Centre for Security, Communications and Network Research

Mr Cedric Copy MPhil

Dr Chris Johnson

Dr Andy Phippen, Dr Paul Dowland

Data Mining applied to external marketing data

The aim of this thesis is to investigate the applicability of data mining in a medium sized business environment specialised in providing external marketing data. There are several aspects regarding the integration of this technology and the opportunities and pitfalls are discussed around the development of a real life case study. The process of integration of the data mining technology within a SMB is investigated and the factors that led to its rejection are discussed. Directions and requirements to ensure an easier adoption are provided. This thesis also covers the entire development of in-house knowledge in this field. It goes from the investigation and the selection of an appropriate data-mining software tool, to the implementation of experiments designed for particular knowledge discovery tasks and their execution. The practical results of these experiments are also discussed along with their level of acceptance and value to the real commercial world.