Brian Cluster

An integrated approach to data management is critical for CPGs to take on supply chain shocks, rising prices and whatever comes next.

Fact:

“In the past three months, more than 80% of consumers bought a different brand than their usual – lower prices (65%) and out-of-stock products (51%) were their primary motivating factors.”

- Insider Intelligence, September 2021

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With NRF 2022 complete, one thing is clear: change continues to be the new normal for the retail industry.

As industry leaders trekked back to New York to attend NRF 2022, attendees couldn’t help but notice that while things looked similar, much had changed. Since the last in-person NRF in 2020, while the world and various aspects of the global economy have shut down at various points, the retail industry kept going at an accelerated pace.

Photo credit: National Retail Federation

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Fuel data-driven experiences to engage the empowered digital automotive customer

The road ahead is wide open. For automotive aftermarket companies, it means a strong shift into connected commerce, search, and expanded capabilities to reach consumers in digital channels. Product data has always been important but more comprehensive support of the customer journey and customer experience is needed. 

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Midway through what was supposed to be a recovery year, some retailers are still struggling. Better data may hold the key to their success.

The pace of change in retail since the spring of 2020 has been well documented around the world. Heroic efforts and incredible teamwork were required to restock stores with essential products in record time. Retailers quickly transformed their operations by creating safe in-store environments, transitioning non-customer-facing staff to work from home, and finding ways to communicate and serve customers through increasingly digital approaches.

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The importance of data integrity in delivering an optimal digital experience for customers

Shopping behaviors shifted dramatically last year as consumers adopted more digital tactics across the entire shopping journey. Many consumers engaged in digital activities throughout the shopping process such as researching and purchasing products online or selecting different delivery options. These retail trends are here to stay, according to a McKinsey survey, which found that 71% of apparel shoppers and 66% of grocery shoppers who used digital shopping services for the first time during the Covid-19 crisis will continue to do so after it ends.

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Increasing the value of your data is easy with master data management

Last year was a year of tremendous change for businesses and consumers, as they adjusted to the realities of life during a pandemic. Many consumers turned to apps to track diet, fitness and other personal goals with incredible detail, accuracy and consistency, often connecting them to wearable technology that captures data automatically (e.g., heart rate or steps taken).

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Lessons learned and digital wins provide confidence for retail success this year

Over 20,000 leaders from retailers and brands convened this year for NRF’s Big Show. But for the first time in 110 years, it was completely virtual. Despite the challenges, NRF came through just as retail did in 2020 by innovating and pivoting to create an excellent experience. There were more than 130 sessions by 330 speakers from over 3,500 participating companies.

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Creating value for CPG brands in 2021 starts with optimizing the value of data

The CPG space experiences significant change every year, but for manufacturers of consumer packaged goods, 2020 was one for the record books. At this time last year, industry experts already predicted big changes were coming. Then came the global pandemic, causing the market to shift at an even faster pace. For brands that had taken steps to anticipate and prep for evolving trends and opportunities, the journey was tough but navigable. For others, there were difficult, unexpected challenges.

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As manufacturers look back at 2020, they will reflect on the challenges, pivots, wins and new learnings. While many companies accelerated well designed solutions and employed them with success, others created stopgaps that were put in place rapidly to expand into new channels, launch new products and gain digital shelf distribution in new retail customers.

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Four proactive ways of enhancing product information management instead of returns management – or how to drop from 20% to 0.5% return rate

Returns have been a pervasive problem for online retailers since online shopping began, and it’s only going to become more challenging with the growth in online sales. Right now, we can foresee a perfect storm building with the approaching holiday season’s shopping spike amid the COVID-19 crisis and the encouragement to minimize in-person activities. As a result, January 2021 may be the largest month in absolute volume for returns ever seen by retailers, and January 2nd may be the height of that returns storm.

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