Predicting Consumer Tastes with Big Data at Gap

Ayelet  Israeli; Jill  Avery

Teaching Note | HBS Case Collection | November 2017

Predicting Consumer Tastes with Big Data at Gap

Abstract

CEO Art Peck was eliminating his creative directors for The Gap, Old Navy, and Banana Republic brands and promoting a collective creative ecosystem fueled by the input of big data. Rather than relying on artistic vision, Peck wanted the company to use the mining of big data obtained from Google Analytics and the company's own sales and customer databases to select the next season's assortment. Peck was betting that intelligence fueled by big data could outperform a fashion industry creative director at predicting the future fashion trends and tastes of consumers.

Keywords: marketing; marketing strategy; Brands; Brand ＆ product management; big data; ＂marketing analytics＂; consumer behavior; predictive analytics; Forecasting; preferences; Marketing channels; operation management; Distribution Channels; Marketing; Marketing Channels; Marketing Strategy; Brands and Branding; Forecasting and Prediction; Data and Data Sets; Retail Industry; Fashion Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States; North America;

Language: English

Format: Print

35 pages

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Citation:

Israeli, Ayelet, and Jill Avery. "Predicting Consumer Tastes with Big Data at Gap." Harvard Business School Teaching Note 518-053, November 2017.

Away, a direct-to-consumer, digital native e-commerce seller of travel luggage, is debating how to invest its latest round of venture funding. How quickly could and should Away scale and what were the most promising growth trajectories to maximize its potential? Three decisions face the founders. Should Away continue to invest in driving growth in suitcases and other travel bags or was it time to begin to expand into other adjacent travel categories? How should they use the results of the company’s first customer segmentation study to select target segments and quantify their growth aspirations? What were the right distribution strategies moving forward following a series of pilots that included company-owned stores, temporary airport kiosks, and pop-up experiences with retailer partners?

Case | HBS Case Collection | January 2020

Banorte Móvil: Data Driven Mobile Growth

Ayelet Israeli, Carla Larangeira and Mariana Cal

In mid-2019, Carlos Hank, was deliberating over the results for Banorte Móvil – the mobile application for Banorte, Mexico’s most profitable and second-largest financial institution. Hank, who had been appointed as Banorte´s Chairman of the Board in January 2015, had overseen Banorte’s transformation (and multi-million-dollar investment) from a product and client volume-focused bank into a customer-centric, technology and data-driven organization with a radically new focus. Beyond investing in a new technology platform and deploying new digital channels, Banorte also invested in the development of internal capacities to convert data intelligence into profits. Spearheaded by José Antonio Murillo, an economist with a Ph.D. from Rice University, Banorte’s Analytics Business Unit (ABU) kicked off early on 2015, reporting directly to upper management and focused on increasing customer lifetime value. Over the course of its four-year trajectory, through data analytics and experimentation, which involved both experimenting with client incentives and tailored communication strategies through multiple channels, the ABU had successfully achieved higher product placement rates, particularly under Banorte Móvil’s platform. Yet, with 2.25 million active users, Banorte Móvil was still far from reaching its 4-million-user target by 2020. Adoption picked up, but Banorte Móvil was still losing many potential adopters along the mobile customer journey, particularly in its activation phase. Furthermore, 81% of app activity was for account balance or transaction views, with financial operations, such as card or service payments or acquisition of new bank products, accounting for a minority of the activity. If Banorte wanted to remain a top player in Mexico’s financial sector, it was clear to upper management that growth in mobile banking needed to be a priority. How could the bank successfully achieve its target? And, even if Banorte Móvil’s adoption numbers increased, would it be possible to get more value and engagement through this channel? As Banorte Móvil took off, Hank dwelled on the strategic decisions he had to make, especially considering what client segments to focus on for mobile adoption and use and how to effectively reach out to them. Furthermore, Hank knew they could not afford to neglect other banking channels, which still accounted for the bulk of Banorte’s operations.

Keywords: Banking Industry; Mexico; Latin America;

Citation:

Israeli, Ayelet, Carla Larangeira, and Mariana Cal. "Banorte Móvil: Data Driven Mobile Growth." Harvard Business School Case 520-068, January 2020. View Details

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Predicting Consumer Tastes with Big Data at Gap

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