What is the process of predictive modeling primarily used for?

Predictive modeling is fundamentally focused on forecasting future events or outcomes based on historical data and statistical techniques. This process involves using various algorithms and analytical techniques to create models that can predict what might happen in the future given specific conditions or inputs.

In practical applications, predictive modeling is widely utilized in various fields such as finance for credit scoring, marketing for customer behavior prediction, healthcare for predicting patient outcomes, and many others. By analyzing trends within the data and applying mathematical models, organizations can make informed decisions and strategize accordingly based on predicted future events.

The other options point toward essential steps in data analysis but do not encapsulate the essence of predictive modeling. Identifying outliers relates to understanding the distribution and quality of data, visualizing relationships focuses on representing data graphs and charts, and cleaning and preparing data is crucial for ensuring that the data used is valid and reliable, but none of these processes are inherently predictive in nature like predictive modeling is.