Consumer Analytics

Big data, the cloud and cognitive systems that learn are transforming the future of retail and IBM chairman, president and CEO Ginni Rometty explained during a stimulating and insightful presentation at the National Retail Federation’s annual convention.

“We’ve clearly entered a world that is mobile first,” Rometty said. “It is easy to say, but hard to do.”

Minneapolis – Target Corp. will reportedly testify about its recent massive holiday data breach in a Congressional hearing in early February 2014. According to Reuters, a Congressional commerce, manufacturing and trade subcommittee headed by Rep. Lee Terry (R-Neb.) will investigate large data breaches and their effect on consumers.

New York - The volume of emails sent by marketers increased nearly 13% during the 2013 holiday season compared with the 2012 holiday season, which also saw record highs in volume. Data from Experian Marketing Services shows that while email click-through rates and transaction metrics decreased year over year, the increase in email volume led to a 9% rise in the number of total transactions from email marketing campaigns and an 18.4% increase in overall revenue.

By Tom Stockham, [email protected]

Remember the days when stores differentiated themselves against the competition on service? When consumers sought out expert product recommendations from knowledgeable sales associates? And bought from the one who worked hardest to help them find just the right product for their needs?

San Francisco -- With an average global click-through rate of 2.33% and an average global conversion rate of 4.07%, retailers achieved a six-to-one return on ad spend (ROAS) for paid search during the 2013 holiday season. According to a new report from digital marketing technology provider Kenshoo, during the 2013 holiday season, mobile devices accounted for one of every three paid search clicks, up nearly 28% year-over-year (YoY).

Camdenton, Mo. – The Cellular Connection, a 300-unit national operator of Verizon Wireless stores, has selected RetailNext to develop staffing models, help with store design by analyzing customer’s path to purchase, and monitor traffic and conversion rates to help gauge the success of advertising campaigns. This will include testing and optimizing store layouts and product placements for their interactive touch screens, device wall, KidZone, and smart accessories (e.g. headsets, speakers, etc.) in order to offer customers the best in-store experience.

Seattle – The Starbucks mobile app reportedly stores customer passwords in a way that leaves them vulnerable to hackers. According to CNN, the app, which allows mobile payment, stores passwords in plain text, meaning a hacker could gain access to one without knowing a smartphone’s PIN code.

Marketers sent a record volume of email during the holidays and although overall open rates declined, the record level of email marketing activity produced transactions and sales growth, according to Experian Marketing Services.

American Eagle plans to launch the ShopKick shopBeacon iBeacon solution in 100 top-performing American Eagle Outfitters and Aerie stores across the country. shopBeacon is an Apple iBeacon-based presence signal for retailers that offers customers rewards, in a currency called "kicks," for a variety of actions they take as they go about shopping.

King of Prussia, Pa. -- Rigid technology can be a prohibitor in omnichannel growth, especially for mid-market retailers, according to a new study by eBay Enterprise. The report, 2014 Omnichannel Benchmark Study, found that that mid-sized retailers are behind their larger competitors in implementing omnichannel experiences and inflexible technology is the biggest factor in prohibiting retailer maturity and growth.

Other key findings include: