Customer profiling in e-commerce: Methodological aspects and challenges

Abstract

Online profiling is the collection of information about Internet surfing behaviour across many different websites for the purpose of formulating a profile of users' habits and interests. While marketers have long profiled large consumer groups on the basis of demographics, online profiling allows companies to collect information from individuals across a wide range of traits. A company's ability to build and strengthen long-term customer relationships via individualised e-commerce offers will depend on its ability to use customer data to plan, develop and control interactions with its customers. Despite the importance of customer profiles in e-commerce, the methods for producing them have rarely been investigated in marketing research. This paper aims to close this gap by providing an overview of key areas and issues of customer profiling in e-commerce. More recently, this controversial practice has seized the public's attention because ethics and privacy are concerned.