Few tech industry buzzwords have gotten as vigorous a workout as "big data," but while the hype remains plentiful, it is starting to give way to real-life successes as well as formal ways companies can develop big data strategies, according to a number of IDC analysts. "We're at this period now where there's certainly a lot of hype, a lot of promise," said IDC analyst Dan Vesset during a panel session at the research firm's Directions 2013 conference in Boston on Wednesday. "The question is what's reality, and what can and should companies do in the near and short term?"