Consumer Analytics

With (believe it or not) the holiday season almost upon us, it is time once again to take part in the annual ritual of crystal ball gazing and seasonal sales forecasts.

At the recent SAP Retail Forum held in Miami, I was part of a panel discussion titled, “Creating One Experience for the Digital Consumer.” Providing a consistent, integrated online and offline experience for digital shoppers is a multifaceted task that involves many platforms.

A lot of my commentary focused on how social media in particular can prove a crucial asset in creating a unified digital customer experience. Here are three specific thoughts on social retailing pulled from the panel discussion.

Purchases made via Facebook advertisements are more frequently occurring via mobile device.

According to new data released by the Facebook IQ marketing insights division, three in 10 purchase conversions from Facebook ads between January and May 2015 took place on a mobile device (24% on a phone, 6% on a tablet). During that same period, the frequency of mobile purchases increased 35%, according to Facebook IQ’s latest internal analysis.

Mall owner Westfield Corporation has created a new big data and analytics unit and made a key hire to oversee the important function.

Westfield named Raghav Lal as its new chief data and analytics officer to lead a newly established big data and analytics group that will be responsible for conceptualizing, developing and deploying the company’s data strategy. The move is a significant hiring investment to centralize the company’s wealth of data effectively, efficiently and safely for its customers and retailers alike, Westfield said in a statement.

Retailers should continually re-invent the in-store experience to keep up with changing consumer needs.

That is one of the key imperatives for growth identified in a new retail index and executive survey, “Reigniting Growth: Three Imperatives for Retail’s Future,” by SAP SE.

Mobile devices are becoming the norm for every facet of consumers’ lives, including shopping.

According to a new infographic from membership-based retailer DirectBuy, 29% of U.S. adults describe their smartphone as something they can’t live without, 44% sleep with a smartphone by their bed to avoid missing notifications, and 67% check smartphones for notifications even without receiving some type of notification.

Under Armour is using technology to enhance in-store consumer engagement.

The athletic goods marketer is adding charging stations, from ChargeItSpot, to all its “brand house” format stores nationwide, as well as two factory outlets.

One of the nation’s largest mall operators is updating its parking lot lighting with a tech-savvy solution.