Speed of Change in Retail Analytics

As summarized by John F. Kennedy, “Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future”. Everything around you is in a constant state of change. Technology has catapulted the way retailers and suppliers provide products to the consumer, requiring them to look at their businesses differently almost on an hourly basis. Britt Fogg, CEO, president and founder of Shiloh Technologies, a division of SPI, gave us his insights around the speed of change in the retailer/supplier industry.

How can we identify, understand and react quickly to rapid changes in the retail/supplier landscape?

Fogg: Retailers and suppliers have realized that the shopper/consumer is the driving force behind all sales, demand and pricing. Shoppers are researching more online, being exposed to third-party product reviews, and interacting in social media before making buying decisions. Where and how they purchase has rapidly evolved also. The shopper has the ability to purchase online via their PC or mobile device or the traditional brick and mortar stores. Predicting shopper behavior and delivering a personalized experience for them is the key to increase sales. Your business relies on monitoring outside influences, and adapting to the shopper’s needs and wants in near real time. A massive amount of information is being gathered about shopper behavior to determine which products to stock, where and when. But simply gathering the data is useless without having in place a robust analytic technology, the knowledge to mine the insights and a procedure to quickly effect change by communicating the insights back through the supply chain.

What should suppliers and retailers do to garner wins from the changes that are occurring?

Fogg: As the environment around retail and data changes, you will need to be ahead of the game. Investment in sophisticated technology systems to manage big data and its analysis is on the rise. Retailers and suppliers must leverage this technology and structure their systems to collaboratively share the insights garnered throughout the supply chain. A smarter, well-informed supplier, armed with a multitude of various data and good analysis, helps retailers sell more. Not only do the suppliers need to have the technology and procedural systems in place, they must have staff with analytical skills and an understanding of business operations. According to US News, by the year 2018, the United States will face a shortage of as many as 190,000 people with the requisite analytical skills alone. Consider investing not only in technology but targeted training/development of personnel to meet the growing demands. Access to real-time data allows the retail team to implement change on the fly, but only if your organization is poised to respond.

How do the retailer and supplier get actionable insights?

Fogg: The ultimate goal of any type of data analytics is to gain actionable insights that will positively impact the bottom line of the business. The key to processing millions of pieces of data is to have a robust, scalable analytics solution. Cutting-edge technical solutions should not only allow the user to discover insights through their own analysis, but alert them to insights that may need action taken even before the user knew to ask the question. Businesses need to take advantage of the free data feeds available such as weather, census and government program records and incorporate them into existing data. This gives a more complete view of the business and greatly enhances insights. Recently, advanced technical solutions providers have shifted focus to predictive analytics driven by machine learning or artificial intelligence gained through a series of algorithms encompassing examples and trends in the data. The results are not only predictive, but prescriptive, offering the best and most likely solution. In addition, the system evaluates the impact of the actions taken. Suppliers will benefit by having to do less analysis, yet get instantaneous feedback on common business issues such as new product launches, how weather affected sales, which store type has growth potential, which distribution points are underperforming, and more.