Briefs

Dec. 07, 2004, Melissa Campanelli, DMmnews.com KISSIMMEE, FL -- Though the process can be difficult, incorporating attitudinal data into data mining can make the decision process more human-focused rather than action-focused, according to Jacob Zahavi, professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.

Zahavi was yesterday's keynote speaker at the Winter 2004 National Center for Database Marketing Conference here.

Customers' purchase decisions are affected strongly by their attitudes and perceptions as well as by the way they feel and think, he said.

"Only the combination of all three data dimensions -- demographic data, behavioral data and attitudinal data -- provide a full picture of the customer," Zahavi said.

As an example, he said, "demographic data may indicate that a person can afford to buy a Porsche car, but only very few people own a Porsche car, and the reasons are due to differences in motivations and attitudes."

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