Abstract

BOADA, Antonio José  and  MAYORCA, Rómulo. Demand planning in catalog sales companies. Rev. Lasallista Investig. [online]. 2011, vol.8, n.2, pp.124-135. ISSN 1794-4449.

This work documented and organized the procedures used for business intelligence in the strategic planning sections of catalog sales companies. These companies have several particularities and differences if they are compared to traditional retail sales companies, which go to market according to a dependence on retailers or third parties. Direct sales companies base their marketing strategies in each catalog, introducing a new sales scenario for products, offers and campaign focuses. Products are offered to consumers trough the work of independent sales representatives, who earn a commission percentage on every sale they make. Sales planning in this kind of companies starts at the marketing department and directly impact the supply chain, in order to have the items available while the catalog is in force. This scenario brings logistic inconveniences every time products are oversold (an excess of demand that goes beyond the capacity a company has to produce those products) or in the opposite case, when they are undersold. Examples of these inconveniences are the excess of the lack of inventory, plus the not adequate income expectations. Both undesired scenarios of over sales and under sales directly impact the sales system and the final consumer perceives a bad image of the company, affecting the brand.

Keywords : Estimation; prediction; direct sales companies; catalog sales companies.

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