Using Data to Grow Your Retail Business

August 10, 2015

We are in the golden age of technology for growing business. With all the automation platforms and cloud computing options available today, retail business owners can make their business efficient and more cost-effective than ever before. They can harness the knowledge of company data to make big decisions, including when to expand. Traditionally, retailers operate instinctually or use higher profits to gauge when it is time to expand. Today, data gives so much insight into customer behavior that it makes the decisions much simpler. Learn how to identify key data points and use data to see the big picture in expanding your business.

Physical Retail Location Data

By using technologies that collect and analyze the behavior of your in-store customers, you can gain a lot of valuable information for growth. POS data shows everything from checkout times and busiest days to finite details like which department is most popular. Use this information to leverage business decisions. For example, maybe you discover your shop is busiest when it first opens and slow towards closing. Consider changing your hours to open earlier. Or, you might have noticed checkout times are getting longer. It could be time to invest in mobile POS systems so your employees can check out guests on the floor.

Inventory Info

One quick glance at your inventory management data will tell you if you need to scale up your stock; however, there is more to be gained from data than that. Pair up inventory data with customer shopping behavior and you have can make better buying decisions. By looking at what is selling the most and when, you can buy more ahead of time and stop buying products that waste space.

Harnessing Financial Data

POS systems integrate accounting information, so you can automatically feed and analyze financial data right from your terminal. Using this functionality, you can identify general patterns of cash flow and profit margins without the need for an accountant. Obviously, exploring your business’s financial data will give you insight into when it’s time for expansion.