A retail company will improve its operations and services to its customers by using a big data analytics system. The company collects data from a variety of sources including sales transactions, customer interactions, social media, and supplier information. You are asked to explain from the $6$V side:

a$.$ Volume

The company estimates that it currently processes about $100$ GB of data per month. However, with the implementation of this new system, they expect this volume to increase significantly. How do you calculate the estimated data volume a company will encounter per month after implementing a big data analytics system?

b$.$ Velocity

Companies want to analyze customer sentiment in real$-$time by monitoring social media platforms. Discuss how the speed of social media data affects a company's ability to respond effectively to customer feedback and market trends.

c$.$ Variety

Identify three different types of data collected by retail companies and explain how each type of data contributes to their big data analytics efforts. Discuss the challenges associated with integrating and analyzing various types of data.

d$.$ Veracity

The company relies on data from a variety of sources, including manual entry by store employees. How can companies ensure data is correct, especially when dealing with information that may be inaccurate or incomplete?

e$.$ Value

Give three examples of how retail companies can gain value from analyzing their big data. Explain how insights gained from analyzing data can lead to improvements in operations, marketing strategy, or customer experience.

f$.$ Validity

Companies are considering using predictive analytics to forecast sales and inventory needs. What steps can companies take to ensure the validity of predictive models and the accuracy of the resulting forecasts?