Using E-commerce

Data to Identify
Growth Opportunities
for your Brand
JUAN HACELAS
Not to be distributed without permission.

The data included in this document is accurate

according to data from Euromonitor International
at time of publication: February 2021.
Using E-commerce Data to
Identify Growth Opportunities
for your Brand

Juan Hacelas

CONNECT WITH US

© 2021 Euromonitor International

Contents

1 Introduction
Why does e-commerce matter now?

4 Using E-commerce Data to Determine Brand Goals

Developing strategic objectives
Product positioning and assortment
Best-fit online retail partners

10 Developing Tactical Metrics to Track Success

Competitor-led dynamic price management
Tracking changes in products

15 Conclusion

16 Get the E-commerce Data you Need

17 How Can Euromonitor International Help?

© Euromonitor International
Introduction

In this white paper, we will show you how to size opportunities and win in the digital space. We’ll use an
example of a global beauty player in the US facial care space to highlight some of the indispensable ways
e-commerce data can be applied to building both strategic and tactical brand goals. The illustrated use
cases can be similarly applied within any FMCG category with an online presence.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) is significantly accelerating the growth of online sales for many categories. This
expansion of e-commerce platforms is expected to be permanent, especially since the full potential of the
existing e-commerce infrastructure is yet to be fully exploited and has capacity to support even further
growth. Consequently, the importance of revamping or building e-commerce strategies will be critical for
future success.

There are vast and divergent volumes of e-commerce data available from a wide variety of sources.
Companies need to understand how to best harness all this data to develop successful competitive
strategies, to inform and ascertain both long-term strategic objectives and short-term goals.

Why does e-commerce matter now?

COVID-19 radically shifted consumer shopping behaviours. Besides shopping more in already-familiar
categories, consumers turned to e-commerce for a range of categories for the first time during the
pandemic, permanently increasing the number of e-commerce shoppers. New shoppers, specifically baby
boomers, also came online for the first time, driving the boom in researching products and services online,
according to data from Euromonitor International’s Voice of the Industry: COVID-19 Survey.

As early as April 2020, over 70% of industry experts surveyed by Euromonitor experienced increased
online sales. That performance grew to over 90% by October 2020, with 54% of respondents citing greatly
increased online sales relative to October 2019.

© Euromonitor International
2 Introduction

Change in Online Sales in Past Month, Relative to 2019

Apr-20

Jul-20

Oct-20

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Greatly increased Not sure Somewhat increased

Stayed the same Somewhat decreased Greatly decreased

Source: Euromonitor International COVID-19 Voice of the Industry Survey, October / April / July 2020
Shown to respondents working in the retailing industry

The big unknown in the industry today is what portion of this

e-commerce spike will remain post-pandemic. 73% of industry
73%
of industry professionals
professionals surveyed in October thought COVID-19 would
expect the increase in online
drive a permanent increase in online shopping, up from 54% of
shopping from COVID-19 to
those surveyed in April. E-commerce will remain a key growth
be permanent
opportunity for FMCG suppliers and retailers, underscoring the
need to revisit or develop e-commerce strategies moving forward.

© Euromonitor International
 Introduction 3

Expectations in Online Shopping and Spending Behaviour

90%

80%

70%
% industry professionals

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
Beauty & personal care Consumer health Food and beverages Household essentials Retailing

Short‐term change only (Q1 and Q2 2020) Mid‐term change, but will eventually return to pre‐crisis norms
Permanent change No change
Not sure

Source: Euromonitor International COVID-19 Voice of the Industry Survey, October 2020
Shown to respondents working in the retailing industry

Euromonitor’s E-commerce Readiness Model uses analytic modelling to determine which countries and
categories have the best market conditions to support higher e-commerce sales. It shows that the retail
market globally could support more than $77.7 billion in additional
e-commerce sales without further infrastructure expansion, based
on market dynamics at the onset of the pandemic. Industries with
relatively low e-commerce sales, like fresh and packaged food and in additional e-commerce
$77.7 bn
alcoholic drinks, have potential for significant movement toward sales could be supported by
online sales ($38.5 billion globally), while other more developed the retail market globally
e-commerce industries like apparel ($3.4 billion globally) still show
prospects for growth. In a similar capacity, countries at varying stages of e-commerce maturity point to
continued prospects for online shifts. From developed online markets like China and the US to emerging
markets like India and Brazil, there is room to grow in nearly all geographies.

© Euromonitor International
Using E-commerce Data to
Determine Brand Goals

The everchanging world of retailing and marketing FMCG products has resulted in brand manager roles
that combine both the everyday tactical managing of product sales in addition to the design of longer-term
strategic goals.

A tactical plan focuses on specific short-term goals, priorities and initiatives required to achieve the
longer-term objectives set out by a company’s strategy. Strategic objectives are based on a company’s
capabilities and competencies, while tactical plans focus on how to deliver those capabilities as efficiently
as possible.

Both strategic and tactical plans require data for firstly establishing objectives and priorities, and later
for tracking and evaluating performance. However, the volume and frequency of the data utilised varies
significantly as strategic objectives are typically set in 3–5-year horizons whereas tactical plans are focused
on the immediate daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly or annual initiatives. E-commerce data can be leveraged
to inform and develop both sets of plans.

Developing strategic objectives

To better illustrate how you can apply e-commerce data to your own strategic objectives, we will use an
example of a beauty company looking at expanding into the US facial care market. One of the goals of
this global beauty player was to extend its brand into the facial care space, specifically to determine if its
profitability goals would be best met within the US$31.50 to US$43.00 price tier.

So, what are some of the considerations required to develop a strategic plan?

By elaborating on their online facial care strategy they would be able to identify and evaluate
the competitive environment to determine:

• The competitive set in the space that best meets their revenue and profit goals

• The price points where they may best compete

• The product, including its features, benefit spaces and assortment size required to win

• The appropriate channel, in this case online, and retail partners to maximise sales

© Euromonitor International
 Using E-commerce Data to Determine Brand Goals 5

The competitive set

Identifying the competitive set requires reviewing all the online data of brands present in the facial care
category within the target areas set by the company’s broader strategic goals. For example, this global
beauty company would look at brands competing within the price tier of US$31.50–43.00 per unit in the
year to November 2020.

Identifying Potential Price Gaps to Exploit

Lancôme
Dermalogica
Aveda 5% gap
Perricone MD
Murad 4% gap
Dead Sea
Brand name

Sulwhasoo
Darphin
Peter Thomas Roth
Elemis 4% gap
Kate Somerville
Fresh 6% gap
Eminence Organic Skin Care
Obagi
Christian Dior
Aesop
31.5 33.5 35.5 37.5 39.5 41.5
Median US$ price per unit

Source: Euromonitor Via

Establish potential price gaps to exploit

Several strategic approaches are available when monitoring competitor pricing. For example, you can
compete directly with brands at particular price points within the tier or you can identify potential price
gaps to exploit, which may provide spaces to attract consumers without directly competing at the same
price point as other brands.

E-commerce pricing data can help identify these brands. Analysis of the median price across brands
shows that most in this space are priced with tier differentials of 0–3% between a brand and its
competitors. However, several potential gaps exist where the price differentials between brands are
wider (between 4-6%), providing potential spaces to play with a differentiated product offering relative
to competitors at those tiers. Given the existing price gaps, the optimal spaces in which to compete is
towards the lower and upper ends of the price tier, where there are spaces that include up to 10% price
differentials across brands.

© Euromonitor International
6 Using E-commerce Data to Determine Brand Goals

Product positioning and assortment

A critical success factor lies in how to position your brand in terms of product features and benefit areas.
Product features in the facial care market would include, for example, the type of facial cleanser whether
that should be a foam, lotion or a bar. Benefit areas are focused on ways in which the product will provide
the consumer favourable results from its use.

E-commerce data allows you to analyse the SKUs available within a certain price tier across e-commerce
retailers and quantify the benefits associated with each of those SKUs to calculate the ‘share’ of each
benefit area.

The table below shows, as would be expected, that the reference to ‘cleansing’ is found among the
largest number of SKUs by far, present in nearly 50% of SKUs. Brands in this space that communicate
‘hydrating’ and ‘exfoliating’ benefits are found in 20% of SKUs and would also be key qualities to promote
to consumers. Although important benefits in many skin care categories, ‘purifying’ and ‘moisturising’
qualities are less significant within facial cleansers, although are still within the top 10 benefit areas
promoted through online retailers. ‘No parabens’ is found among nearly all skin care categories to reassure
consumers that harmful chemicals are not used in the product formula.

Determine Critical Benefit Areas within a Price Tier

7%
8%

12%

49%

12%

14%

15% 20%

15%
20%

Cleansing Hydrating Exfoliating No parabens Fruit

Dry Nourishing Sensitive Purifying Moisturising

Source: Euromonitor Via

Using and promoting the benefits of fruit extracts in beauty products is common and facial cleansers are
no exception. A total of 15% of SKUs found within the price tier contained fruit extracts that were visibly
promoted to consumers. Data extracted from online retailers showed that the benefits of ‘citrus’ fruits
were found almost twice as often than the next most promoted fruit, which was ‘orange’, a citrus fruit
itself. In fact, out of the top five fruit types positioned only two were not citruses, ‘coconut’ and ‘apricot’.

© Euromonitor International
 Using E-commerce Data to Determine Brand Goals 7

Pin Point Specific Benefit Areas

Apricot

Lemon
Fruits

Coconut

Orange

Citrus

0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350

Number of SKUs

Source: Euromonitor Via

Establishing what your critical benefit areas are as a brand in comparison to your competitors is
paramount to be able to successfully differentiate your product. More importantly, you have to identify
what are the most valuable benefit areas to promote to your customers.

One way this can be achieved is to map benefit areas present in products that are above the median price
within the category or price tier. In this example, few benefit areas are exclusively found in products above
the median tier price, and the table below shows a selection of the leading attributes.

Leading Attributes for Products Above the Median SKU Price

Benefit areas

Floral
Peppermint
Enriched with vitamins
Radiance (luminosity)
Ageing

 36.0  36.2  36.4  36.6  36.8  37.0  37.2  37.4

Median SKU price
Median SKU price for 
brands offering  leading 
benefit areas

Source: Euromonitor Via

© Euromonitor International
8 Using E-commerce Data to Determine Brand Goals

In addition to determining the product features and benefits areas within a competitive space, it is also
crucial to understand what product assortment size is required to compete in the space. The table below
illustrates the depth of assortment within the chosen price tiers in which to compete, at the price gaps
identified earlier.

Understand the Breadth of Assortment within Identified Price Gaps

US$ median price Average #

Brand # of SKUs
per unit SKUs
31.5-43 Facial cleansers 1511 95
33.3 Perricone MD 88 91
34.8 Murad 94
35.0 Dead Sea 50 54
36.5 Sulwhasoo 58
Eminence Organic Skin
39 74 69
Care
40.4 Obagi 63
40.4 Obagi 63 68
42.9 Christian Dior 73
Source: Euromonitor Via

At the lower end of the price tier (not pictured), large players in the space such as Lancôme and
Dermalogica dominate, with facial care brand lines numbering 218 and 177 SKUs, respectively. Perricone
MD and Murad are at the lower end of the opportunity price gaps, offering an average of 91 SKUs and
would require a larger investment than if the price point between Dead Sea and Sulwhasoo was exploited,
which offer an average of 54 SKUs.

Best-fit online retail partners

A key strategic decision is where to place your product in order to maximise sales and profit. The gamut of
online retailers runs wide and is growing by the day. But which retailers are your target consumers most
likely to visit to purchase products? It is important to align with the right partners, and one way to identify
them is to evaluate retailers’ assortment of products and their price focus.

© Euromonitor International
 Using E-commerce Data to Determine Brand Goals 9

Given the price category of US$31.50–43.00 per unit for this beauty company, a starting point is to look at
some of the largest retail partners that sell products within that price bracket. From this list of retailers,
Nordstrom would be an ideal partner, while Neiman Marcus would likely be above the price tier for which
the company is aiming. However, in addition to analysing the median price offering by retailer, it is also
important to understand the price range of products each retailer offers. This will expand the potential
partner list significantly and include retailers that may focus on lower price categories but may also sell
brands in the mid-premium price tier.

Determine Online Retailers with a Focus in the Established Price Tier

550 48.0

US$ median price per unit 
500 46.0
450 44.0
45.0
Number of SKUs

400 42.0
350 43.0 46.4
40.0
300
45.5 38.0
250 47
36.0 34.0 36.0
200
150 36.7 34.0
33.0
100 32.0 32.0
50 30.0

Online retailers

Source: Euromonitor Via

© Euromonitor International
Developing Tactical Metrics
to Track Success

Once a strategic plan is in place, you must focus on how to manage a brand tactically in order to be able to
achieve your strategic objectives. A tactical plan goes into the detail of execution against the longer-term
strategic plan. To each strategic objective there is a tactical corollary.

A key component, and the focus here, of building the tactical plan is competitor-led. However, it is equally
important to look at other factors such as:

• Demand patterns

• Price elasticities

• Stock levels

• Seasonality

Whereas the strategic plan focused on identifying where to play, the tactical plan is focused on how to play
— the execution of the broader plan.

For our example case study, after we have determined the space in which the company will play, the focus
now is to detect competitor behaviour and price, product and retail patterns on an on-going and frequent
basis to remain ahead of the competition.

Competitor-led dynamic price management

The notion of a ‘price’ for a product is somewhat of a misnomer. At any one time there are likely to be
multiple prices for the same product / SKU, unless you have a fixed price strategy and can control that
across your customer base — in this case online retailers. Consequently, it is critical to be able to track
your own price points in addition to that of your competitors in order to design and execute a tactical plan.

Given the multitude of price points that may exist within a category across retailers for your own and
competitors’ brands / SKUs, you must develop a set of pricing rules relative to your competitors (and
non-competitor-led factors mentioned above). This will enable you to respond dynamically to a frequently
changing pricing landscape for hundreds or even thousands of brands / SKUs, optimising prices and
maximising sales and profitability.

© Euromonitor International
 Developing Tactical Metrics to Track Success 11

E-commerce data can be used to establish the price distribution within a category, where the prices of
each company’s brands / SKUs fall within this distribution, either relative to the category median price or
relative to competitor brands / SKUs or both, and helps track price movements of brands and SKUs within
a given category and price tier.

Developing a price analysis dashboard helps better evaluate competitor pricing behaviour and patterns.
This would include:

• Supplier price

• Category price and / or price tiers across competitors

• Highest price competitor

• Lowest price competitor

Track competitor prices using a price analysis dashboard

Source: Euromonitor Via

For our case study, the beauty company should start by tracking the price trends for a key set of
competitor facial care brands over the last 12 months. A more nuanced and detailed view would be
provided by similar weekly or daily tracking facilitating a refined set of rules regarding the competitor
brands for the continual adjustment of price points.

For example, to benchmark its price points against Perricone, Murad and Lancôme and the average price
tier median price, the supplier can establish a required set of price differentials against its brand, which
can then automatically or through a set of alerts, notify the supplier of the need to adjust prices. This can
be managed daily, weekly, quarterly, annually or by the specific preference of the supplier.

© Euromonitor International
12 Developing Tactical Metrics to Track Success

Which brands to track?

So, which are the best brands / SKUs to track when determining rules for price adjustments? The volume
of price changes over a given time period is a strong indicator of which brands to track. Brands that are
considered within the competitive set and alter their price points regularly are likely to be the toughest
competitors, while brands that remain consistent in their pricing strategy may be less important.

A best practice scenario is to track close competitors with a greater volume of price changes on a frequent
basis, and those that are important but less direct competitors with limited price changes in a less
frequent manner. For example, Lancôme is a relatively stable brand, that appears to track at the average
median price for the competitor price tier. It is an important brand in the space with a deep and broad
assortment, so important to track, though perhaps less frequently than Perricone MD and Dead Sea, which
compete at a similar price point and with a comparable assortment to the company in question.

Price Movements by Brand

38

36

34

32
US$ per unit

30

28

26

24

22
Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov

Aveda Perricone MD Lancôme Dead Sea Murad Dermalogica Competitor average

Source: Euromonitor Via

Of course, each brand line contains many SKUs within it and therefore it is vital to be able to track both
brands and SKUs on a frequent basis and provide a set of automatic rules or alerts for both. The company
should track the median price, absolute price change, growth rate over the period, 15-day price trend and
daily prices median prices. The next table shows a sample of Eminence Organic facial care brands as an
example.

© Euromonitor International
 Developing Tactical Metrics to Track Success 13

Drilling Down to the SKU Level

SKU Name Median price Price change % price growth 15 day trend 11/15 11/16 11/17
Eminence Organic Skincare Clear Skin Willow Bark Exfoliating Peel~ 4 Ounce 92.63 0.32 0.35 92.32 92.32 92.32
Eminence Organic Skincare Mangosteen Daily Resufracing Concentrate 1.2 Oz~ 1.2 Ounce 62 ‐6 ‐8.82 68 68 68
Mangosteen Daily Resurfacing Cleanser (4.2 fl oz.) 32.12 0 0 32.11 32.11 32.11
Eminence Organic Skincare Wildflower Cleansing Balm~ 0.3 Ounce 59.86 ‐0.67 ‐1.11 60.39 60.39 59.72
Eminence Coconut Milk Cleanser~ 8.4 Ounce 27.65 0.28 1.01 27.71 27.65 27.64
Eminence Organic Skincare Wildflower Cleansing Balm 4 ounce 44 0 0 44 44 44
Eminence Herbal Eye Make Up Remover~ 5.07 Ounce 25.72 ‐0.1 ‐0.39 25.72 25.72 25.72
Red Currant Exfoliating Cleanser (Normal to Combination Skin) ‐ 125ml‐4.2oz 28.43 0 0 28.43 28.43 28.43

Source: Euromonitor Via

Tracking changes in products

Once the long-term strategic goal is set for what product features, attributes and assortment your
brand will follow, it is important on a shorter-term tactical basis to stay ahead of changes in competitor
products. E-commerce data can be used to quickly and effectively identify when and where new products
are launched within your brand’s specific competitive space. Similarly, it is important to be able to identify
when products are removed from the market.

Tracking and identifying patterns with retail partners

Once a set of retail partners has been chosen, the question becomes, which brands / SKUs to make
available through each retailer. A review of the SKUs offered through each online retailer by your
competitors would allow you to evaluate the price ranges offered, the brands / SKUs and their attributes,
thereby aligning an assortment of SKUs that would maximise the chances of success.

For example, the next table shows brands within the facial cleanser category at selected retailers
highlighting differences in breadth of assortment and median prices. This helps understand the focus of
each retailer and how to align to suppliers’ strategic goals. Highlighted are reference brands utilised for
setting prices as noted above.

© Euromonitor International
14 Developing Tactical Metrics to Track Success

The key is to identify unmet gaps both in price and attribute positioning. In a similar way to the
approach for identifying price gaps within the price category, with a data set at the SKU level a company
can determine the best price gaps to exploit and what products to place through that retailer that will
maximise both retailer and supplier revenues and profits.

Typically, competitors would not focus on analysing price movements or changes in products /
assortments by retailer as frequently as online retailers themselves, who will be constantly tracking the
price of brands with a view to maximise sales and its own profits.

% annual
Retailer Brand # of SKUs Median price
growth
Aesop 26 41.0 -8.9
Christian Dior 6 43.0 0.2
Darphin 9 45.0 0.0
Elemis 15 37.3 -23.3
Neiman Marcus Fresh 8 40.5 6.6
Kate Somerville 6 38.0 0.0
Lancôme 13 31.0 3.3
Perricone MD 5 38.1 0.0
Sulwhasoo 4 50.0 0.0
Aesop 12 45.0 0.0
Aveda 11 29.0 0.0
Christian Dior 9 43.0 1.2
Darphin 2 42.0 0.0
Dermalogica 14 59.0 0.0
Elemis 17 41.0 -4.0
Nordstrom Fresh 10 38.0 0.1
Kate Somerville 9 38.0 0.0
Lancôme 16 34.5 1.1
Murad 9 39.0 1.3
Perricone MD 6 35.0 -7.1
Peter Thomas Roth 8 39.0 2.5
Sulwhasoo 4 39.0 0.0
Source: Euromonitor Via

© Euromonitor International
Conclusion

The rapid acceleration of e-commerce sales across many FMCG categories means the use of online retailer
data is essential to developing both strategic and tactical brand goals. The use of organised and accurate
web extracted data can be leveraged to establish key pillars of a successful brand strategy.

By evaluating the price distribution of competitor brands across the entire price spectrum within a given
category, it is possible to surgically determine the optimal competitive set for a brand, identify potential
price gaps to exploit and how to price a given brand and its SKU assortment.

A brand needs to ensure it can be competitive not just on price but also in the attributes and benefit areas
it offers consumers. E-commerce data can provide a clear picture, both at a broad and granular level, of
the critical attributes a brand must have to win within a particular competitive space. Similarly, online
SKU data highlights the breadth of assortment required to succeed and the potential level of investment
required to play.

Finding appropriate online retailer partners is crucial and e-commerce data helps identify the best fit
retailers for a brand’s target audience. At a more granular level it can demonstrate the specific focus areas
of individual retailers, enabling a customised and targeted assortment for each retail partner.

These goals need to be tracked and adjusted on a frequent basis to ensure a brand can compete
consistently. E-commerce data enables the tracking of competitor price points, from a daily to annual
basis, allowing for dynamic competitor-led price management.

Additionally, online retailer data shows new products and changes in product positioning on a timely
basis and helps pinpoint which brands and SKUs to track regularly. You can also monitor changes within
specific retailers to support retail partners in optimising product positioning and supporting your retailer
negotiations.

The methodology outlined in this whitepaper can be applied to any FMCG category with an online
presence, allowing brands to take advantage of this spike in e-commerce sales, compete effectively and
maximise revenue.

© Euromonitor International
Get the E-commerce Data
you Need

Via from Euromonitor International makes e-commerce data simple. By extracting and organising
pricing, assortment and attribute data from online retailers on a daily basis, we help you set pricing and
promotional strategies, optimise online distribution, plan for new product development, track your
competitors and support your retailer and supplier negotiations.

Whether you’re an expert or new to e-commerce data, we will partner with you to build a solution
that works. Based on what you’re looking to achieve, we provide you with the relevant data in the right
deliverable to get you the insights that matter most.

Learn more about how Via can support your organisation’s strategic and tactical objectives or request a
demonstration to see it in action.

© Euromonitor International
How Can Euromonitor
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