Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Economy
In reply to the discussion: STOCK MARKET WATCH - Friday, 17 February 2012 [View all]Demeter
(85,373 posts)47. How Target Figured Out A Teen Girl Was Pregnant Before Her Father Did
http://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2012/02/16/how-target-figured-out-a-teen-girl-was-pregnant-before-her-father-did/
Every time you go shopping, you share intimate details about your consumption patterns with retailers. And many of those retailers are studying those details to figure out what you like, what you need, and which coupons are most likely to make you happy. Target, for example, has figured out how to data-mine its way into your womb, to figure out whether you have a baby on the way long before you need to start buying diapers...Charles Duhigg outlines in the New York Times how Target tries to hook parents-to-be at that crucial moment before they turn into rampant and loyal buyers of all things pastel, plastic, and miniature. He talked to Target statistician Andrew Pole before Target freaked out and cut off all communications about the clues to a customers impending bundle of joy. Target assigns every customer a Guest ID number, tied to their credit card, name, or email address that becomes a bucket that stores a history of everything theyve bought and any demographic information Target has collected from them or bought from other sources. Using that, Pole looked at historical buying data for all the ladies who had signed up for Target baby registries in the past...
So Target started sending coupons for baby items to customers according to their pregnancy scores. Duhigg shares an anecdote so good that it sounds made up that conveys how eerily accurate the targeting is. An angry man went into a Target outside of Minneapolis, demanding to talk to a manager:
Every time you go shopping, you share intimate details about your consumption patterns with retailers. And many of those retailers are studying those details to figure out what you like, what you need, and which coupons are most likely to make you happy. Target, for example, has figured out how to data-mine its way into your womb, to figure out whether you have a baby on the way long before you need to start buying diapers...Charles Duhigg outlines in the New York Times how Target tries to hook parents-to-be at that crucial moment before they turn into rampant and loyal buyers of all things pastel, plastic, and miniature. He talked to Target statistician Andrew Pole before Target freaked out and cut off all communications about the clues to a customers impending bundle of joy. Target assigns every customer a Guest ID number, tied to their credit card, name, or email address that becomes a bucket that stores a history of everything theyve bought and any demographic information Target has collected from them or bought from other sources. Using that, Pole looked at historical buying data for all the ladies who had signed up for Target baby registries in the past...
So Target started sending coupons for baby items to customers according to their pregnancy scores. Duhigg shares an anecdote so good that it sounds made up that conveys how eerily accurate the targeting is. An angry man went into a Target outside of Minneapolis, demanding to talk to a manager:
My daughter got this in the mail! he said. Shes still in high school, and youre sending her coupons for baby clothes and cribs? Are you trying to encourage her to get pregnant?
The manager didnt have any idea what the man was talking about. He looked at the mailer. Sure enough, it was addressed to the mans daughter and contained advertisements for maternity clothing, nursery furniture and pictures of smiling infants. The manager apologized and then called a few days later to apologize again.
(Nice customer service, Target.)
On the phone, though, the father was somewhat abashed. I had a talk with my daughter, he said. It turns out theres been some activities in my house I havent been completely aware of. Shes due in August. I owe you an apology.
What Target discovered fairly quickly is that it creeped people out that the company knew about their pregnancies in advance.
If we send someone a catalog and say, Congratulations on your first child! and theyve never told us theyre pregnant, thats going to make some people uncomfortable, Pole told me. We are very conservative about compliance with all privacy laws. But even if youre following the law, you can do things where people get queasy.
The manager didnt have any idea what the man was talking about. He looked at the mailer. Sure enough, it was addressed to the mans daughter and contained advertisements for maternity clothing, nursery furniture and pictures of smiling infants. The manager apologized and then called a few days later to apologize again.
(Nice customer service, Target.)
On the phone, though, the father was somewhat abashed. I had a talk with my daughter, he said. It turns out theres been some activities in my house I havent been completely aware of. Shes due in August. I owe you an apology.
What Target discovered fairly quickly is that it creeped people out that the company knew about their pregnancies in advance.
If we send someone a catalog and say, Congratulations on your first child! and theyve never told us theyre pregnant, thats going to make some people uncomfortable, Pole told me. We are very conservative about compliance with all privacy laws. But even if youre following the law, you can do things where people get queasy.
Edit history
Please sign in to view edit histories.
90 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
RecommendedHighlight replies with 5 or more recommendations
Barry Ritholtz Has the Main Theme Right, But Gets a Few Specifics Wrong About MF Global
Demeter
Feb 2012
#2
The only thing missing from the "let my banker's go" agreement is skittle shitting unicorns!!
westerebus
Feb 2012
#56