Name and explain the different types of database. Which database will you use for analysing the marketing strategies of a company ?

Database could be classified into various types based on their structure, usage, ownership etc., various types of databases based on their usage are: Flat-file databases: These are simplest databases that store data in the form of rows and columns. These are commonly used for both basic programming as well as highly-scalable multi-user websites. Analytic databases (OLAP- On Line Analytical Processing): These are primarily static, read-only databases which store archived, historical data used for analysis. Operational databases (OLTP- On Line Transaction Processing): These are used to manage more dynamic bits of data. Operational databases allows the user to modify that data (add, change or delete data). These types of databases are usually used to track real-time information. Other types of databases could be relational database, object oriented database, hierarchal database, document oriented database, external database, distributed database etc. For analyzing marketing strategies, a company may use analytic and operational databases in the following manner: Operational database: It could be used to keep track of how many items have been sold and when the company will need to reorder stock. This will thus assist in analyzing the product wise marketing performance in the real time. Analytic database: It could be used to keep track of sales records over the last ten years and use that data to analyze marketing strategies in relationship to demographics.