Welcome to the exciting world of category management! This is where data transforms into gold for both Retailers and Suppliers/Manufacturers. With heaps of data at our fingertips, there are some key measures you should know about to make the most of it. In this blog I'll be covering the "Index" calculation.

In a previous blog, I wrote about the importance of business acumen, which is the ability to assess an external market and make effective decisions. Or more simply put, it’s understanding how YOU and the work you do fit into the bigger picture.

Many of us “forget” the Shopper in our category reviews, business reviews, assortment reviews, space planning, sales presentations, internal presentations … So why should we incorporate "Shopper" into just about everything that we do? According to the CMA’s recent “CatMan 2.0” initiative,

Common (Mis)Interpretations: Category Development Index in Category Analysis There is significant emphasis on deriving effective and strategic insights in category management. With all of the incredible data sources available to both Retailers and Suppliers / Manufacturers, there are certain measures that are consistently used to derive these insights. For some of the commonly used measures, there’s also a tendency to generalize the interpretation of the numbers, or not scratch below the surface and think about what the numbers really mean. Examples? Category Development Index (CDI) and Fair Share Index (FSI) …

When using data and analysis, the numbers on their own don’t tell the whole story. By applying thought and strategy to the interpretation of the data, you will come up with better category solutions. One of my favorite examples of this is the use of the “Retailer Market Share” number in category management. If you’ve ever heard, “You are underdeveloped in a brand, subcategory or category, and you need to fix this!”, then read on …

Learn how to build strategic thinking into your analysis to understand more advanced Shopper solutions I’ve been writing and speaking about the components of category management which relate directly to the Category Management Association’s certification requirements, including: Steps of the category management process and the importance of Retailer strategy; Key data sources available and the different data insights to uncover; Drilling through data (including in a limited data environment) to discover strategic insights; and Assessing the health of your business.

Learn how to assess the health of your category or brand to uncover new strategic business insights and opportunities! A category or brand health assessment looks at the external environment in addition to internal, category and segment-specific measures. It should address questions like: What is happening with the Consumer / Shopper in the category or brand? How is the economic environment impacting business results? What trends are influencing this category (competitive, market)? What tactics are driving overall category results? Which activities should Start? Stop? Continue? Too often we’re so caught up with looking at the business at a micro level that we forget to look from a bigger picture perspective – which is a great indicator of not only what’s happened in the past but gives a glimpse of the future from a bigger lens. The opportunity? Complete a category or brand health assessment. By looking at your business using multi-dimensional factors that address the questions above, you will be able to unlock strategic business insights that give new areas of opportunity and understanding for your business.