High-quality data about consumers, products and other retailers has helped Amazon.com Inc. garner an outsized share of the retail industry.
Amazon, No. 1 in the Internet Retailer 2019 Top 500, accounted for 36.8% of U.S. online sales last year, according to Internet Retailer estimates. That’s up from 34.1% the previous year thanks in part to the retail giant’s ability to collect and leverage a massive trove of data that it gathers on its website and app, via its Prime loyalty program, its Alexa virtual assistant and home automation services, and its Ring internet-connected security devices.
For example, Amazon integrated Alexa into its AmazonBasics Microwave and offers consumers who order microwave popcorn on Amazon a 10% discount when they allow the retailer to automatically reorder popcorn when their supplies run low. That approach has helped Amazon gather valuable data on consumers’ consumption patterns while also helping it capture sales that might otherwise take place elsewhere.
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