Simplifying the Complex Process of Data Integration

It's no secret these days that data is critical for marketers looking to optimize profits. What isn't so readily available is the best ways for retailers to collect and manage their data. In a webinar last week from All About ROI, Good Data is Good Business!, sponsored by Stibo Systems, two retailers — Timothy Holody, COO of Seta Corp., parent company of multichannel jewelry marketer PalmBeach Jewelry, and Simon Rodrigue, associate vice president of e-commerce for Sears Canada — discussed how their companies make the most of their data. (To access the webinar on-demand, click here.)

This week's coverage of the event, which will be the first installment of a multipart series, focuses specifically on Holody's presentation. Check back in future issues for a recap of Rodrigue's presentation.

Inventory Control
Managing the data associated with its 8,000-plus items and 35,000 SKUs is a burdensome task for PalmBeach Jewelry. What's more, the company maintains all systems and databases in-house. This data crosses all product lines (e.g., rings, bracelets, gold, silver, etc.), average order values and marketing channels (catalog and web). It includes upsell and cross-sell data, sales data, marketing data, merchandising data, and much more, Holody said during his presentation.

To keep up with all of this data, Holody and the PalmBeach Jewelry staff identified 14 key performance indicators (KPIs) that provide information they can act on when it comes to the company's merchandise. These include the following:

• initial item fill rate;
• initial order fill rate;
• final item fill rate;
• final order fill rate;
• percentage of back orders filled by week (PalmBeach Jewelry is currently measuring 32 percent of back orders filled within one week);
• inventory value by grade;
• inventory value by product category;
• inventory value by promotional type (e.g., clearance items vs. nonclearance items; web-only items vs. items that appear both in the catalog and online);
• inventory value by age of inventory — which is critical to turning over inventory properly, Holody said;
• percentage of back-order cancellations (i.e., lost sales);
• order forecast accuracy;
• item forecast accuracy;
• inventory turns by grade; and
• inventory turns by product category.

If this seems like a lot to track, consider that PalmBeach Jewelry has pared down the number of KPIs it's tracked in recent years. “We've eliminated a lot of categories that the company found out weren't actionable,” said Holody, noting that the company will likely pare back the number of KPIs to 12 by this time next year.

“The data must be relevant and actionable,” he stressed. “What worked five years ago isn't going to work today.”

Vital vs. Nice to Have
The key to the successful use of data for increased profits is proper collection and management, Holody said. And critical to the collection of data is determining what's vital to your business vs. what's nice to have. One problem that PalmBeach Jewelry has dealt with is having too much data — in particular, data that it couldn't act upon.

While it's nice to know that the company sold 10 of a particular bracelet last week, Holody said, he questioned how PalmBeach Jewelry would measure this when it has to manage 8,000 items and 35,000 SKUs. So the marketer analyzed its data and determined the KPIs that are vital and worth tracking vs. what's nice to have but not essential. These 14 KPIs are reported on a regular basis to the key decision makers in the organization. Marketing decisions are then made based on these reports.