Suss your stock shortage issues with affordable image recognition technology

Suss your stock shortage issues with affordable image recognition technology

– James Lamplugh our Commercial Director, at Tactical Solutions

Grow sales. Drive efficiencies. Deliver better insights. We know the new generation of image recognition technology can do all of these things, but what about tackling the stark stock availability challenges facing brands this very minute?

Availability is a fundamental factor when it comes to sales success and ensuring stock levels are maintained (and in view!) is obviously essential.

But with supply chain disruption and labour shortages plaguing the sector, coupled with the need to bring down costs, this feels more challenging to achieve than ever. Let’s look at why image recognition technology could be the answer.

Welcome to next-gen image recognition….

• Collects richer, more accurate data deployed to any Android or iPhone handset.
• Easy analysis of your own products against competitors.
• Drive efficiencies in your field team, reduce the time taken to collect and record data
• Point to required action instantly.
• Affordable and helps improve your profits!

• Rapid labour solutions (available in 15-minute chunks) to correct the compliance issues.

Wield the power of insights

Low stock levels on shelves – whether its due to a lack of retailer adherence or a supply chain issue – can leave you out of pocket. Here’s how to protect against that… tap into real-time data.

Using the latest image recognition technology, you can quickly identify on-shelf availability and address problematic stock situations with instant labour immediately available without any hassle.

Consider difficult conversations around compliance a thing of the past. With this undeniable evidence at your fingertips, you can very easily query a lack of ‘facings’ with retail partners.

If it’s good enough for Kellogg’s…

We recently undertook a project with Kellogg’s to identify how their range and space in store had been impacted over the last 12 months.

Image recognition highlighted that both space and availability had been impacted, and reconfirmed just how important correct SKU count at fixture was in delivering forecast sales. Our technology provided actionable insights to Kellogg’s in a format that allowed them to create a shared growth agenda with the retailer, supporting future ranging decisions.

How image recognition works

Image recognition technology now makes it possible to monitor shelving with a quick snap of a photo.

It works for any category, shape, or size of product. Crucially, it’s cost effective, easy to set up and eliminates the need for complex planograms – unlike older products which required hours of upfront admin to educate the system! Who’s got time for that?

Using the Tactical Solutions’ Recognise tool, facings can be distinguished via pack size, for example, with near-perfect accuracy – a 96% accuracy rate can now be achieved from just 10-20 training photos.

Less faff, more sales

The images gathered and read by the system mean brands can access an immediate view of their overall share of space at any one time.

Benchmark and compare against competitors, confront a lack of retailer adherence, and spot and react to any stocking trends on a hyper-local, regional, or national scale. In a scenario in which national stocks are low, it can enable an effective redistribution of any remaining units.

Power to the people

Of course, we mustn’t forget the importance of marrying the tech eye with the human eye.

Reports are far more powerful when combined with trend analysis produced by the professionals routinely visiting stores on your brand’s behalf. And, no one is more passionate about the power of having people on the ground than us.

We know from experience that having the best people representing your brand means you get the best results – better recorded data, more effectively actioned insights and even stronger relationships with retailers. We remove the employment and training hassle for you. It’s as simple as 1 + 1.

Find out how Recognise would transform your business, contact hello@tactical-solutions.co.uk