What are 'catalogue insights?'

29/08/2017

Angela de la Vieja

Creating a distribution channel is one of the most difficult tasks that a company faces. An indispensable task, on the other hand, since the distribution channel is the way for the manufacturers products to reach the final consumer. But if distribution is a key activity for marketing, online sales have added complexity to this activity, both in the creation of the distribution network and in monitoring or management of the same.

Unlike the pre-internet era, digital channels are more exposed. They are also more volatile. And distributors of brands that must act in that changing environment are forced to make rapid changes in their trade policy to adapt, and they don´t always take into account the distribution agreements that they have established with the manufacturers of the products.

In fact, many manufacturers ask themselves questions about their distribution channel: are my online distributors making the effort they committed to? Are they getting the online visibility they said they were going to get? Are my distributors giving visibility to my products in their catalogue?

The answers to these questions, which a priori may seem difficult to answer, are achieved through actions of 'catalogue insights' or product catalogue monitoring.

How to do 'catalogue insights'

Doing 'catalogue insights' means having the ability to monitor the catalogue of the entire distribution channel to have relevant information.

This capability is based on tracking technology, tools that from rules that are indicated, extract information from the websites or e-commerce sites that interest the manufacturer. With these monitoring applications in a simple and anonymous way any data related to the products can be collected, such as names, models, brands, reference numbers, prices or stocks. Some tools allow you to go even further, and if a manufacturer wants to monitor a particular product, it is feasible to collect the data as a SKU, EAN or MPN.

But in addition to an efficient and automated data collection, one of the keys to the actions of 'catalogue insights' is in presenting the data so that a manufacturer can make decisions. A historical price behaviour or stock history are two ways to present very useful data, which can enable a manufacturer to better understand a distributor's digital campaign. A comparison of prices or stock between different distributors is another type of data that is very useful to have an overview of the channel and to understand the positioning of each one.

What benefits does it have?

The 'catalogue insight´ actions are perfect for monitoring the digital channel, for its speed and for its changing dynamics. With relevant data (collected intelligently and systematically) and accurate information, manufacturers can benefit in two ways:

· They can detect a tendency or pattern of undesirable behaviour in a distributor and correct it quickly, proposing improvements in exhibition within the catalogue, offers or other actions.

· They can represent a possible scenario and anticipate actions, suggesting joint tasks together with the distributor, such as promotional activities or commercial campaigns.

The great benefit of monitoring the distribution channel is that it allows you to know the situation of the products in the channel so to look for areas of improvement with the distributors.

11/11/2022

Consumer behavior: How can behavior tracking be effective for setting the right pricing strategies?

Behavior tracking is becoming massively popular today. As a result, pricing strategies born from studying consumer behavior are a merchant's dream come true. If done right, it can conquer every market for the business quickly. With abundant data available, the strategic makeover of the pricing models is becoming easy for companies.

What is behavioral tracking, and how is the data beneficial in pricing?

For a quick understanding, behavioral tracking refers to gaining in-depth knowledge and insights into consumers through their web data. Their browsing habits, spontaneous decisions, shopping interests, and preferences come under behavioral tracking.

How can enterprises use customer behavior data?

Companies can use customer behavior data as a tool to strengthen their hold on the market. A customer’s preferences, values, and tendencies allow businesses to work in sync with them through the collected data. Apart from this, customer behavior can also aid in:

Tailoring customer needs for customer retention

Personalization is becoming the heart of a company’s growth. No matter in which area an enterprise is functioning, tailoring the services, products, and solutions is becoming increasingly crucial. Uniqueness and personalization attract the crowd like no other.

Increasing the overall value

One of the best ways customer behavior data affects a business is by upgrading the value of customers for the business. The customer’s characteristics allow the company to target the people that match the business prospects well.

Optimizing every type of content

Everything that is up for digital display requires content. You must have seen companies unveiling their products or services through advertisements and making the initial public appearance. Two essential sales strategies – upselling and cross-selling comes through content optimization.

Pricing Strategy

Last but certainly not least is the influence of customer behavior data on the pricing strategy. The pricing strategy essentially constitutes content derived from data analysis. Companies need to have a dynamic approach to the pricing system to attract the right customers.

17/02/2015

Saint Valentine’s Day, always a good opportunity

V-Day is looming, a long-awaited date for all and also a good occasion for the eCommerce. According the study conducted by Prosper Insights and Analytics, it is forecasted the average consumer expense that day will be the highest in last years. Furthermore, 25% of them will buy online, which means an increase of 4% regarding 2014 (The US department of Commerce). This is, therefore, a key date where market competitiveness increase and which could be assumed as a big opportunity for our business or, a big fail if we do not adopt the correct strategies.

How to turn this event into an opportunity? To achieve this goal, we need to adapt our prices to this hostile environment, i.e. we need to develop an appropriate Dynamic Pricing strategy that allows us to adapt our prices to the variations produced in supply and demand and to position us ahead of our competitors. In V-Day, the frequency in changes will be higher, carrying it out each hour or even each minute. It is estimated that 65% of leader retailers have the ability to respond quickly at these variations, such Amazon. For this reason, it acquires great importance the correct use of a software specialised in price motorisation of competitors. Do not miss the time and adapt your business to new adversities.

28/12/2022

Which are the best footwear marketplaces to sell on?

Footwear marketplaces are booming. The last decade has seen the launch of new specialized marketplaces with millions of different users. Among them are Spartoo, Sarenza and Farfetch, portals with international reach. Their main value is that they unite hundreds of footwear brands, as well as offering clothes and accessories. Although each has its own characteristics, they are all vertical marketplaces, i.e., they focus on a specific area, and their sales categories are interrelated. For sellers, these portals provide an opportunity to expand sales channels and drive the globalization of their e-commerce business. We explain how to sell on these footwear marketplaces so that you can assess whether they align with your plans for the future and then start defining a possible pricing strategy.