2021 was full of numerous headwinds in the CPG landscape – from changing consumer demand, supply chain disruptions along almost every touchpoint, and a lack of workers willing to take on jobs – that put many brands into challenging situations where they were forced to innovate in order to survive.
Below is a recap of the top content pieces we’ve recently covered on how field teams are tackling the ongoing labor and supply chain issues that have disrupted CPG around the world.
What can brands and merchandising teams do to help guide their field teams through the ongoing labor shortages right now? We recommend that they equip their field teams with new, modern technology that enables them to be as efficient and effective as possible out in the field in order to make the most out of their existing talent.
In this blog, we’ll cover 4 ways a modern retail execution platform can help guide your business through labor issues by deploying your most precious resources (your field team) more strategically.
It’s becoming abundantly clear that many shelves will be empty well into 2022, and many field teams and retail stores will continue to be short-staffed. However – we have a few recommendations brands and merchandisers can make in order to make the most out of a trying situation.
The truth is, a strong retail execution platform can’t solve for SKUs being out-of-stock if there is no product available. In today’s economy, there’s much out of the control for your field team. But here are things you may be able to control: 1) Control over your field team, where they go, and 2) the actions they take every day in the store. So let’s dive into these three new ideas.
A unique approach that has emerged and proven successful for many brands during the pandemic has been outsourcing parts of their retail execution operations to a third-party merchandising team. This blended-team strategy allows for brands to boost coverage and manage through peaks and valleys of workforce demand while protecting cost and ultimately business margin.
Below we’ll highlight how this temporary outsourcing strategy may prove to be a mainstay for many teams moving forward to ensure problems in the field NOW, don’t linger because of staffing issues.
The ability for retailers around the world to keep shelves stocked and meet planograms as agreed upon is incredibly at risk during these times, and brands are feeling the pains of these understaffed retail stores during the holiday season. When you’re dealing with this type of challenge and can see that a retailer’s sales on your SKUs are not where they were last year, one of your primary assumptions is likely that they’re no longer able to execute as planned because of their staffing shortages.
However, here’s where your field team can step in to save the day, and the SKU. Even though a brand may have agreements in place with retailers to meet compliance requirements, when a store is understaffed, some things just may get put on the backburner or even missed completely. Winnings brands know that by equipping their field teams with store-level data and insights, they can easily pick up the slack in potentially unreliable stores that show underperforming products.
Uncover how today’s successful CG companies are winning in the marketplace through nimble retail execution strategies and technologies that improve performance metrics and maximize sales.
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