Many consumers don’t realize this, but one of the most popular places for collecting and mining consumer data is at their grocery store.<\/p>\n
The KY Post recently featured a news story about how grocery store chain Kroger collects and analyses customer behavior through their Kroger Plus Cards.<\/p>\n
Bill Brown, a Kroger customer featured in the story, acknowledges that he is aware that his grocery card tells Kroger what he buys and when he buys it. However, he isn’t concerned about privacy issues when he uses the card due to the cost savings the card gives him.<\/p>\n
Millions of Kroger customers receive coupons in Loyal Customer Mailings that are based on mined data from their Plus Card information.<\/p>\n
Matching customers with the best coupons is a complex effort. One Kroger mailing was individually targeted to 95% of the recipients.<\/p>\n
Yes, your mailing is based on what you buy.<\/p>\n
Businesses like Kroger are stepping up their data mining efforts to learn more about customer behavior and increase sales.<\/p>\n
It is estimated that 40% of all U.S. households have a Kroger\u2019s card.<\/p>\n
Interestingly, Kroger also owns a 50% stake in dunnhumbyUSA, the company that handles its data mining operations.<\/p>\n
Over 330 dunnhumby employees analyze customer data daily to identify the best shoppers for Kroger.<\/p>\n
Other dunnhumbyUSA clients include Macy’s, Procter & Gamble, Coca Cola, Pepsico, Kellog\u2019s, Kraft Foods and Home Depot. Panera Bread is also using dunnhumby to create a customer loyalty plan.<\/p>\n
A treasure trove of customer data is collected and mined daily by dunnhumby which leads to privacy concerns for some.<\/p>\n
To protect its customers, Kroger lets card holders opt out of their mailings and Kroger executives say that consumer information is never sold to third parties.<\/p>\n