Looking back to see what’s ahead
Why was there so much hype around the Apple Watch over the holidays? What was the deal with the hover boards? For nearly a decade IBM has been providing insights on how consumers shop online, providing real-time views and year-over-year comparisons on key metrics as the holiday season unfolds. The 2015 holiday season was no exception as online retail sales grew in double digits and smartphones dominated tablets in not only traffic, but also sales.
However, this past holiday season we added a new dimension to our reporting that provides insight into what products consumers are zeroing in on and why. We introduced the IBM Watson Trend app which features the hottest 100 consumer electronics, toys and health and fitness products at any given time. The app distills the sentiment of tens of millions of online conversations by scouring 10,000 sources across social media sites, blogs, forums, comments, ratings and reviews.
Using Watson’s understanding of natural language and machine learning technologies, the app uncovers consumer preferences to pinpoint patterns and trends to reveal why people are choosing certain products or brands. The app also uses predictive analytics to forecast if a particular trend is a fleeting fad or will continue to remain strong.
Take a look back at the 2015 holiday season to see what’s ahead! The 2015 Online Holiday Shopping Recap Report provides a summary of what products trended and why. The report continues to provide real-time views of key shopping days, year-over-year comparisons and daily trending throughout November and December, offering insight into changing consumer behaviors in online retail.
To check out the Watson Trend app and keep up with trends in online retail, visit ibm.com/watsontrendhub