Turning Data Into Furniture Sales: Tip #1 - Predictive Analytics

Furniture World News Desk on 7/8/2015

So what is Predictive Analytics, and why do you, as a furniture retailer need to care about it?

It’s simply a fancy term for the ability to predict customer behavior using data.

Specifically, Predictive Analytics can be used to accurately predict when, where, and why customers purchase certain products and services.

It has been used for decades to determine everything from life insurance premiums to hiring practices.
Potential life insurance customers are evaluated based on a preset list of behaviors, health conditions, and their individual health history to determine their risk and hence the premium needed to insure them. Over time, insurance companies found that certain data sets most accurately predict a person’s likelihood of costing the insurance company money.

In much the same way, hiring managers recruit new talent by looking at similar sets of data. This data, such as work history, references, and credit scores, has the ability to predict a candidate’s likelihood of success in a particular position.

When creating marketing strategies to increase sales and win new customers, it’s crucial to target the right customer segments at the right time.

But how do you do that?

By not only looking at the data, but by incorporating said data into your ongoing marketing strategy. Too many marketing teams practice what I like to call “intuitive marketing.” Instead of looking at the data, they create strategies using what basically amounts to guesswork.

Predictive Analytics, on the other hand, gives you the ability to predict customer buying habits based on their past behavior and their current physical, psychological, and geographical profile.

This method takes into account demographic information, purchase history, online behavior, and a variety of other data points that you may already have on your customers or may append to your customer records to enhance prediction.

It then uses that information not to simply explain past behavior, but to predict future behavior.
When you’re one step ahead of your customers, you can give them what they want, when they want it.
Not only will Predictive Analytics help you increase sales; it will cut marketing costs significantly by allowing you to spend solely on strategies that actually work and targeting customers who are likely to buy.

Do you use Predictive Analytics in your business?

How do you use data to predict customer behavior?

Free Report: Find out how you can put your data to work in Massa & Company’s retail furniture presentation, “Breakthrough Results.” Click here for your FREE copy.

The following post was written by Bonnie Massa, President at Massa & Company.

Turning Data Into Furniture Sales

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