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Do retailers have a recommendation bias problem?

December 17, 2021

Recommendation algorithms help connect customers to products they need or want to buy. They also increase visibility to promotions and, in some cases, make shopping more fun. They have also, in some cases, crossed serious ethical lines that have damaged the trust that consumers placed with retailers.

There have been unfortunate instances in which recommendation algorithms misled profiling outputs and generated discrimination (e.g., job ads). The root cause usually goes to input data, tainted with prejudice, extremism, harassment or discrimination. Combined with a careless approach to privacy and aggressive advertising practices, data can become the raw material for a terrible customer experience. Irresponsible use of data could even generate severe, undesirable outputs, like threats to human rights.

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