Cross-Entity Recommendation Service for Supplier Data Visibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Suppliers face challenges in accessing timely and comprehensive retail sales data for their products, leading to incomplete visibility into product inventories and sales performance, which hampers effective inventory management and promotion strategies.
Innovation Solution
A cloud-based system that processes transaction data from retailers to provide real-time correlations and insights across entities, enabling real-time notifications and recommendations for inventory management, product positioning, and promotion optimization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If suppliers request sales data from retailers through traditional channels, then they can obtain some sales information, but the data is delayed by 4-6 weeks and lacks real-time visibility
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a cloud-based data intermediary system that sits between retailers and suppliers, continuously collecting and processing sales data in real-time. This intermediary platform uses automated data feeds and APIs to bridge the information gap, eliminating the need for suppliers to manually request delayed data while providing both timely and complete sales information.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary data collection and processing actions by continuously monitoring sales transactions as they occur at retailer points of sale. Rather than waiting for suppliers to request data, the system proactively gathers, validates, and prepares sales information in advance, making it immediately available when suppliers need it for decision-making.
2Loss of information
If suppliers invest significant time and resources to obtain sales data from retailers, then they can access some data, but the data lacks basket-level insights and promotion execution information
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple data sources and information types into a single comprehensive sales data platform. It combines transaction data, basket-level analytics, promotion execution information, and inventory data from multiple retailers into one unified view, providing suppliers with complete information without requiring separate data collection efforts for each data type.
Solution Approach 2:
The cloud-based platform serves multiple functions simultaneously: it collects sales data, analyzes basket-level associations, tracks promotion execution, monitors inventory levels, and provides predictive analytics. This multi-functional system eliminates the need for suppliers to invest separate resources in each data collection and analysis function.
3Ease of operation
If suppliers plan and manage inventories without real-time sales data, then they can maintain operations, but they make decisions without accurate retail sales information
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a continuous feedback loop where real-time sales data from retailers is automatically fed back to suppliers through the cloud platform. This feedback mechanism provides suppliers with up-to-date information on product performance, enabling them to adjust inventory levels, pricing, and promotion strategies based on actual sales conditions rather than planning without data.
Data Source
AI summary
A cross-entity and cross-retailer platform is provided that captures transaction data, indexes, and stores the data in a cloud-accessible data store. A service is provided that custom processes retailer and entity-defined workflows based on purchase transactions using the data store. The service also generates and maintains correlations between items, the transactions, geographical locations, retailers, and stores of the retailers. The correlations are provided as timely retail recommendations to the retailers and entities for suggested changes that are likely to optimize purchase transactions. The entities may comprise manufacturers of an item, a supplier of the item, a distributor of the item, and a Consumer Packaging Goods (CPG) company of the item.