Store inspection allows companies to receive updated information from different sales points. A quick analysis of the areas for improvement at each establishment after the store inspection is an attribute highly regarded by companies, since it turns into an improved service quality, happier customers and greater profits in the long run.
Given that store inspection can refer to either the image, order, hygiene, presence of the employees, stock, availability of products, or the use of promotional material, among others, and because many companies have several points of sale or stores that need to be inspected, it can be hard to cover properly all the risk factors that must be monitored.
Because of it, your company must remember the following elements when it comes to carrying out a store inspection:
- What needs to be controlled or checked?
- What is the conformity or non-conformity criteria (what is correct and what isn’t)?
- How often must the inspection take place: frequency?
- Who performs the inspection and which are the proper procedures?
- Is the final product suitable?
Nowadays it’s possible to make the store inspection process simpler, upgrading it with tools suitable for smartphones, adding multimedia elements, completing the field information digitally and geo referencing all the captured data.
But we can take a look at the past of store inspection reports -which many companies are battling to leave behind- to find out how the new technologies and platforms have given these processes a new boost.
The past: paper forms and long waiting times
Companies in the past of store inspection reports lose time and money by using obsolete paper forms. These paper reports are completed at the respective store while the inspection takes place. Then the forms must be physically sent to the person responsible for the area, which could take days or even weeks. Once they arrived, the person responsible for the area processes the store inspection reports for its internal use –which also takes time-, analyzes them and sends them back by e-mail to the respective store for implementation of the necessary changes. The complete process can take weeks even before considering the problems paper forms can cause, such as lost or damaged information, illegible handwriting, among others. The use of paper forms for store inspection is a growing setback for companies which aim at improving their productivity with more efficient and advanced tools.
The present times: mobility, information in real time and quick answer to problems
The newest apps and platforms suitable for smartphones and tablets upgrade the old paper forms to mobile forms, completing on the field all the information digitally sending it in real time to the main office, attaching photographs, the employee’s signature, among other elements, and geo referencing all the captured information. The data is consolidated and plotted in real time on a dashboard, where the performance of the indicators can be monitored, and strategic, informed actions can be taken a lot quicker than before, from a comprehensive perspective of the problems at hand.
The present time of these reports results in more efficient ways of carrying out the store inspection: where conflicts took weeks to be solved, now are taken care of in a matter of hours.
So, why haven’t you kept up to date? It’s time your company also joined the present times!
DataScope is a platform which allows various industries to streamline, organize and evaluate the work of their field staffs thanks to online forms which provide real time indicators 100% adaptable to any field.
