Using Data Infrastructure And Management As A Forecasting Tool

Customer demand is volatile, which makes it difficult to predict product sales and stock the right amount of inventory. If you estimate too high, you can wind up with large amounts of overstock and wasted warehouse space. But if you shoot too low, your customers will end up dealing with backorders and long fulfillment cycles.  

To reach the sweet spot -- where you consistently have the right amount of inventory for every category -- you need to accurately forecast customer demand. And that takes data.  

Below we’ll discuss 3 data collection and management strategies you can adopt to better forecast your sales and prepare your inventory for customer demand.  

Connect Data From Multiple Channels 

When you sell products via multiple channels, like brick-and-mortar stores and eCommerce sites, it’s fairly easy to review sales data to see what’s being purchased. However, if your sales data is segmented by channel (i.e. your physical locations, eCommerce store, and social media profiles), it can be difficult to see the big picture.  

Alternatively, by collecting and storing data in a single platform you can query information however you need to. For example, you can pinpoint your most popular products by pulling data points together from every physical storefront, eCommerce site, and social media channel.