There is no question or debate about it: now is the era of Big Data. As hardware that creates, shares and stores data becomes more ubiquitous and easier to use, the amount of data increases at rates never before thought probable or possible. The big question in 2018, for many companies, will be: how do we put this incredible volume and variety of information to the best possible use?

Here are five important tips on surviving and thriving in the age of Big Data.

Be proactive and unconventional in how you tap into new data

Regardless of what the product or service you sell is, it is now possible for you to learn about and study the habit of your target demographic in ways never before imagined. The companies that are left behind are the companies that do not realise this potential. Accrue data that would appear irrelevant to your business but is relevant to your customer. Consider buying habits, consider income, consider online activity, and use it to create new avenues for interacting with your buyer.

Focus on data organisation, not just data gathering

Actually finding the information is not going to be a problem for most companies with any knowledge of technology. The trickier part is going to be actually organising it into a meaningful, unified whole. Integrate information of all sorts and concentrate on how each piece of data might affect another, as oppose to simply holding on to a number of large ‘data ghettos' filled with unrelated data.

Get trained employees to deal with large quantities of information

Dealing with Big Data is not something every member of your workforce will be able to do. This is why you will have to make sure you have people in your company that are trained in analysing information and putting it to use. This is a highly skilled capability, so do not assume just anybody can do it.

Don't be afraid of creativity

These days, it pays to stand out from the crowd. Every company has a website, Twitter presence, Facebook page and a profile on whatever other social media hangout is hip this week. How many of them are using these platforms to truly do something different? The inundation of information now available gives you all the tools you need to make yourself different from the herd. Be willing to strategise differently and make the most of the opportunity.

For many small business people, particularly those running a brand new start up, the question of how much information you should share with your employees and you customers is a very pertinent one. While, undoubtedly, people prefer to work for a company and buy from a company that seems to be successful, confident and on the way up, pretending to be successful when you are not can sometimes feel inauthentic. And yet, there are very few business that can afford complete transparency.

Is there a way to run a successful company with complete honesty? Here are a couple of key issues to think about.

The question of strength and weakness

We all know that it is good marketing to be up front and vocal about what your company is doing well, but what about the other stuff? Is it OK to be up front about things that your business has done badly and areas in which it has failed?

While some would argue that no business should ever highlight its weaknesses, either to employees or customers (after all, there'll be plenty of other people to do this for you), showing some humility and discussing openly the improvements you want to make gives your business more humanity. Just ensure you always couch it in positive language.

Be honest but stay on brand

The question of branding is now as important for a small start up with four employees as it is for a multinational corporation. Customers in all market sectors want a company to which they can connect and identify, even for the smallest of purchases.

So, when designing and implementing a branding strategy, ensure that it is one which is honest and in line with the real company that you run. Do not try to claim your business is something it isn't. Staying on brand if a brand is totally honest is not such a hard proposition.

Hire employees that fit with the real company

If you wish to run a more open and honest work environment, then you will have to trust your employees to be honest too. Ensure that the people you hire are happy to be part of such a business and have faith in the company culture that you want to create.

This might mean hiring based on attitude as opposed to skill. That might seem counterintuitive for a small business looking to get ahead, but oftentimes it is the mindset of the company that sees it really make a mark.

Pop-up marketing has nothing to do with those ads that jump up on your screen when you click on website that you can't close fast enough. Rather, it is a grass roots way to connect with your target market that is low-risk, high-impact and, comparatively, low-cost. It is also becoming increasingly popular and any smart business person should be, at least, considering its potential for their product.

A good example of a successful pop-up shop is the one recently run by broadband provider TalkTalk . Its campaign involved setting up a pop-up store in London, staffed by none other than David Dickinson, celebrity antiques dealer. This kind of quirky, memorable, real-life connection with a product that had, up until now, appeared to entirely exist online, has a real, long-lasting effect on the customer. It puts a friendly face on a previously faceless company in a way TV and web advertising cannot.

If you are working in a competitive industry, this kind of campaign will really make you stand out from the crowd. This is not just good advice for the new kids on the block, looking to make its name in a crowded marketplace full of better known competitors, but also for the established brand with a firm following of loyal customers.

Pop-up stores give those who have no experience of your products a chance to engage with them in a manner that is unique, quick and fun. They also allow you to introduce a new service in a way that underlines its importance – by dedicating a pop up store to your latest product, it creates an image in the customers mind that this is a major announcement and a big-time release.

The last few years has seen some truly impressive, imaginative and clever pop up stores all around the world. For example, coffee company Illy placed a store inside a huge crate that opened up on the pavement to reveal a fully furnished living room, while upmarket chocolate makers Godiva celebrated last Valentine's Day by popping up a boutique on New York's 5th Avenue.

A sign of how pervasive pop up marketing is becoming is that New York subway stations are now offering leases for companies that want to set up a short term store to catch commuter traffic.

In 2017, pop up stores may well be the biggest thing in branding.

Today, business marketing and social media are intertwined like never before. Just about every company, in every industry, attempts to get in contact with its customer based through these platforms. For new products or companies in emergent industries, the way they use social media can be the difference between success and failure.

Looking back 2013 was probably the take off year of visual social media, with more and more platforms encouraging video and photograph sharing through their sites. This lead to brands big and small across the globe tying themselves in knots trying to create visual content that had the ability to go viral.

So what will be the big trends? And how can your business take advantage of them? Here are two key areas to look out for.

Existing media will disappear

The crucial element that supports all social media, and has supported it since its inception, is hipness. People love it because it is cool. This is great for the smart business, as aligning yourself with and using a social media platform well before it becomes ultra-fashionable will strengthen your status as a cool brand.

Unfortunately, this also means that social media platforms come in and out of fashion very quickly. Also, once they go out of style they are unlikely to come back. This year, that is likely to happen at a rate quicker than ever before. Look out for the emerging as opposed to the established social media apps and sites and ask yourself how your brand can benefit from using them.

Blogging will become an art form

While bloggers have always taken themselves very seriously (in fact, some might say, too seriously), the rest of the media has not always agreed. Now, however, there is no question that a well written blog has just as much chance of reaching a wide audience as a newspaper article.

So, what does this mean for the company trying to get is name out there on the web? Well, first off, the expectation people have for blogs are greater than ever. No more will the average web user accept poor spelling and weak presentation just becomes your writing online. Secondly, with the competition so fierce, your blog needs to be more entertaining and smarter than ever to get attention.