Avoid Becoming Like Staples: How to Modernize Your Company
This week, Staples made the surprising announcement that it will close 225 of its North American stores by the year's end -- a move that sent chills through stockholders, as shares dropped over 10% before markets opened. The recession had done its damage to the industry, which faces increasing competition from online retailers.
As more and more of the big-name companies we've known for years start to shrink or close up shop, it becomes increasingly clear that even many powerful companies are groping in the dark when it comes to modernizing their approach and continuing to be profitable in 2014's internet-influenced market.
Are you worried about how your business will continue to be profitable? It's no longer possible to ignore the influence of the internet. Even if the majority of your sales do not occur online, studies suggest that, in fact, web-influenced retail sales far outpace online retail sales, by a scale of about six to one. Forrester Research estimates that $1.4 billion in retail sales will be influenced by online information in 2014.
How can you get your company on board for the next decade of online-influenced sales? There are several different approaches and technologies worth considering in order to make full use of the data and resources you have, and use it to generate loyal customers and sales. Here are three tried-and-trusted approaches you can experiment with.
Business Intelligence and Analytics
-
BA and BI, terms that are used interchangeably in the industry, work to process through technology, theories and architecture so that meaning can be pulled out of various raw data.
-
Analytics and intelligence can help identify current trends and future ones based on an analysis of a wide range of data, often picking up on details that would normally be missed. It might be hard to otherwise notice, for example, that customers buying one book online are more likely to buy another book by the same author if it comes recommended to them on the company's website.
-
Data crunching can help companies discover small discrepancies before they turn into big problems. They can also help track customers in a personalized way. A customer who places baby toys into their online cart, for example, might receive an increased number of baby-related coupons in their email newsletter.
PLM Solutions
-
PLM, or product lifecycle management, is a software technology businesses can use in order to track the entire lifecycle of their products -- all the way from the initial conception, to the final disposal.
-
PLM consultants can help companies identify online sale opportunities, appropriate price points, and changes that can be made during development in order to more accurately reflect how consumers use the product.
-
PLM solutions can reduce the time it takes to move a product from creation to marketing by up to 70%, ensuring that the product achieves increased relevancy in the market.
Does your business use PLM solutions? Let us know in the comments.