Turn a planogram into an effective tool for your business!

Benefits provided by integration when drawing planograms:

• The quality of planograms increases, since when drawing, the specialist uses the entire amount of necessary data, which is available in one click. For example, the assortment does not fill the shelf by 100%, and the task of the merchandiser is to correctly distribute the facings between the products of the category. But who should be given more space? Each SKU should get its "fair" centimeters, based on the goals and roles of the categories. In this case, the decision is made based on the financial indicators available in the system.
• The speed of building planograms increases because all the necessary information is collected in the planogramming working environment. That is, a specialist does not need to simultaneously create planograms, collect data on SKUs from different services and systems, and also control their relevance.
• The probability of human errors is reduced due to the automated unloading of all the information necessary for work, and the probability of shortcomings is minimized.
• Provides maximum visibility. Usually, all descriptive information is stored in the name of the SKU: what kind of product it is, what container it is in, what color the package is, and what is the volume. In the C4R solution, for convenience, all this data is decomposed into fields. Such systematization also speeds up the process of drawing planograms. All products can be highlighted graphically based on their characteristics, which also helps to avoid errors when placing SKUs.
• Digitization of data about goods placed on the shelf. Each SKU in the planogram becomes a database object, which in turn means that this data is available to other company systems, such as auto-order.

As a result, the merchandiser gets the opportunity and "free hands" to do his main work: the distribution of goods on the shelf space, the formation of customer-oriented layout schemes for each category, and the analysis of the results. And all the routine work to collect up-to-date information will be shifted to an automated data exchange system.

Integration improves autoorder accuracy

Based on the information from the planogram, it is possible to generate a data package required for auto-order and transfer it in the required format. This is the data in the link product-shop-information. Most often, this is the minimum, maximum, and insurance inventory, the calculation of which can be the same for the entire network or, if necessary, be based on the characteristics of each category.

C4R solutions allow you to calculate the category safety stock depending on the rules set in the network. For example, 30% of the shelf or a certain number of faces (each category may have its own number). Any variables can be included in the calculation methodology. As a result of the transfer of data from the planogramming software, the accuracy of auto-ordering is improved. And this means: there are no excess and underdelivered goods, the costs of servicing balances and write-offs are reduced, and sales are increased by minimizing OOS.

Output data package for price tags

 The product, getting into the planogram, automatically receives the address: rack number, shelf number, position number on the shelf, and the number of faces. All information is collected in the right format and in a certain sequence.
The SKU address listed on the price tag helps the staff of the trade hall when placing it on the shelf, plus it is an additional point of self-control of the compliance of the layout with the planogram.

Confirmation of the assortment compliance with the actual parameters of the equipment

Information is also generated that makes it possible to confirm the compliance of the open assortment of the store with the physical size of the shelf in the context of each category. When using such a process, the assortment matrix will always be compiled based on the actual length of the equipment. Therefore, there are no empty shelves and no items that do not fit.

The system for creating planograms can send all the data necessary for the implementation of the process to specialized software for assortment management or ERP.

The processes of ordering, delivery, and creation of planograms take place in the retail network in parallel, so the integration ensures maximum data accuracy and speed of their transfer to other systems.

Reports and end-to-end control on the way of goods to the shelf

Integration and seamless data exchange between planogramming software and other systems provide additional control options, such as monitoring shelf space efficiency within a category.

Also, thanks to the integration of software for building planograms and ERP, you can set up a reporting system that will inform about the “status” of the goods at each stage of the supply chain. In essence, it is a meaningful report with many checkpoints that can be tracked. In practice, this means that it is possible to monitor the places of failures on the way of the goods to the shelf and find the reasons for the discrepancy between the arrangement of products and the planogram.

That is, the exchange of data between systems allows you to track the causes of such situations when the goods did not arrive, or they arrive in excess, or other discrepancies between the order and the assortment matrix of the store approved by the office. Moreover, the system gives an answer in which area the failure occurred: whether it was the level of work of the merchandiser, the commercial department, or the supply department. Management receives all the necessary detail for making managerial decisions.