The right data at the right time makes a difference—you can either be ahead of the competition or lag behind. Solid numbers back this statement. According to McKinsey, companies that base their decisions on data are 23 times more likely to top their rivals and 19 times more likely to be profitable.
But if you need data at scale—let’s say from multiple websites with thousands of records—how do you collect it? Scraping website data is the answer. And the surest way to do this is to use a web scraping tool, also known as a scraper. The best part—it’s versatile enough to be wielded by anyone, anywhere. In this article, we’re going to zoom in on five industries where scrapers are mostly used.
What Is a Data Scraper?
A data scraper is a specialized tool that navigates the web, locates, and collects specific information from websites automatically. Unlike humans, who might get tired after a few hours, a web scraper works 24/7.
Software for web scraping works like this. It accesses a web page, much like you would through a browser. But the difference is that it reads the website’s code to spot markers that indicate the data it’s been tasked to collect. Once identified, this data is extracted, compiled, and stored in a structured format. You can customize this process to target multiple websites or pages at the same time.
In view of that, website data scraping has the following advantages:
- Reduces human errors and increases data accuracy to 99.9%
- Saves up to 80% of the time typically used for data collection and processing
- 19x revenue growth due to data-driven decisions
- 40% reduction in operational cost
- 800% more data for analysis
Using an Online Web Scraping Tool in E-commerce
The global e-commerce market is steadily growing. Researchers from Insider Intelligence predict that online sales will grow by 9.4% in 2024. For online merchants, this means two things—more opportunities and more fierce competition.
So, to get ahead of your rivals, become a recognizable brand, and win customer trust, you’ll need to make conclusions based on competitors’ performance, market situation, and buyers’ expectations. You will gain these and other insights through web data scraping. Here is how you can use a dedicated tool for your e-commerce store:
- Monitor competitor prices. 82% of buyers compare prices before they make a purchase. With an online web scraper tool, you’ll conduct comprehensive research of competitors’ pricing strategies across different websites or marketplaces all at once. And since prices are usually dynamic, you will always have fresh data. The insights you get will allow you to design strategies to maximize conversions. Beyonf price you can track product launches, promotions, and inventory levels to adapt your strategy dynamically.
- Keep listings up-to-date. Want to see how your rivals position their goods? Or what offerings do they have? Scrape their websites or marketplaces to get catalog data (images, titles, descriptions, or reviews).
- Monitor product performance. How is your product performing? If you need to check this at scale (like to run through several marketplaces and collect feedback from hundreds of listings), you’ll need a web page scraping tool.
How Background Check Companies Utilize Web Scraping Applications
Ever wondered how background check companies seem to have all the info? They rely on data scraping tools. Those scrapers sift through public records, social media, and all corners of the web to pull together a complete picture. In other words, the scrapers may be programmed to visit a variety of sources (like public governmental websites with offender records across the USA, social media platforms, etc.) and extract data from them.
The greatest thing about using these automated data collection tools is that they aggregate that data and standardize it to eliminate inconsistencies and expedite verification. For example, one state may list the person’s name as “John A. Doe,” while another might use “Doe, John A.” When unstandardized data flows into a database, this can cause a lot of confusion.
Streamlined analysis: Standardize and normalize dataEnhanced accuracy: Cross-reference information from multiple sources to reduce the risk of errors and omissions.
Real Estate Agencies Scraping Data From Websites
How come some real estate agents are always one step ahead with the latest trends, property listings, and prices? Well, it’s not just intuition or insider knowledge. Most likely, their agency scrapes the web.
Web scraping helps real estate companies sift through online listings, comparing prices, locations, features, and more. This means they can match clients with their dream homes faster and with more attractive offers.
Apart from that, data scraping from websites is also beneficial for ranking. You may scrape data on trending keywords and what potential buyers are searching for. This will give you a hint on how to optimize your online listings and content.
Data Scraping Tools for Marketing Agencies or Departments
7 in 10 leading marketers admit their companies support decision-making with data. They mainly use data to improve these areas:
Here’s how web scraper tools help deliver data for honing these facets of marketing:
- Customer experience/journey mapping—by collecting feedback about your company or competitors across multiple channels.
- Email marketing—by enabling to create an email database.
- Personalization—by aggregating data from various sources to build detailed customer profiles.
- Product/service development—by gathering information about the competitors or prospects from social media, forums, marketplaces, and other platforms to understand market needs and gaps.
- Paid ads—by extracting text or images to discover the USP, payment methods, offers, keywords, etc.
- Forecasting results—by delivering historical data and current market trends to forecast results for various marketing activities.
- Omnichannel marketing—by consolidating data about the brand, rivals, or audience from diverse channels.
Automated Web Scraping Tools for Software Development
For app development, web scraping offers a dual advantage.
On the one hand, you can use automated data collection tools to gather user data. For example, to understand your target audience better. Or for outreach campaigns.
On the other hand, if you are going to build software that requires continuous access to fresh, relevant data, you’ll need to equip it with a web screen scraping tool. Such as if you want to launch an AI-driven analytics tool, price comparison website, or review aggregator.
The Final Thoughts
If you’re in pursuit of data at scale, regardless of your industry, web page scraping software is a must. It will enable you to tap into vast amounts of data, which you then will use to understand the market dynamics and make informed decisions.
Credit: Image by yanalya on Freepik
