Tuning in to what makes viewers want to buy — as closely as one second to the next — has provided West Chester retail powerhouse QVC with incredible insights that have dialed in its sales strategy and lit up the industry.

In a world still just starting to switch to mobile, QVC rakes in 40 percent of its eCommerce results via on-the-go devices — fifth-most in the nation, just behind Walmart, according to a new feature report in The Washington Post.

“QVC has seen online sales soar to 45 percent of its total U.S. sales by trailblazing on one of the most vexing challenges in retail today: getting people to buy, not just browse, on their phones and tablets,” the article asserted.

And that kind of success is due in large part to its laser focus on the tiniest influences over the sales needle.

“This sort of instant access and attention to customer sentiment has been a staple at QVC since the beginning,” the report noted. “Even in the pre-Internet era, employees were watching what made the phone lines light up. That attention to data may also explain why the 24/7 pageant of panini makers, flameless candles, anti-aging creams and ankle boots has, despite QVC’s fusty reputation, quietly outmaneuvered other retailers in remaking itself for the digital era.”

The home shopping giant pairs that insight with a tactic that combines TV with tablets or phones — a complete sensory experience that draws in not just customers but devotees.

“We came to appreciate the fact — maybe the obvious fact — that people lead busy lives,” CEO Mike George said in the article. “They’re engaged with multiple devices at one time. No one’s just watching TV anymore.”

And to roll with the punches that come with adding a mobile device into the mix, QVC has leveraged Touch ID to bypass typing in all your checkout details, loaded an app with all the network’s live programming and shifted from a reliance on electronics and jewelry to beauty products and high-end kitchen appliances, where “frankly, the margins are considerably better,” Rosenblatt Securities Analyst Martin Pyykkonen said. “And if you’ve got customer loyalty and attention, you can run with that pretty well.”

Also key are follow-up strategies that satisfy the 90 percent of its revenue that comes from repeat customers, like emailing helpful videos on the day a shopper’s item is scheduled to arrive in the mail.

“It’s trying to anticipate information she’s going to need [and thus] to make this a different place to shop,” CIO Linda Dillman explained.

Read much more about how QVC stays at the cutting edge and watch a video illustrating how the company knows what you want to buy in The Washington Post here, then check out previous VISTA Today coverage of the pioneering local leader here.