How do you make merchandising planning and forecasting more accurate?

1 Understand your data

The first step to make merchandising planning and forecasting more accurate is to understand your data sources, quality, and limitations. You need to collect and analyze data from various channels, such as sales, inventory, customer feedback, market trends, and competitors. You also need to ensure that your data is reliable, consistent, and updated regularly. You should also be aware of the potential biases, gaps, and outliers in your data, and how they can affect your decisions.

2 Set realistic goals

The second step to make merchandising planning and forecasting more accurate is to set realistic and measurable goals for your merchandising strategy. You need to define your target market, customer segments, product categories, and key performance indicators (KPIs). You also need to align your goals with your budget, resources, and capabilities. You should also review your goals periodically and adjust them according to the changing market conditions and customer preferences.

3 Use the right tools

The third step to make merchandising planning and forecasting more accurate is to use the right tools and methods for your analysis and decision making. You need to choose the tools that suit your business size, complexity, and objectives. You also need to use the tools that can handle large and diverse data sets, provide accurate and timely insights, and support scenario planning and simulation. Some examples of tools that can help you with merchandising planning and forecasting are spreadsheets, software applications, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML).

4 Collaborate with stakeholders

The fourth step to make merchandising planning and forecasting more accurate is to collaborate with your internal and external stakeholders. You need to communicate and coordinate with your team members, suppliers, distributors, and customers. You also need to solicit and incorporate feedback, suggestions, and complaints from your stakeholders. You should also establish clear roles, responsibilities, and expectations for each stakeholder, and monitor and evaluate their performance and satisfaction.

5 Test and learn

The fifth step to make merchandising planning and forecasting more accurate is to test and learn from your actions and outcomes. You need to experiment with different merchandising strategies, tactics, and techniques, such as pricing, promotion, assortment, display, and layout. You also need to measure and analyze the results of your experiments, such as sales, margin, turnover, conversion, and loyalty. You should also learn from your successes and failures, and apply the best practices and lessons learned to your future planning and forecasting.

6 Be flexible and adaptable

The sixth and final step to make merchandising planning and forecasting more accurate is to be flexible and adaptable to the changing market and customer needs. You need to monitor and anticipate the internal and external factors that can affect your merchandising performance, such as seasonality, demand fluctuations, supply disruptions, consumer behavior, and competitor actions. You also need to be ready and willing to adjust your merchandising plans and forecasts accordingly, and to seize new opportunities and overcome new challenges.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?