eBay acquires Hunch

For pure-play retailers creating a compelling user journey is imperative. One way of doing that is by highlighting products and content that will be of particular interest to that specific customer. 

To this end, eBay has acquired online platform Hunch to deliver customised recommendations to users based on previous views, purchases and behaviour.Hunch’s prediction technology, known as a ‘taste graph’, uses data from around the internet to map customers with their predicted affinity for products, services, other people and other websites and customises recommended products for them.

It works by combining a customer’s behaviour on social networks with answers to questions posed on Hunch’s own site to build profiles. This is then used to give personalised recommendations.

This technology will allow eBay to improve relevance and sell products based on personal taste, provide a smoother shopping experience and increase sales.