The Top 10 Alternative Data Providers - Cowen Partners

      The Top 10 Alternative Data Providers

      Alternative Data is one of the best approaches that most businesses are using to gain insight into the customer’s mind. The data is compiled through different resources that are different from the traditional ones. The sources include management guidance, broker forecasts, company filings, social media sentiment, credit card transactions, weather data, web traffic, and many others.

      This kind of data is highly useful in implementing strategies, devising policies, etc., to meet customers’ demands. In fact:

      • Traditional data sources are a great way to find out about customers’ wants and needs.
      • Non-traditional data sources allow investors and analysts to take a thorough look at the company’s profile.
      • Alternative data allow investors and analysts to identify the market trends and discover investment opportunities that are not apparent via traditional financial data alone.

      Many companies provide alternative data to organizations to help them gain investors and grow their businesses. Organizations use Artificial Intelligence (AI), social media tools, and different other methods to obtain this information.

      Why Alternative Data?

      The main benefit of alternative data is that it helps companies in making trading decisions and in taming their strategies according to the market trends. In this fast-paced world, businesses need to take customers’ insights into the play if they wish to succeed in the market.

      Alternative data is:

      • The perfect option to make future decisions and to change the way companies once operated
      • Highly beneficial for looking into the company’s performance and consumer behavior

      Unlocking this data opens up new pathways for businesses to grow in the industry and reach customers’ minds. If you wish to become the next best in the industry, then you have to hire an alternative data provider to do the job for you. If you’re looking for a few options, then here are some.

      10 Best Alternative Data Providers

      Cowen Partners has outlined the top 10 alternative data providers:

      1. 1010 Data
      2. S&P Global
      3. Second Measure
      4. YipitData
      5. Earnest Research
      6. Facteus
      7. Consumer Edge
      8. Affinity Solutions
      9. data.ai
      10. Quandl

      Here is a closer look at each of these top alternative data providers and why they are leading the way in market intelligence.

      1) 1010 Data

      For more than 20 years, 1010data has helped financial, retail and consumer goods customers monitor shifts in consumer demand and market conditions and rapidly respond with highly targeted strategies. The 1010data Insights Platform combines market intelligence, data management, granular enterprise analytics, and collaboration capabilities to empower better business outcomes. More than 900 of the world’s foremost companies partner with 1010data to power smarter decisions.

      2) S&P Global

      A well-known innovator in market intelligence, S&P Global provides an institutional source of alternative data designed for professional investors and fund managers. S&P Global provides you with insights into a range of tools to help with driving your trading decisions. There are even AI innovations which incorporate data from decades of training into insights.

      Some of the data that S&P Global provides as part of its alternative data solution includes shopping mall statistics and traffic deviations, information on satellite images, and commodity movements, and more. The data available from this group is categorized according to sector and industry, so it’s much easier to track down the data set that makes sense to you.

      3) Second Measure

      Bloomberg Second Measure is a leading provider of data analytics that deliver valuable insights into company performance and consumer behavior. Using data from billions of anonymized transactions, we have created self-service analytics products for daily tracking and real-time exploration of 5,200+ public and private companies. Second Measure was acquired by Bloomberg in December 2020.

      4) YipitData

      We analyze billions of data points every day to provide accurate, detailed insights on ridesharing, e-commerce marketplaces, payments and more. Our on-demand insights team uses proprietary technology to identify, license, clean and analyze the data many of the world’s largest investment funds and corporations depend on.

      5) Earnest Research

      Earnest Research is a data innovation company driven to change the way professionals understand consumer and business behavior. Working with world-class data partners, we transform raw data into a source for business and investment professionals to ask better questions so they can make better decisions. We believe, in the right hands, data has the power to change the way we work.

      6) Facteus

      Facteus is on a mission to help democratize data insights by safely unlocking valuable data sets and increasing data literacy through technology. Through our synthetic data engine, MIMIC™, we safely unlock more data sets for research and insights. Our alternative data research, predictive analytics, and insights platform, Quantamatics™, provides a turnkey solution for streamlining data sourcing, management, data science, and insights delivery into a wide range of research and investment workflows.

      7) Consumer Edge

      Consumer Edge (CE) is a preeminent data insights company targeting the global consumer. Since its founding in 2009 CE has focused on the nexus of data, research, and technology to fuel the discovery of consumer insights. We continue this focus today, delivering next-generation data tools designed to answer complex questions on consumer behavior.

      8) Affinity Solutions

      The supported pricing models for Affinity Solutions’ data are available by getting in contact with them via Datarade. Get talking to a member of the Affinity Solutions team to receive custom pricing options, information about data subscription fees, and quotes for Affinity Solutions’ data offering tailored to your use case.

      9) data.ai

      data.ai (formerly App Annie) has clearly established the mobile standard and now becomes the unified data standard. As the trusted source for the digital economy, our mission is to be the first Unified Data AI company that combines consumer and market data to provide insights powered by artificial intelligence. We passionately serve enterprise clients to create winning digital experiences for their customers.

      10) Quandl

      Quandl is a platform for data that delivers a suite of unique, non-market data products atop a strong base of core financial and economic data. Data Aggregator.

      What Is Alternative Data?       

      Alternative data is a term used for non-traditional data. This data is often used to analyze the future performance of the organization along with traditional sources. Investors use this method to design an investment strategy. Some examples of such data are weather data, credit card transaction data, web traffic, mobile device data, IoT sensor data, etc., to indicate a company’s performance.

      Alternative data can be compiled through multiple sources, including:

      • Purchase orders
      • Invoices
      • Credit card charges
      • Cash/email/consumer receipts
      • Requisitions
      • Travel expense charges
      • Deposit corrections

      This financial data can help organizations shape their performance and operations. It’s becoming extremely popular with each passing day as investors are increasingly taking an interest in it.

      What Are the Types of Alternative Data?

      Alternative data is growing in popularity due to its incredible usefulness. Here are some major types of alternative data.

      Email Receipts

      Email receipts are often sent after the customer purchases a product or service. The data can be used for tracking retained revenues. The emails are normally sent to customers regarding invoices, rewards, opt-in emails, etc., to keep track of them.

      Point of Sale Transactions

      Point of Sale software is used in restaurants, salons, hotels, etc., to perform seamless operations and to keep track of all ins and outs. The data obtained through this software is extremely beneficial as it helps in analyzing sales volumes and price trends. Another important information that can be extracted from this data is customer preferences and product popularity.

      Weather

      The data collected through satellites can help in analyzing the weather patterns that, in return, aid in making valuable economic decisions. The data can be obtained from several sensors, including pressure sensors, thermometers, precipitation sensors, and so on.

      Credit Card Transactions

      The data collected from debit and credit cards can be used in keeping a track of retained revenue. Apart from it, banks and other organizations can check this data before giving out a loan to an individual to check if they are punctual in paying their dues. However, this sort of data collection can be very difficult as the person needs a license to obtain it.

      Social Sentiments

      The data collected from the social media comments and posts can help in reading the consumer’s reaction to a product/service. The data can be easily recorded through online interactions or social media platforms to introduce improvements in the products/services.

      Geo-Location Data

      This data is collected from electronic devices to track the location of the person. It’s normally collected through Bluetooth and Wi-Fi signals. It helps companies in making location-based decisions to check where the product is high in demand or where businesses should expand their business to.

      Web Data

      The data include details about web searches, web traffic, click-through rates, etc., to study customers’ preferences. The data is useful in devising advertising companies to grow business. The data can clearly tell about the latest trends in consumer behavior that allow businesses to prepare a strategy to retain customers as well.

      Alternative Data Executive Search | Cowen Partners

      Cowen Partners Executive Search has extensive experience in the alternative data space. Our hands-on executive recruiters have experience working with private, public, pre-IPO alternative data companies.

      TOP EXECUTIVE SEARCH FIRM | COWEN PARTNERS
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      Successful placements span the entire C-Suite and include CEOs, Chief Operating Officers, Chief Financial Officers, Chief Sales Officers, Chief Marketing Officer, vice presidents sales, human resources, general counsel, and other director-level leadership roles.

      Cowen Partners delivers 3X more qualified candidates than the competition. Through our proven retained executive search process, we find, vet, and deliver the top 1% of candidates for positions across the C-suite. Our process works for all initiatives (including diversity recruiting), as well as all industries, including (but not limited to) technology, healthcare, manufacturing, retail, real estate, financial service, private equity, and more.

      Check out our industry-leading resources to see why Cowen Partners is a leader among the best executive search firms in New York City, Portland, Baltimore, Nashville, Chicago, Seattle, Atlanta, Dallas, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and beyond:

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