Data analytics is used to evaluate information to help develop hypothesis and conclusions on different question . It can be used to predict outcomes, and it can be used to evaluate how different decisions effect desired goals. Universities can use both structured data and unstructured data to see patterns that exist in different demographics that they desire to come to their institutions, and they can review what their retention rates are when there are interested students from these different marketing attempts. Universities can also house this data internally to review or choose to use big data, large and complex systems that hold a vast amount of information, to store the information from large data pulls to secure their information externally.

University most likely used data analytics to view where their marketing for the university had the most success so that they could utilize those platforms more fully, and so they could come up with different marketing techniques on other platforms. For example, some social media sites like Instagram have more success with quick flashy marketing schemes that show less information and more images that help describe an experience in stories; while other sites, like Google and other search engines, can have more success with utilizing key words and phrases to optimize traffic to the university website. I worked for a marketing company that used Google, Facebook, and other social medias to help different companies optimize their search results when I first moved to Scottsdale in 2018. I remember seeing large data analytics that the company provided to the clients so that they could see how many clicks they received based on the advertising methods they were using. They could see how using different key words in their paid ads on Google performed compared to other key words. I have a feeling that when I was searching for a graduate school program to go to, and when I was search words like online classes, Grand Canyon University had set up marketing techniques to show up front page on my search results in Google. After they attracted me to their website they most likely knew they had a certain amount of time once I filled out my interest on the university website to reach out to me. GCU was quick to call me once I filled out my information expressing my interest in the school, and Im sure they knew if they waiting too long they could possible bring down their retention rate so they were quick to act. Im glad that Grand Canyon University was quick to get me into the program because I have enjoyed the classes that I have taken so far.