The 2 Methods of Product Recommendations: Individual vs Aggregate

[Kristijntje]

Product recommendations—they help customers discover products and retailers build sales. But there is more than one method to choose from, and which is best is the subject of debate...

Vendors generally divide into two camps when it comes to how they come up with recommendations. The first method builds a profile for customers based on their actions as individuals on an e-commerce site. The second creates profiles based on the activity of all shoppers, then bases suggestions on the profile the shopper seems to fit into given her current behavior. (Some systems that focus on individual profiles can also take into account group behavior at some level.) Which of the methods is best is the subject of debate among vendors and e-retailers...

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