What is an algorithm?
Simply put, an algorithm is a set of instructions that tells a computer what it has to do to accomplish a task. That is literally all there is to it.
But do not let the simple definition fool you. Algorithms are an extremely powerful tool. Check out the FAQ section below to find out more:
Question #1: What are algorithms used for?
Algorithms can be used for virtually any application you could think of. They are just a set of instructions after all. As long as you have a clear goal and a clear understanding of all the variables you need to work with, you can use an algorithm.
Take the YouTube algorithm, for example. While a lot of people say that it is too complex to understand, at its very core, it is only designed to do one simple thing: keep users on the platform longer. That’s it.
To do this, it finds out what each user enjoys watching by analysing the types of videos they click on, the length of time they spend watching each video they click on, the types of videos they like (or dislike) and leave a comment on, the types of channels they subscribe to, and other similar metrics. These are our variables.
It then uses the data it collects to recommend each user videos that they are likely to click on and actually watch and interact with.
Algorithms are also used by advertisers all the time. Just like the one used by YouTube, these algorithms are also designed to figure out what the user is interested in. The only difference is that instead of recommending videos that the user would want to watch, advertising algorithms recommend products and services that the user would want to buy.
Question #2: Can I do automation using an algorithm?
Absolutely! You can use an algorithm to automate virtually any task you could think of. Again, algorithms are just a set of instructions. This means you can configure them to respond a specific way to an input and produce a specific output.
Let us take e-commerce websites, for example. Whenever you purchase something online (the input), the website processes your order and payment, sends you a confirmation email, and notifies the company that you placed an order (the output) with absolutely no human intervention whatsoever.
In most cases, the website will also automatically add you to the company’s mailing list, triggering the algorithm in charge of sending marketing emails to customers who opted in.
But this is not all e-commerce algorithms do. Companies also use them to recover abandoned cart emails.
Whenever a customer adds items to their cart but leaves before they complete the checkout process, the system automatically sends a follow up email (or series of emails) specifically designed to encourage said customer to come back and make the purchase.
Chatbots also use algorithms to provide a user the information they are looking for (the output) based on their responses to a specific set of questions (the input).
Question #3: Can I create an algorithm with zero programming knowledge?
Absolutely! There are a lot of automation tools you can use to create an algorithm even if you have zero programming knowledge.
One such tool is Zapier. It allows you to automate different tasks—especially repetitive ones—across a wide array of web apps, saving you a whole lot of time.
Let’s say you are running a survey using Google Forms and you want to not only collect all the contact details of your respondents, but also send a thank you email to every single respondent. How much time do you think it would take to do all this manually?
With Zapier, you can just set up an automation algorithm called ‘integration’ once—without having to write a single line of code—and let it take care of everything for you.