Web Data Mining

Web data mining is the application of a variety of different techniques in order to discover what kind of information Internet users are looking for. Web data mining may be used to get several different specific kinds of data (such as text only data, or multi-media data), and has a wide variety of potential applications. Data mining has been used almost since the Internet first started and more people are using these kinds of techniques every year. Companies who wish to attract more potential customers can use information gained from data mining in order to better target their advertising campaigns. University students who are doing research on how people use the Internet can use data mining to produce accurate statistics. Even if your sole purpose is to drive traffic and you are not doing any advertising at all, data collected from a data mining operation can give you all the information you need to form effective keywords.

Data mining may also be referred to as "scraping". So how is data mining/scraping accomplished? Software is the most popular method of doing so and there are a number of different companies out there that offer data mining services. Mozenda and Kapow Technologies are two popular companies devoted to data mining. This data can be totally invaluable to commercial advertisers because it gives them the information they need in order to put their product/products in front of as many web users as possible. After all, how can you target ads toward people when you have no idea what they are searching for? How can you start a viral campaign via social media if you do not know how people use the web. Knowing how people use the web is vital to the success of just about any website, commercial or non-commercial.

This is especially true for the little people - small businesses and new websites who are trying to make a name for themselves. Data mining can help large companies as well, but the small company stands to reap much greater benefits. Large companies have already established themselves and will already have a customer base they can count on without the need for advertising. This is almost certainly not true for the small business owner/website operator. So what about the ethical side of all this? It is largely a matter of personal opinion, but virtually everyone agrees that web data mining can be used both ethically and unethically. Many people can agree that as long as data that is not considered personal (sexual preference, religion, political affiliation, etc.) is not harvested then there are no ethical concerns.

So from that point of view, what people in general search for (like popular search trends) and tend to look at is certainly ethical. Unethical from this point of view would mean that a particular company (or companies) harvest data in order to build complex profiles based on personal information in order to promote their product(s). However, even though this point of view is popular does not mean everyone views this issue the same way. Some people believe all data mining is unethical and infringes on privacy. Others believe that data mining is totally acceptable and that people who have nothing sinister to hide have no reason to be concerned. Civil rights organizations are deeply concerned about government use/abuse of data mining technology to spy on it's citizens. This is an interesting issue and there is no telling what the future may hold for data mining. At this point in time, most forms of internet data mining are totally legal and used by a large number of individuals and corporations all around the world.


web data mining

Internet Data Mining Software

Internet data mining software is used almost universally. Several businesses and government agencies utilize this software for a more efficient method of searching the Internet for the information they need. Law enforcement agencies utilize data mining software to search for criminal activity that goes on over the Internet. These criminal acts can vary and can become construed with legal activity so software that can weed out the bad from the good is very useful to them. To go one step further, homeland security uses data mining software to prevent terrorism. Many individuals unknowingly put information up on the Internet that compromises their goals because they believe it to be a safe place when in fact, it is constantly being scoured by government data mining software that searches for words or phrases related to terrorist activity.

Internet data mining software is also utilized by business owners. Knowing what your competitors are doing with specials and pricing gives the user a huge advantage in their targeted market. Internet data mining software will pick out certain specials that are given by certain business as determined by the software's owner. There is so much information stockpiled on the Internet that looking for specific data can be a lost cause. Even after finding information related to whatever it is that you searched for most of it is probably useless. The use of internet data mining software negates all of these problems making it a very useful tool for anybody who researches extensively.

One of the biggest names in data mining software is Mozenda. Mozenda is a very advanced data mining program. It has programming that enables it to be automated; this means that even while you are away Mozenda can carry out whatever task you gave to it. Mozenda creates virtual agents that can extract and manage data from various sources and can even publish data to multiple destinations at the same time. All of the data extracted through Mozenda is stored in their virtual warehouse where it will be safe and secure until you are ready to access it. Companies will find Mozenda to be very useful because of its ease of integration with a data system that is already in place. Mozenda will enable the company to store their data and then publish it automatically as they wish.

Kapow Technologies is another major player in the internet data mining software industry. Kapow Technologies is geared towards big business. Their software helps businesses to better communicate with their partners. This allows the sharing and publishing of data between partners to be seamless. Kapow Technologies takes pride in providing up to the second web data that is related to the interests of the business. This allows for more informed business decisions.

Internet data mining software will continue to be a huge part of businesses worldwide as long as the internet remains functional. The versatility of the software means that many different types of businesses will utilize it. The fact that there is information regarding everything one could imagine on the internet means that there is probably someone who could use software to extract that data, share it with others, and then publish it again to their advantage. On top of this, data mining software can also show you how your product or service is doing. This is achieved by using the software to mine your own data, and then seeing how relevant that data is compared to other data of the same variety.

data mining tools for the web

Data Mining: The Hidden Dollar
You could have an email sign-up on your website or ask people to call for more information on your product. You could tell them all about it and then maybe you'll get a sale.

What if you could collect contact info from relevant websites without having to spend so much time researching or explaining your product over the phone? What if you could target advertisements to buyers who were more likely to purchase your product? What if you could send out email blasts only to relevant potential buyers?

Data mining tools allow you to find the people who want your product without wasting time, money, and energy on those who don't need your product.