Service goals of retail audit
Retail audit is an examination of separate retail stores to collect data on the position of branded products. This type of research is in demand because the purchasing power is simultaneously influenced by many factors, each of which must be carefully monitored and controlled. Retail audit checks can be carried out both by specially created departments within the company and with the help of third-party agencies – outsourcers specialized in the providing of such services.
Retail auditing is primarily aimed at conducting a comprehensive analysis of the product range in retail chains and stores. In the course of its implementation, a professional auditor visits the office and checks such information as:
- Sales volume
- Stock of goods
- Condition of goods
- Location of products in the store
- Appearance of shop windows
- Availability of promotional materials
- Pricing
- Quality of work of the personnel
- Competitors’ pricing policies
Usually, the audit is conducted before setting up the outlet, which allows determining its profitability, and once again after the opening of the store. Regular research makes it possible to assess the state of affairs in the shop, to make changes in the layout of goods, to purchase popular brands of products in time or affect the profit and sales dynamics in some other ways.
A retail auditing is designed to obtain an objective assessment of the situation based on real indicators. Retail auditing is carried out with the following objectives:
- to get the basis for the development of new products and services;
- to identify vacant niches in this or that sphere, to assess the extent to which the company is ready to occupy a niche;
- evaluate the level of competition for certain products;
- get ideas for placing products on shelves;
- to determine how to locate new products more advantageously, and much more.
Also, as part of the retail audit, it is possible to conduct the most detailed collection of information about retail outlets operating in the study area. This type of audit is in demand when expanding the range of the retail network or promoting a personal brand. This kind of research will allow you to estimate the local market shares of consumer goods belonging to different brands (manufacturers, distributors, suppliers).
Retail auditing is also used to determine the reasons for the unexplained drop in sales.
The audit of retail trade itself is quite multifaceted and can be used in many cases, in addition to the examples mentioned above. The audit helps to identify new and just nascent market segments, outline the prospects and assess the benefits of bringing new products to the shelves, analyze new trends in consumer demand and activity.
Retail auditing involves a fairly large amount of resources, both in the form of employees and in the form of time. Naturally, all this affects the cost of retail audit, conducted by own efforts. The optimal option would be to outsource such a task to a specialist company.
