Database mining is used by researchers to gather, collect and analyze patterns from a range of information. A number of businesses, like marketing and medical research, distinguish specific patterns to better understand their practices and try to improve them. Proper analyzing techniques are needed to make sure the patterns are truthful and take all variables into account.
The right type of data needs to be gathered so that the database mining process shows accurate results. This means that all unnecessary or incomplete pieces of information that can skew the results need to be removed. A larger database can give more credibility to the discovered patterns, but it also carries a bigger risk of containing inaccurate data. It is important to establish exactly what questions need to be answered, to make sure the data mining produces useful results.
Classification and clustering are important techniques in database mining. These methods are often used when dealing with a large database that includes a lot of information that must be categorized. This can include numerical equations and statistics. The data can either be classified into different types of groups that are predefined by the researchers, or it can be automatically clustered into groups of similar items.
Regression is another popular tool in database mining. This process models and analyzes different variables in order to produce a formula that is true for the classified set of data. Its function is to create an error-free equation, so that new data can be quickly processed and sorted. Quantitative data, such as measurements or speeds, is often analyzed in this way.
One of the industries that relies heavily on database mining is marketing. Finding out which products are the most profitable with what types of people is very important for marketers who wish to predict possible profits and make an action plan. For example, if it is determined that teenagers prefer one type of soda over another by a large margin, marketing officials will take that into account and advertise the product to a teen demographic. This both increases profits and saves resources by not wasting money on advertising geared to age groups who are less likely to be interested in the product.
Researchers in the fields of medicine and science also often discern patterns from large amounts of information. Many diseases have been cured and treatments have been developed by analyzing and finding patterns in experimental data. Similarly, database mining is often used to determine which drugs work best for different types of medical conditions, and to learn what types of people are most susceptible to possible side-effects.