Download Two Fundamental Rules for Integrating People

Two Fundamental Rules for
Integrating People Counting
into Your Culture
Using Traffic Data to Deliver
Incremental Revenues
The Top Line
It is commonly known that data drives business. However, not everyone knows how to take
data and turn it into results. Integrating traffic analytics into an organization should be executed
with the purpose of driving revenue and providing simple, tangible information to those who
have the ability to impact sales. The most effective way to do this to incorporate traffic into your
organization’s existing company culture.
Successfully integrating traffic analytics into your culture starts with two fundamental rules:
1. Make it Simple
2. Make it Actionable
You can easily accomplish traffic integration initiatives by taking the following approach.
Ensure that Traffic Data is Understood:
Make it Simple
Shopper traffic is not a metric that is new to the retail industry, nor is it a metric that should
be in a silo apart from any other Key Performance Indicators (KPI). Traffic represents the total
opportunity present at a store and is directly related to transactions, Average Dollar Sale (ADS),
conversion, labor allocation and lost opportunities.
Because of its impact on store profitability, traffic information should be strongly considered by
key members of an organization in order to make informed assessments and effective business
decisions. Emphasis should be placed on traffic data as much as it is placed on components like
the sales plan, marketing programs, real estate decisions and customer service training.
Building awareness around and encouraging effective use of traffic data starts by first making the
program easily understandable. To help ensure that decision makers properly review and utilize
traffic data, simplify the process by establishing guidelines.
ShopperTrak
| 200 West Monroe Street, 11th Floor | Chicago, IL 60606 | www.shoppertrak.com
Tips on Keeping Traffic Reporting &
Interpreting Simple
DO
DO NOT
Integrate traffic as a KPI into all existing
reports at all levels of the organization.
Highlight traffic as a new metric to be
focused on differently than current KPIs.
Minimize traffic results to no more than two
or three trend reports:
s 9EAROVER9EAR9/9RESULTS
s 3EASONAL4RENDING
s 0ROMOTIONAL%VENTS0RODUCT,AUNCHES
Report traffic in inconsistent ways throughout
the organization.
Use traffic and conversion results from
within store as a benchmark to strive for
consistently.
Set performance goals without understanding
traffic trends and total store opportunity.
Use traffic to identify topics for behavioral
training.
Ignore consistent high traffic and low
conversion performances.
Use traffic as a trigger to identify
opportunities for marketing programs to
drive traffic to store locations.
Make the assumption that store traffic is
REmECTEDIN0/3TRANSACTIONSORTRENDING
Ensure that Traffic Data is Deemed Important:
Make it Actionable
As with many initiatives, traffic will be discarded like last season’s trend if it’s not actionable at all
levels of the organization. In order to make traffic an actionable metric, it has to be identified as a
relevant and influential factor that impacts the goals and processes already in place. Communicate
to your team that traffic analytics are at the foundation of your existing strategy, rather than on top
of it.
Every level of the organization should be made aware of how traffic data can impact performances:
ShopperTrak
| 200 West Monroe Street, 11th Floor | Chicago, IL 60606 | www.shoppertrak.com
How Store Management Can Exploit Traffic Data
for Their Needs
Audience
Best Practice
Senior
Management
s5TILIZETRAFlCASABENCHMARKFORSTORESPERFORMANCESTOGOAL)FSALES
are underperforming, how is traffic trending?
s#OMBINEYEAROVERYEARTRAFlCANDSALESTRENDINGTOSETQUARTERLYAND
yearly plans.
Field
Management
s)DENTIFYCURRENTCONVERSIONAND!$3LEVELSANDSETGOALFORAPOINT
increase.
s3IMPLIFYGOALSBYIDENTIFYINGADDITIONALNUMBEROFTRANSACTIONSEXAMPLE
CONVERTOUTOFMOREPERSONSCONSISTENTLY
Store
Management
s4ARGETHIGHESTTRAFlCTIMESTHROUGHOUTWEEKANDWEEKENDANDENSURE
coverage allows for a consistent guest experience.
s3CHEDULESTAFlNGSOTHERIGHTPEOPLEAREINTHERIGHTPLACESATTHERIGHT
times with the right behaviors.
Marketing
s4RACKPROMOTIONVSNONPROMOTIONTRAFlCBYCOMPARINGTHEDATESAND
times of when specific promotions occurred.
s"ENCHMARKSTOREPERFORMANCEAGAINST-ALLAND-ARKETTRAFlC)FYOUR
store traffic is down, are the mall and market seeing the same results?
The Bottom Line
To effectively incorporate traffic analytics into the existing culture, data must be presented in a
consistent manner, designed to display its impact on sales and revenue. To help ensure that traffic
data is reviewed, discussed and remains an important KPI, two key rules should be followed:
Make it simple, and make it actionable. Traffic analytics should stand alongside other KPIs as an
IMPORTANTDRIVEROFBOTTOMLINERESULTS
ShopperTrak
| 200 West Monroe Street, 11th Floor | Chicago, IL 60606 | www.shoppertrak.com
Copyright ©2012 ShopperTrak RCT Corporation
All Rights Reserved
100134