"Moving easily through this varied landscape, and drawing on an impressive array of case studies and academic papers, Colin Strong puts forward a compelling case that data can only take us so far; that what we do with data, and what data does to us, is a crucial, emerging piece of this important conversation around what's next for marketing. It seems, intuitively, that for all the hype and hoopla, if we as marketers want to really service those who are our customers, then we need to think of them less as datasets to be mined, and more as, well, humans, to be understood. I thoroughly recommend Strong's book to all those who have a desire to glimpse what a smarter, wiser and more informed digital marketing world may look like." * Dr. Guy Champniss, Professor of Marketing and Consumer Behaviour, Henley Business School, University of Reading, UK * "This is a grown-up, wide-ranging, practical guide to the new marketing opportunities created by big data - but also to its perils, pitfalls and limitations. Strong is an experienced and accomplished consumer researcher able to steer a path between the techies' hype and the skeptics' underestimation of the potential. He aims to "humanise" big data by showing how analytics need to be combined with marketers' understanding of customers as real people as well as with an implicit or explicit conceptual framework, ideally grounded in solid behavioural insights....It's a short book that packs in a lot of practical wisdom." * Patrick Barwise, Emeritus Professor of Management and Marketing, London Business School * "The potential of big data has been the topic of many major theses in the last few years. We expect positive benefits in innovation, efficiency, public health and economic growth. However, the 'datafication' of society may also have negative effects, dehumanising and alienating people in their roles as citizens and consumers, turning them into passive 'data subjects'. If the benefits of big data accrue largely to governments and big corporations, then people-power may undermine the data revolution. In this brave new world, companies are pulled in two directions - do they make money from the vast quantities of data they are able to gain from interactions with their customers, or focus on preserving the intangible benefits of goodwill and positive brand orientation by respecting customers' autonomy and privacy preferences? Colin Strong's 'Humanizing Big Data' marches into this minefield with cogent analysis and thoughtful advice for management and marketing about the new breed of information-aware consumer." * Kieron O'Hara, senior research fellow in Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton * "Strong has obviously read a great deal about big data and for those who like to think about ways to think about data (!), he provides lots of fodder by exposing the reader to a number of theories and their proponents in a straightforward, conversational style." * Joseph Rydholm, Quirk's Marketing Research Review * "Colin Strong's book is a very thought provoking journey through the ways data can and is used, and whether it is desirable or indeed possible to use more traditional social sciences disciplines to understand what the data is really telling us. Strong's perspective is balanced throughout, with each chapter ending on concluding thoughts which bring together the themes discussed. The book is a very interesting precis of the all of the possible uses for data and the current shortfalls in our approaches." * Caroline Morris, Operations Director, Sky IQ for Business Partnerships * "This book manages to take the reader gently by the hand and give them an informed introduction to the world of big data, showing them how it can be utilised in business through a marketing-led perspective.... This is a very open, clear book that gives you a lot to think about." * Darren Ingram Media *