The Importance of Transparent Data

By Jamie Gutkin | November 10, 2023

In the visual merchandising world, achieving the perfect balance between headquarters executives, visual merchandisers, and store associates is a very challenging task. And while data plays a pivotal role in many business decisions, it’s hard to get every stakeholder on the same page, especially when it comes to delivering accurate data. In this blog post, we’ll explore the importance of quick and transparent data in balancing HQ executives’ goals and helping visual merchandisers communicate them.

Centralized Data Collection

One of the biggest challenges for visual merchandisers is maintaining transparency across the organization. HQ executives often make crucial decisions based on historical performance, market trends, and financial metrics. On the other hand, visual merchandisers need real-time insights into consumer behavior, product popularity in specific regions, and how their store teams are executing on plans, to successfully create compelling in-store experiences. Centralized data collection is the key to bridging this gap. 

Gathering data, like display status, compliance, sales reports, and more, from various sources and centralizing it in a shared repository allows both HQ execs and visual merchandisers to access the same information in real-time without discrepancies. Visual merchandisers can see how their displays impact sales and customer engagement, while HQ execs gain visibility into the effectiveness of their strategies. As a result, decisions that impact the success of sales are made with a deep understanding of the situation on the ground, fostering a more collaborative and productive working environment. 

The Power of Real-Time Insights

In the fast-paced world of retail, timing is everything. Visual merchandisers need to adapt quickly to changes in customer trends and product demand. HQ executives need to make swift strategic decisions to capitalize on emerging trends. A centralized data source provides both teams with real-time insights, giving them the ability to respond immediately to market shifts.

For visual merchandisers, real-time data means they can adjust their displays, promotions, and product placements as soon as they notice a change in customer preferences. This agility enables them to maximize sales and directly impact revenue. HQ execs can also immediately see the direct impact the visual merchandising team is making in real-time. 

A Streamlined Solution – The One Door Platform

 With One Door, retail teams are empowered to make quick, data-driven decisions leveraging real-time, transparent data. One Door’s suite of features within the platform are capable of tracking and consolidating data, making visual merchandising processes are streamlined. Some of the One Door features to help streamline data are: 

  • Store Board

Leverage a singular dashboard that tracks store teams’ execution and engagements. Store Board addresses the biggest communications problem facing visual merchandising and space planning teams today – the gap between merchandising intent and store reality.

  • Store Gallery

Computer Vision AI automatically increases the speed and accuracy of your merchandising audits so you can close the loop with stores by flagging bad compliance photos and gain insight into what your compliance analytics are. 

  • Store Feedback

Create and deliver questionnaires and surveys with configurable authoring tools as part of a unified merchandising process to track and analyze results in real-time.

 

The synergy between HQ execs and visual merchandisers can greatly impact the overall success of a retail business. A centralized data source encourages collaborative, optimized decision-making, bringing together the strategic vision of HQ and the creativity of visual merchandisers.

When both teams have access to the same data, discussions and decisions become more data-driven and less subjective. And, with improved agility, data can be turned around in a matter of seconds to drive better impact. Instead of relying on assumptions or guesswork, they can base their choices on concrete evidence. Transparency, real-time insights, and collaborative decision-making become possible through data, ensuring that both teams work together harmoniously to achieve the company’s objectives.

Ready to see how One Door can take your retail efforts to the next level? Check out our platform! 

 

Looking to learn more? Watch how One Door’s platform is transforming the world of visual merchandising with interactive planograms.