Did you know that the top 25 fashion retailers garnered over 90% of retail revenue during the pandemic? What are they doing right, and why don’t we see more of it? What’s holding back other players?

Much of it has to do with business analytics tools and data culture. Not having the right retail analytics software and mindset can set you back. This article introduces you to the best retail solutions and answers the above questions.

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Best Retail Analytics Software Tools

The SelectHub research team compared leading retail systems by feature. They ranked each attribute on how well it addressed the needs of the retail industry. Each product got a score of 100 for fully supported features while missing features received a zero.

Plus, our analysts made a note of partner integrations, required workarounds and the need for custom development for features missing out of the box.

Here’s a discussion of the top five retail analytics tools. We unlocked this data from our JumpStart Platform to assist your software search.

Power BI

It’s a software suite with a desktop app, report server and online service. There’s a mobile app for people who want to stay connected on the go.

Power BI supports retail companies by pulling data from POS, eCommerce, CRM and financial data platforms. In-app data conversion and cleaning are available. Dashboard views help identify top products, adjust pricing and track performance.

Power BI Pro is a per-user license but is limited in content-sharing abilities. Opt for Power BI Premium for capacity pricing and unlimited content sharing. Or choose Premium Per User, a cost-effective license with some Premium features.

Power BI has robust data management and retail analytics. Source

Highest Rated Modules According to Our Data

• Data Management — 100
• Embedded Analytics — 100
• Mobile BI — 100
• Dashboarding and Data Visualization — 94
• Data Querying — 90

Top Benefits

• Acquire Data: Connects to Shopify and Magento. The retail analytics tool pulls data from Salesforce, Dynamics 365, QuickBooks and NetSuite.
• Plan: Determine what customers are worth to you with CLV. Test scenarios and change prices in theory to see how customers might react. Power BI offers a built-in set of calculations called DAX.
• Stay Proactive: Invest right by identifying top-performing products from sales data. Launch new categories by tapping into customer sentiment.
• Manage Operations: Improve inventory management — avoid stockouts without paying for what you don’t need. Plug gaps after comparing store performance by regions and products.
• Control Access: Secure information row-wise and grant access by role.

Primary Features

• Dashboards: View sales figures and group buyers according to similar traits. Keep track of stock levels using graphics, numbers, tiles and text.
• Decomposition Tree: Go deeper into multidimensional metrics. Drill down in a sequence or analyze data in any order. This AI-driven visual is specific to Power BI Desktop and Service.
• Report Builder: Create catalogs, brochures and forms in a paginated format. Download the Report Builder on Windows desktop.
• Q&A: Ask plain-text questions and get answers in English. View results as graphics and modify them as desired.

Limitations

• Doesn’t offer over 10 GB of data per user in the Pro version.
• Doesn’t offer live report access in offline mobile mode.

Features Not Fully Supported According to Our Data

• PMML — Not Supported
• Regression Analysis — Moderately Supported Out of the Box
• Text Mining — Supported With Additional Modules
• Automated Anomaly Alerting — Not Supported
• Reports Versioning — Not Supported

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Oracle Analytics Cloud (OAC)

Oracle Analytics supports the vendor’s consumer, retail and sales platforms. You can adjust prices, launch products and manage inventory using its AI module. The vendor offers powerful machine learning functionality for data pipelines.

Other popular features include a visual app builder, data flows and NLP. The platform lets you analyze complex data with Oracle Essbase. The system can produce graphics based on the analyzed data or you can make your own.

Retail analytics software and ML make a winning combination. Source

Highest Rated Modules According to Our Data

• Dashboarding and Data Visualization — 97
• Data Management — 95
• Reporting — 93
• Mobile BI — 90
• Advanced Analytics — 89

Top Benefits

• Boost Revenue: Plan promotions with an eye on the future with predictive analytics. Identify the most lucrative channels to draw buyers.
• Satisfy Customers: Gain customer information with Oracle Data Cloud’s data collective. One thousand five hundred retailers, 1,000 product categories and five trillion transactions form the data store.
• Optimize Pricing: Decide how to price your products and how often to adjust them. Learn how competitors are pricing their products. Gather data on what users are saying about your brand and industry.
• Network: Position your brand by posting your successes online. Set up Twitter and LinkedIn pages in OAC. Or configure a Slack channel for exclusive networking.

Primary Features

• Data Replication: Get high-quality data with Oracle Autonomous Data Warehouse and Database Classic Cloud Service.
• Complete Insights: Get data on buyers and suppliers from the Oracle Retail Data Store.
• Single Portal: Grant data access by role. Create a common portal for buyers, managers, planners and analysts. Access custom apps from this central hub.
• Backup and Restore: Hope for the best; prepare for the worst. Safeguard against data loss by saving reports, connections and settings.
• Spot Anomalies: Flag dirty data with machine learning.

Limitations

• Offers basic support for sentiment analysis out-of-the-box.

Features Not Fully Supported According to Our Data

• Integrated Workflow Actions — Not Supported
• White Labeling — Not Supported
• Secure Write-Backs — Moderately Supported Out of the Box
• Reports Versioning — Not Supported
• Scenario and What-if Analysis — Supported With Additional Modules

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MicroStrategy

The platform is a retail analytics tool connecting to over 200 applications. It can source data from AWS, Google Cloud, POS, eCommerce and supply chain systems.

Design custom apps and add graphics, layout and interactive elements. Engage users where they work — embed content into your apps. Save research time by getting information where you work with HyperIntelligence.

Explore data and build custom content with retail analytics software. Source

Highest Rated Modules According to Our Data

• Dashboarding and Data Visualization — 100
• Data Management — 100
• Mobile BI — 100
• Advanced Analytics — 89
• Reporting — 89

Top Benefits

• Boost Sales: Sell better with the required information at your fingertips. Target customers with the right message by grouping them with AI.
• Discover Insights: Produce reports with big data discovery, reporting and analysis. Save time with custom dashboards, report templates and formatting abilities. Build content using personalized apps and natural language commands.
• Accelerate Analytics: Benefit from the cloud with numerous data warehouse connections. The software is vendor-hosted and maintenance-free. Speed up data discovery with AI.
• Access Data: Insert AI into workflows and embed analytics content into employee apps and workflows. Embedded content can include next-step tips with prescriptive analytics.

Primary Features

• Advanced Analytics: Pivot according to customer desires. Position your product better with forecasting and customer segmentation.
• Functions: Create metrics and KPIs with over 300 functions.
• Security: Build trust by following data privacy rules. Secure sensitive buyer information and purchase histories.
• Animations: Show how metrics change over time with animations in charts. Use a third-party tool, VitaraCharts or the platform’s native Flash mode.

Limitations

• Can be expensive for small setups.

Features Not Fully Supported According to Our Data

• Scenario and What-If Analysis — Moderately Supported Out of the Box
• Voice-Based Natural Language Reports — Supported With Partner Integrations
• Geospatial Functions and Calculations — Supported With Partner Integrations
• Automated Anomaly Alerting — Not Supported
• Automated Algorithm Selection — Not Supported

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Qlik Sense

The system supports marketing and sales strategies in companies of all sizes. Qlik Sense works with leading databases, websites and cloud BI platforms. Plus, it pulls data from Microsoft, Google, AWS, Snowflake and SAP systems.

Urban Outfitters solved their siloed-data problem with Qlik Data Integration. They moved their digital assets into Snowflake and used Qlik Sense for analysis.

The platform doesn’t support PMML, a primary requirement for using predictive models. But it makes up for it by integrating with KNIME. Try the platform free for the first 30 days to check its forecasting abilities.

Retail analytics software platforms with NLP make insights accessible. Source

Highest Rated Modules According to Our Data

• Dashboarding and Data Visualization — 100
• Data Management — 100
• Advanced Analytics — 95
• Mobile BI — 93
• Data Querying — 92

Top Benefits

• Stay Competitive: Get the latest updates with reporting support from Qlik Big Data Index and Qlik NPrinting. Get answers to plain language queries from Qlik Insight Bot. Add location details to data with Qlik GeoAnalytics.
• Win Customers: Track the buyer journey across stores, websites, call centers and apps. Tailor offerings to buyer demand with information on what they bought in the past.
• Work Independently: Get retail information with self-service BI and the Insight Advisor. Set reports to generate and distribute on cue with Qlik NPrinting.
• Track Sentiment: Learn what people say about your brand from YouTube, Twitter and Facebook. Search social media sites for product-related comments.
• Build Apps: Design applications and deploy them to any platform. Qlik supports apps for any device with HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript and web sockets.

Primary Features

• Qlik Integrations: Pay for Qlik NPrinting to get report distribution. Buy Qlik Insight Bot for plain-text insights and Qlik GeoAnalytics for location data.
• Qlik GeoAnalytics: Uncover patterns linking stores and buyers in separate locations. Keep maps up-to-date using a connector that pulls data using location IDs and coordinates.
• Smart Search: Search within the entire dataset with its smart search feature.
• Central Hub: Manage sources, assign tasks and control access from a single interface.

Limitations

• Qlik Sense Mobile doesn’t support Direct Query.
• Doesn’t support advanced calculations and calculated dimensions when using Direct Discovery.

Features Not Fully Supported According to Our Data

• PMML — Supported With Workarounds
• Regression Analysis — Moderately Supported Out of the Box
• Sentiment Analysis — Moderately Supported Out of the Box
• Time-Series Analysis and Forecasting — Supported With Workarounds
• Key Driver Analysis — Moderately Supported Out of the Box

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TIBCO Spotfire

TIBCO supports retail businesses with AI and visual reporting. Spotfire can ingest many data types, including IoT and streaming data. Workflows are reusable, and an embedded R engine is available for forecasting.

TIBCO introduced plain language searches with the launch of Spotfire X in 2018. User roles and permissions are well-defined. Analysts and business authors can create dashboards and edit them. For consumers, interactivity is limited to custom views.

Track sales performance by region with retail analytics software. Source

Highest Rated Modules According to Our Data

• IoT Analytics — 100
• Mobile BI — 100
• Data Management — 99
• Geospatial Visualizations and Analysis — 94
• Dashboarding and Data Visualization — 91

Top Benefits

• Reach Customers: Compel leads to engage with your brand. Personalize your offerings using data from Spotfire Advanced Analytics.
• Uncover Patterns: Identify data correlations with Spotfire X Machine Learning. Analyze data faster with search suggestions from Smart Data Discovery.
• Manage Inventory: Order the right amount of stock at the right time. Anticipate demand with built-in forecasting, thanks to its R engine.
• Act on Data: Define and track KPIs with your team. Get answers by using powerful calculations on complex data. Use a variety of custom expressions and statistics.

Primary Features

• Mods: Get more from Spotfire — build governed, secure apps for specific tasks. The platform has a JavaScript framework for developing extensions.
• Runtime Engine: Speed up analytics. Deploy R scripts without rewriting the code with TIBCO’s R engine.
• NLQ: Describe dashboards using summaries in plain language. Define custom templates in Wordsmith with your company’s business terms.
• Actions: Trigger external actions directly from a dashboard. Configure the actions in each graphic and decide which data to share.
• Data Streams: Get live data updates with a full-fledged Spotfire Streaming License. Or use the Spotfire Data Streams add-on.

Limitations

• Doesn’t provide full functionality with the Data Streams add-on.

Features Not Fully Supported According to Our Data

• Sentiment Analysis — Supported With Partner Integrations
• Text Mining — Supported With Partner Integrations
• Automated Algorithm Selection and Model Tuning — Supported With Additional Modules
• Automated Feature Generation — Supported With Additional Modules
• Animations — Supported With Custom Development

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How We Choose Products

Our team of writers and analysts at SelectHub is committed to giving you the best recommendations based on our data. To make our list, products had to meet two criteria:

1. Closely match the topic
2. Earn a top-5 analyst score in our selection platform

Our analyst scores are based on an in-depth research process using primary and secondary sources. This includes SelectHub Analyst Briefings, direct communication with vendors, and reviewing materials such as user reviews, product brochures, specification sheets, case studies, user manuals, and technical documentation.

Our platform’s Scoring Engine processes the research and computes the analyst score. The score also factors in platform settings such as industry and company size.

Learn more about our research methodology and editorial standards

Use Cases

Walmart

Here’s how Walmart aced the retail game.

• They enabled voice shopping by pairing their app with smartphones and speakers.
• With text-to-shop, you can search, add or remove products from your cart and schedule a delivery.
• Ask Sam, an AI voice assistant, helps staff locate items, look up prices and view sales information. Walmart has millions of products spread over thousands of stores, making Ask Sam a life-saver for staff.

PDPAOLA

PDPAOLA, an online jewelry business, struggled with scaling data pipelines on Google. Would they need to hire more employees? The company opted for Google Cloud Dataprep, powered by Alteryx, for automated data prep. Now, one employee manages several data pipelines!

Their other challenge was procuring deeper insights.

They chose Stitch to ingest diverse data types and Google BigQuery to clean and organize data. Visualization and reporting happen in Google Data Studio. Now, they can view shipping and product information and Google Analytics data together.

Dataprep drives intelligent business decisions, empowering the company to hold its own.

Features to Consider

Here’s a handy requirements list.

• Data integration and Management
  • Connectors and Integrations: Can the system connect to your POS, CRM, inventory and marketing platforms? Are pre-built connectors and integrations available?
  • Data Cleaning: Can it handle missing and incorrect values and duplicates? Are data cleaning and conversion tools available?
  • Security and Governance: Will data stay secure and confidential? Is user management part of the feature set?
• Analytics
  • Reporting and Visualization: Are your preferred reports, dashboards, charts and graphs available?
  • Analysis Techniques: Are descriptive statistics, correlations and predictive modeling available? How does the software perform when handling large datasets?
  • AI and Machine Learning: Is workflow automation available? Which parts of the data modeling process can you automate?
• Is the user interface intuitive and accessible?
• Is the tool scalable and affordable?
• Did you factor in hidden costs and additional charges?
• How responsive is vendor support?

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Next Steps

The sky is the limit for retail analytics software, and companies are nailing it with modern tech stacks. Convincing senior stakeholders about the pros and cons of your shortlisted product requires hardcore data. And we have just the thing.

Get our free comparison report to evaluate up to five products at a time for your company size. Our analyst scores will help your stakeholders make an informed decision. All the best!

Have you used retail analytics platforms? What were your takeaways? Let us know in the comments!