Consumer Analytics

Cupertino, Calif. – Sales of gadgets such as iPhone, iMac and the new Apple Watch, as well as services, helped propel Apple’s strong performance during the third quarter of fiscal 2015. Net income soared 39% to $10.7 billion from $7.7 billion the same quarter the prior year, aided by costs and taxes that did not increase as fast as sales.   Revenue increased 33% to $49.6 billion, from $37.4 billion.  

San Francisco – Digital marketers are mobilizing their efforts. According to a new study from marketing software provider Kenshoo, phone and tablet-based year-over-year (YoY) spending globally increased 167% for paid social ads and 37% for paid search in second quarter 2015.

New York – Even as retail marketing strategies shift in the new digital era, tried-and-true discounts still remain a crucial promotional device. According to new data from marketing personalization provider Sailthru, 97% of retailers use discounting as a pricing strategy.

Boston – City Sports is making things personal with its omnichannel customers. The specialty sporting goods retailer is leveraging technology from BlueConic to help the company offer a more personalized shopping experience across channels.

Madrid, Spain – Spanish retail chains including department store retailer El Corte Ingles and supermarket retailer BonPreu are leveraging a new smartphone-based payment solution. The retailers are deploying the digital payment network from Dinube, which uses tokenization, Near Field Communication (NFC) technology and biometric fingerprint security to replace card-based payments.

Madrid, Spain – Spanish retail chains including department store retailer El Corte Ingles and supermarket retailer BonPreu are leveraging a new smartphone-based payment solution. The retailers are deploying the digital payment network from Dinube, which uses tokenization, Near Field Communication (NFC) technology and biometric fingerprint security to replace card-based payments.

What’s wrong with America? Plenty, according to the National Retail Federation which just slashed its full year retail sales forecast ahead of second quarter earnings announcements from major retailers next month.

Mandy Ginsberg isn’t a household name in the retail industry but J.C. Penney thinks its newest board member can help improve online customer engagement.

Amazon Home Services has expanded the number of providers and the services they offer in 15 metropolitan areas, including Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Miami, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Diego, San Jose and Washington, D.C.

The move adds to existing availability in New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle. Amazon Home Services now includes over 15 million unique services across more than 900 professional services, the Seattle-based company said.

Apple CEO Tim Cook says the Apple Watch is off to “a great start,” although the company did decline to provide specific sales figures for the watch in its third quarter report on Tuesday.