How does the forecast affect the manufacturer's catalogue?

08/06/2018

Angela de la Vieja

A good sales forecast is essential for a brand to anticipate their stock needs at specific times. In this way, they can anticipate the organization of the catalogue based on the expected demand. Its objective is to allow the company to reach the proposed sales targets. And in what does this knowledge affect? Both in the product units that the manufacturer must have in its catalogue and in the price that can be established for each of them, since it can be a clear improvement for the pricing strategy of manufacturers. In addition, it will monitor the activity of retailers with respect to their products.

This tool, which is both necessary and complete, involves carrying out the study of certain aspects of the market in which each manufacturer acts in order to be clear about the characteristics of the landscape in which it operates. The key to making a sales forecast is to analyze the behavior of the demand. For this it is necessary to take into account five indicators that directly affect the sales report.

1. Sales history. Checking sales that have occurred in the past does not have to ensure a future sales level; however, it is a more than relevant indicator to identify the milestones that have been able to mark sales peaks: key dates, events in the pricing strategy, changes in the market, new products, etc.

2. Channel sales. When making the forecast study, it is essential to analyze and highlight the most relevant sales channels for the brand. In case the manufacturer does not have a direct sales channel to the final consumer, it is vital to know in good hand what is the sales volume reached by each of the retailers with which it participates. In this way you can have a global vision of the product units that have output and provide for replacement, for example.

3. Current sale. What is the current demand situation? Does the brand find the market ratio raised? This point of analysis is essential to work together with the marketing and sales departments, as they will know for sure what the objectives are and the key figures for the development of the forecast. Furthermore, it is with these axes of the brand that new sales opportunities can be traced and the strategies to be followed can be outlined both in the updating of catalogue products and in their prices.

4. Events. When analyzing the sales route of the brand in each of its channels, it is necessary to indicate which have been the moments in which there have been events on the route. Holiday season? Price campaigns promoted by the brand? Discounts? It is essential to locate and understand the purchase flow at all times in order to adapt the supplier's catalogue to market demand.

5. Competition analysis. Finally, for a complete and adjusted to the reality of the market forecast, it is essential to perform a competition analysis. Benchmarking, price monitoring, campaign tracking ... All information is little. Of course, it is necessary to contemplate the conditions, characteristics and activity of some and other companies are framed in a common scenario.

For manufacturers, a monitoring tool can be the philosopher's stone of the forecast. With the help of this type of solutions it is possible to concentrate in the same space all the necessary data to make a sales and market report. The key? Applications that allow control of the retail price, the current stock in each retailer as in the store of the brand and a catalogue management tool. In this way, any manufacturer can have at all times the information related to the sale of their products and prepare in advance pricing and marketing strategies that allow them to achieve brand success.

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.