Remember when retailers conducted business with their customers face to face, and your success depended on what you sold and how the customer was treated? The truth is that even though retail has grown and changed, the importance of a clients’ experience is still important. It’s just that now, instead of knowing them by sight, we understand them from the data we gather.
Today’s retail environment is supported and strengthened by internet connectivity, smart inventory management, supply chain strategies, and by using data more effectively to gain a better understanding of the customer. The more efficiently a retail operation organizes and integrates this data into their business operations, the more successful they become.
With that in mind, here are 5 of the top efficiency hacks retailers are using today.
Provide Immediate Access to Data
Buyers need real time access to sales figures and inventory levels, and managers need to access reports to identify and understand purchasing trends and behaviors. If any of that data is inaccessible or slow to access, its value significantly decreases. By investing in a web-based system that is accessible from all devices and locations ensures immediate changes and updates to data without delays. It also improves the transparency of that data so employees are always kept up-to-date.
Automate Organization Protocols
Your retail organization is not optimized for efficiency when your data requires an abundance of manual processes, which is often the case for different departments that are storing their information on different servers or using various software programs.
Instead, try using a single integrated data management system that automates the data organization process and stores information centrally so that it can be accessed by all parties for whom it is meaningful. Creating this level of open availability – with the appropriate controls in place, of course – not only increases the value of data but also allows everything from inventory and stock levels to receipts and merchandising strategies to be accessed without delay.
Improve Server Agility
There is nothing that can slow a business operation down as much as slow or inefficient servers, and the sheer volume of data that is collected in a retail environment makes this a real issue. By archiving data, or offloading it onto second tier storage, and introducing a system that prioritizes data based upon the protocols that are most important to your business, only the most current, valuable information remains on your fastest servers.
This essentially lowers storage costs and even optimizes data backups for optimal efficiency and maximized profits. This instant visibility of essential data and quick data backups is something all retailers can appreciate.
Eliminate Non-Essential Data
Storing data can cost your retail organization a lot of money when data volumes are high, especially if you are using a large percentage of your storage on old or unused files. This is simply throwing profits away. Why not introduce a data management system that can de-duplicate and compress your retail data, thus expanding your storage capacity?
Integrate Data Systems
If you want to improve your retail organization’s overall efficiency in regards to data, try implementing a data storage system that is easily implemented and seamlessly integrates with your existing systems. That way, it requires no additional training and you are able to immediately reap its benefits.
The data archiving and file management system that you choose can play a significant role in improving your retail business’ efficiency and optimizing your internal operations. ShareArchiver, for example, provides seamless access to data that is easily integrated into your existing systems, resulting in greater cost savings, improved operational efficiency, and smarter access to the data that drives your retail business’ success. Try it free and see for yourself.
