In the crowded field of cosmetics, every sale counts. Sales audits can help you improve the online ordering system and keep your entire team aligned.
Operating a cosmetics business requires you to keep so many products on hand – diverse lines of lipstick tubes, makeup kits, foundations, eyeliners, and more. As a result, tracking how each item fares at your stores can be daunting. If regular sales audits consist of simply checking sales versus inventory, your business might be missing the bigger picture.
How can you find out which products make the most money? Or which items tend to sit on shelves for far too long?
Going over the sales and stock numbers is always a great start. However, you should also conduct deeper sales audits to get an accurate picture of whether your business is turning a profit. Look at more than just sales figures, but customer behaviour and store activity. When conducted regularly, sales audits can improve your business.
The value of sales audits for online orders
Selling cosmetics online has unique challenges. While online stores provide the convenience of anywhere, anytime shopping, many clients prefer testing cosmetics before purchasing them.
For example, lipstick products come in various shades – but not every shade works well on every skin tone. Consumers want to try before they buy. Therefore, accounting for all your cosmetic products to ensure their online availability is essential. Of course, once a customer finds the perfect shade, it takes little effort to convert them to loyal customers who repeatedly order the same product.
As the B2B company supplying these online cosmetic stores, your sales team must maintain its edge when dealing with customers. They should know about the challenges facing online stores, especially with the ordering systems.
Conducting sales audits for online stores keeps your operations efficient. Sales audits are also a great way to keep up with changes the market regularly imposes.
Specifically, sales audits can help the business identify with its customers. Without testing or sampling, how can the online store attract new buyers? The sales audit can evaluate how existing sales and marketing content converts prospects into customers. If the findings suggest improving content, then the business should do so.
In addition, sales audits should also evaluate the current reporting system. Does the sales team have enough information to take its efforts to the next level? Is this information readily available to salespeople anytime they need it? Or does the sales team need to go back and forth to the office to get updated information on price, stock levels, and availability? A thorough sales audit can answer these questions.
Improved sales orders and customer experience
Conducting sales audits allows the business to map out a customer’s journey through the sales funnel. Identifying problems in the process can help the sales team plug the gaps. From the moment the sales team starts to qualify prospects until it provides post-sales support, the sales process should always lead to an excellent customer experience.
Online stores, in particular, should ensure the most popular products remain visible and available. In addition, getting the pulse of your customer base can lead to more accurate forecasting, which means better inventory management.
Sales audits can also reveal opportunities for upselling and cross-selling. For instance, frequent eyeliner purchasers might also want matching lipstick and eye shadow. Who better to supply these additional products than the store they’re already buying from?
A deep understanding of the customer is essential to improving their experience. After all, that loyal customer from a decade ago might have evolved its business strategy over the year. Instead of focusing on one area of cosmetics, this customer might decide to expand as a seller of various products. A thorough sales audit can uncover these slow changes and equip the business to handle them.
Sales audits keep you on top of cosmetics industry trends
Successful sales audits often lead companies to learn more and capitalize on emerging industry trends. Shifts in consumer behavior are common, and sales audits are more than capable of detecting these trends.
Audits also allow the business to gather the necessary data and compare its performance with competitors. Knowing how the company stands against the rest of the industry is an excellent opportunity to play up strengths and improve weaknesses.
Aside from trends, sales audits also help companies understand the impact of external factors such as inflation, raw material prices, and transportation costs. This enables companies to make better-informed decisions about whether their sales targets or pricing strategies are suited for the current business climate.
Make sure teams remain goal-oriented
Sales audits can also determine if the entire organization remains committed to focusing on the customer. For example, are the materials developed by the marketing department aligned with sales and aimed at the target audience? Additionally, are the logistics and warehousing departments helpful in reporting accurate inventory?
Are sales representatives making efficient use of their time when visiting clients and negotiating deals? Finally, are the sales managers monitoring their teams and helping when needed?
Getting teams to work together to achieve the company goals requires alignment and cooperation in a big way. Organizations with the tools to monitor field sales performance and access real-time data will have the advantage of aligning efforts.
Easily implement regular sales audits with Skynamo’s online ordering app
Cosmetics companies intent on leaving the competition blushing with envy should ensure they have the tools needed to successfully implement sales audits with ease. Skynamo is an online ordering app that offers full field sales customer relationship management (CRM). It that gives your team the information it needs to complete the sale.
Instead of referring customers to the head office for data on product pricing, inventory, or availability, Skynamo gives field sales reps access to this information via their smart devices. The software lets sales managers track their sales team members during their calls. As a result, they can easily intervene and provide expert assistance anytime a salesperson needs it.
Skynamo can improve the sales process and keep your team updated in every way. Visit us today to see how we can work together to take your business to the next level. We’ll also be happy to arrange a free demonstration so you can experience Skynamo first-hand.
