System and method for segmenting customers with mixed attribute types using a targeted clustering approach

A computing system, comprising:

• at least one processor connected to at least one memory;
• a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions configured as one or more modules that, when executed by the processor, cause the computing system to:
• facilitate reading of a plurality of data records including numerical demographic attribute data, categorical demographic attribute data, and target attribute data associated with customers;
• generate converted categorical demographic attribute data by converting the categorical demographic attribute data from a non-numerical form to a numerical form of numerical values;
• convert the numerical demographic attribute data and the numerical values of the converted categorical demographic attribute data to a same standard numerical scale, based at least in part on the target attribute data, to form congruent demographic attribute data;
• determine an average value of each of the target attribute data for each of the customers based upon the target attribute data associated with each of the customers;
• create a weight factor for each of the customers based upon the determined average value of each of the target attribute data;
• vectorize the determined average value associated with each of the customers using the weight factor associated with that particular customer
• perform a cluster analysis on the congruent demographic attribute data having the same standard numerical scale and the customer vectorized determined average value for all of the customers to generate an order having a set of items based on the segmented customer data representing a segmenting of the customers;
• generate a set of control instructions executable by robotic mechanisms that includes the order for the set of items based upon the segmented customer data;
• transmit, via network communications, the set of control instructions including the order to a robotic mechanism associated with an order fulfilment facility;
• in response to receiving the set of control instructions by the robotic mechanism at the order fulfillment facility, automatically operating the robotic mechanism to fulfill the order by autonomously navigating through a first location and retrieving one or more of the set of items from the first location and transporting the retrieved one or more of the set of items to a second location;
• and
• place the retrieved one or more of the set of items on a display area in the second location for sale to the customers.

A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a computer including a processor, cause the computer to perform functions configured by the computer-executable instructions, wherein the instructions comprise:

• reading a plurality of data records that include (i) numerical demographic attribute data having first numerical values and (ii) categorical demographic attribute data having non-numerical values, wherein the plurality of data records is associated with a set of customers;
• converting the non-numerical values of the categorical demographic attribute data to a numerical form of second numerical values to generate converted demographic attribute data;
• converting the first numerical values of the numerical demographic attribute data of the customers and the converted demographic attribute data to a same standard numerical scale, based at least in part on associated target attribute data, to form congruent demographic attribute data;
• determining an average value of each of the target attribute data for each of the customers based upon the target attribute data associated with each of the customers;
• creating a weight factor for each of the customers based upon the determined average value of each of the target attribute data;
• vectorizing the determined average value associated with each of the customers using the weight factor associated with that particular customer;
• segmenting the customers by performing the cluster analysis on the congruent demographic attribute data having the same standard numerical scale and the customer vectorized determined average value for all of the customers to generate an order having a set of items based on the segmented customer data representing a segmenting of the customers;
• generating a set of control instructions executable by robotic mechanisms that includes the order for the set of items based upon the segmented customer data;
• transmitting, via network communications, the set of control instructions including the order to a robotic mechanism associated with an order fulfilment facility;
• in response to receiving the set of control instructions by the robotic mechanism at the order fulfillment facility, automatically operating the robotic mechanism to fulfill the order by autonomously navigating through associated item storage locations and retrieving the set of items from the associated item storage locations based upon the set of control instructions;
• transporting the retrieved set of items to a sales channel;
• placing the retrieved set of items on a display area in the sales channel for sale to the customers;
• and
• updating an inventory position of the retrieved items at the sales channel.