Trade data essential for business, here’s why!!
We are in the era of data explosion. The increasing adaptability and capability of technology in gleaning data; from everything and anything around us have made it so. The quest for more and more information is out of our desire to be in better control of the future. We believe information is power, and therefore we need data to provide information that will empower us to take charge of the immediate and the future environments in which we do business.
The ever increasing complex nature of the sales environment no longer leaves room for too much guesswork or suck-of-the-thumb projections. Organizations with global reach or even local operations need to have information, and pretty quick; to be able to meet the dynamic demands of market forces and to also align the manufacturing, logistics, and other operational functions for success and sustainable productivity.
Data obtainable through the regular activities of the field force can provide information such as the number of sales calls/visits, journey plan/compliance, load utilization, in-outlet trade time, travel time, collections, order patterns, customer feedback, competitor activities, pricing, and so on…the list could belong!
Businesses do have their unique characteristics and dynamics which could be sharply different from the next-door-neighbor company. Organizations need to gather data only about what is relevant and important to the business. Taking more than that could be information overload and a sheer waste of resources. The trade data gathered will be real-time and much more true to life. Since this is not a ‘laboratory experiment’ or a guided research project, data obtained will produce information that will be credible and applicable to market intelligence.
Futuristic organizations need to invest in technology that will enable or unleash the data-gathering potential of their existing field team. The Field Force Automation tool is my best recommendation for this purpose.
