In today’s world, nearly any action we take creates a record of information, from visiting a website to making a credit-card purchase at a retail store.

The resulting trove of data is huge, and it’s growing at a staggering rate. Forecasting agency Gartner predicts that enterprise data, consisting of customer behavior, sales, supply chain, application use, location-based data, etc., will increase by 650 percent by 2015—a doubling of the world’s data every 18 months. We’re entering what’s collectively known as the Era of Big Data.

What does it mean for business? Big Data elucidates patterns that were previously invisible, reduces lag time between a company’s actions and learning the outside world’s reactions, and creates unprecedented opportunities for testing and optimizing any number of objectives. 

Take Fresh Direct, for example: The online grocery retailer analyzes data from website visits, transactions, and other customer-service interactions, and uses the insight gained to adjust prices and promotions daily—or sometimes several times in a single day.

Another innovative approach is to make formerly unstructured data available to consumers in useful ways. The revolutionary Nike+ iPod sensor is an early example, as is Fitbit, a small sensor that tracks the wearer’s movement, sleep, and calories burned. The goal is to tighten the feedback loop and let consumers see how actions add up to results, empowering them to make better decisions about health and exercise.

The opportunities presented by Big Data extend far beyond large companies with hefty budgets. As the technology for capturing and analyzing the deluge of data becomes ever cheaper, organizations of all sizes can—and must—take advantage of this new capability.

Look inside your own organization. Your business is probably already generating more data than you realize. How can you unlock its potential to inform business decisions with solid backup? Could you test different variables, such as price or time of day, and quickly optimize your offerings? Or, perhaps letting your customers view the stats on some of their own habits would add unique value to your service.

Share your thoughts on the implications of the Era of Big Data below.