Text Analytics:
The Next Frontier in Enterprise Content
Management
Fern Halper
Hurwitz & Associates
June 5, 2009

Outline
What is Text Analytics?
Why and how are companies using the technology?
Use cases for text analytics and ECM
Value of the technology
Impact of the recession
Q&A

Unstructured data is everywhere
Unstructured
Structured
• Documents
• Revenue
• Contracts
• Dates
• Call Center Notes
• Claims • Product Codes
• Customer id
• Emails
• Etc. Etc.
• Blogs/Message Board/Twitter
• Image/Video
• Etc. Etc.
Characteristics Characteristics
• No identifiable structure • Identifiable structure
• Content Management Systems • Databases, other
• Enterprise and Cloud data stores
• GROWING! • GROWING!

What is Text Analytics?
The automated process of analyzing unstructured text, extracting
relevant information, and transforming that information into structured
information that can then be leveraged in different ways
Customer wants to know if we have a calling plan like
FamilyOne from LocalTel. It is cheaper.
Customer wants to know if we have a family plan. She
says this would save her money. Explained GlobalTel
doesn’t yet have this type of plan.
Customer wants to understand feature bundles .
Customer says LocalTel is having a great promotion on
unlimited plan with different features.

Text Analytics: The Data
Three studies performed by Hurwitz & Associates
2007 – Text Analytics: The road to understanding your
company’s unstructured data
 118 companies , U.S. based, revenue > $200M
 Respondents divided into three groups
Those that had no plans to deploy text analytics (n=39)
Those that were planning to deploy text analytics (n=49)
Those that had already deployed Text Analytics (n=30)
2008 – Four questions about innovations in analysis– Fast
Poll
 61 companies
 very technology savvy
2009 – How is Text Analytics Being Affected by the
Economy? – Fast Poll
 50 companies
 very technology savvy

Business Drivers

Hot Application Areas
Many other
niche applications, too

Sample Use Cases
Voice of the Customer
 Cull through content to determine what customers are
saying about products/services/competitors
 Improving retention/Understanding the market
New Product Design/Development
 Cull through customer comments to understand potential
new features
 Use literature, patents to understand functionality, what
competitors are doing, etc.
Fraud Detection
 Cull through insurance claim information to spot trends
 Train system to automate identification of potential fraud

How are Companies planning to
Implement Text Analytics?

Value of Technology
The value is clear

Impact of Recession
Possibly being affected less than other technologies

Questions?