Example of Double Exponential Smoothing

An online retailer wants to predict computer sales for the next six months. The retailer collects data on computer sales and software sales from the previous two years to predict future trends.

  1. Open the sample data, ComputerSales.MTW.
  2. Choose Stat > Time Series > Double Exp Smoothing.
  3. In Variable, enter Computer Sales.
  4. Select Generate forecasts. In Number of forecasts, enter 6.
  5. Click OK.

Interpret the results

On this smoothing plot, the fitted values closely follow the actual data. The forecasts predict a slight upward trend in sales for the next 6 months.

Method

DataComputer Sales
Length24

Smoothing Constants

α (level)0.599409
γ (trend)0.130921

Accuracy Measures

MAPE9
MAD25814
MSD1027385418

Forecasts

PeriodForecastLowerUpper
25387788324546451030
26393620318188469051
27399452310644488260
28405284302374508193
29411116293640528591
30416948284595549300