What Will Your Customers Buy Next?

A quick post about an article in Technology Review about What Will Your Customers Buy Next?

Using sophisticated math and vast amounts of data, predictive analytics software can help forecast and influence purchasing behavior. So why aren’t more companies using it?

The thrust of the article seems to be about predictive analysis software that can help companies better forecast evolving customer preferences:

With predictive analytics software, companies can see which customers are most likely to buy a given product. The process begins by ranking customers according to how recently they purchased, how frequently they buy, and how much money they spend.

Clearly, having data is not enough.  We need a way to generate knowledge and information out of the data.  The idea is to evolve parameters that can be used as a foundation for the predictive analysis.  The key question in my mind is how can we link this data about customer preferences into R&D plans?  I am not sure if anyone is working on that…