every month.

1.2 To B and To C

Like other products, data products can also be divided into two categories: TO B and TO C. The two differ in four aspects: service objects , user roles , user preferences , and design priorities . Let's take two examples to give you an idea:

(1) To B product examples

The self-service data retrieval center of XX enterprise can integrate various types of data inside and outside the enterprise into a unified platform. Users can complete self-service data extraction according to their own needs, and push data to various systems to support different activities (marketing text messages, front-line support, prize giving, etc.).

(2) To C product examples

Baidu Index is a typical To C data product and a data sharing platform based on Baidu's massive Internet user behavior data. Here, you can study keyword search trends, gain insights into changes in netizens’ needs, monitor media sentiment trends, and identify digital consumer characteristics; you can also analyze market characteristics from an industry perspective.

(Note: This is quoted from "Baidu Index Product Introduction". If there is any infringement, it will be deleted immediately)

2. Concepts related to product operation

2.1 Macro Operation

Baidu's concept of product operation is:

A profession that manages product content and users from three levels: content construction , user maintenance , and event planning ; (Quote: Baidu Encyclopedia - Product Operation)

One of the more popular answers on Zhihu is: the process of attracting a large number of loyal users with the lowest budget , the best path , the most efficient execution , and the most effective means , establishing competitive barriers for products in the market, and ultimately achieving product market success . (Quote: Zhihu - Octopus is afraid of the dark)

The author believes that product operation is a job of integrating various resources to better connect products , users and channels . Macro operations can be simply summarized into the following two aspects:

2.2 Micro-operation

From the perspective of different functions of operation work, it can be specifically divided into " content operation ", " user operation ", " data operation ", " activity operation ", etc. The specific responsibilities of each job are as follows:

• Content operations: refers to a series of content-related work such as content planning, content editing, content publishing, content marketing , content optimization, etc. based on business development and market demand;
• User operation: user-centric, setting operation activities and rules according to user needs, and carrying out a series of work such as user acquisition , retention , activation, conversion , etc. around user needs;
• Data operations: Based on internal and external data of the enterprise, we provide guidance on operational decisions and drive business growth through data collection , data analysis, data reporting, etc.
• Event operation: the full-process project promotion, progress control and implementation work around a series of processes such as planning, resource confirmation, publicity and promotion , and effect evaluation of one or more events.

To B data product operation example:

Taking the self-service data retrieval center of XX company as an example, the operation work is carried out around the database, platform and users, integrating various resources, meeting various needs of users through a variety of operation methods, effectively building a benign communication channel between products and users, giving full play to the value of products, and ultimately promoting product upgrades.

3. What does To B data product operation do?

As a content-based, value-added, and automated platform, data products must provide services to users based on data and content. They can be roughly divided into the following three categories:

• Platform operation: is the core foundation of operation work . It is mainly to cater to business needs and meet the demands of users and products, and can be further subdivided into "data content construction", "platform function optimization" and "daily operation monitoring".
• Data management: is an important guarantee for operational work . It can be simply understood as the standardized and effective management of all data involved in the platform, including "data model management", "data import and export management", "data verification testing" and other tasks.
• User service: is the ultimate goal of operations . It refers to the process of meeting users' current needs through a variety of operating methods, attracting users, serving users, maintaining users, and building a user ecosystem. The specific work can be divided into two aspects: "daily user services" and "product operation and promotion ".

Summary: The significance of learning operations work

Many people say that operations are complicated, tedious, and confusing, and that they can’t even learn anything. Here’s a picture to tell you the meaning of operations, and you can experience it for yourself:

Author: pinko, authorized to be published by Qinggua Media .

Source: Teradata