Category Management is procurement strategy that involves grouping goods and services into categories based on similar characteristics such as type, value, supplier, risk location or department. This process helps companies better understand and manage the total cost of ownership for each category, while maximizing savings and value in their purchases. Additionally, category management, streamlines the procurement process, strengthens supplier relationships, improves spend analysis, and helps mitigate risks, and offers various other advantages.

According to a report from SAP, firms that fully optimize category management could potentially achieve as much as US$114m in savings and more than a 500% return on investment, in addition to reducing risks.

Category-led procurement provides numerous unique benefits that can assist purchasing teams in improving efficiency and uncovering new opportunities, such as

• Improved Insights- with spend organized into categories and having a single point of contact for all related suppliers, companies can get a better understanding of the costs, vendor performances and possible supply chain risks. Furthermore, a thorough understanding of contracts, pricing and market trends allow more strategic and profitable procurement decisions.
• Increased Savings- Leveraging their expertise and insights gained from categorization, managers can secure better pricing and boost performance to lower costs. Moreover, with a long-term purchasing approach, they can capitalize on economies of scale to generate further savings.
• Reduced risk exposure- with a thorough understanding of each vendor and fostering long-term relationships, category teams can take a more proactive approach to supplier management, minimizing the risk of working with unreliable or short-lived vendors.
• Greater procurement efficiency- with proven, digitalized, and automated processes, teams can swiftly adapt to market shifts and allocate more time to value -added activities.
• Better adherence to ESG and SR commitments- aligning goals, ensuring transparency, and implementing effective monitoring help companies meet their environmental and social responsibility commitments more easily.
• Increased spend under management- Intelligent automation enables procurement to oversee more categories, thereby increasing the total spend under management.

In e-commerce category management is crucial as it allows business to rack spending across different product and service categories, evaluate supplier performance, analyze market trends, and gain insights into category dynamics. This helps the development of sourcing, pricing, promotion, and placement strategies that are aligned with the broader business objectives.

The functions of e-commerce category management are

• Category Definition – This process begins by clearly defining the products or services that belong to a specific category. Next, assess whether the category can be divided into subcategories based on product features or customer preferences. It’s also important to establish boundaries to prevent overlap with other categories. For, instance, women’s apparel can be segmented by style, size, material, colour and, occasion, while excluding men’s. Children’s, accessories, and footwear.
• Category Analysis – To effectively drive promotion and sales, it’s essential to understand the needs, preferences, and behaviors of your target customers within the category. This insight allows you to tailor your offerings accordingly. Additionally, keep an eye on emerging trends, market shifts, and growth opportunities. For instance, the rising demand for sustainable fashion is fueled by eco-conscious consumers who prioritize stylish, ethical clothing with minimal environmental impact. Also, evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, and strategies of competitors within the defined category to stay competitive.
• Category Management Strategy Development – set clear, specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time bound (SMART) goals for the category. For instance, target a 20% increase in online revenue for the category over the next fiscal year by optimizing the product assortment and enhancing brand visibility. Identify potential growth opportunities such as introducing new products, expanding into new markets, leveraging better pricing strategies, or improving customer engagement. Create a detailed plan that outlines the necessary steps, resources, and timelines to achieve these goals.
• Product Assortment Planning- Select products that align with your category strategy, meet customer needs, and reflect current market trends. Strike a balance between product variety and focus to avoid overwhelming customers. To optimize your product mix, consider launching a new line of eco-friendly activewear, discontinuing slow-selling basic tees, and investing in marketing campaigns to refresh your core denim collection. Additionally, account for the product life cycle within the category, planning strategically for new product introductions, promotions, and phase-outs.
• Pricing Strategy Development – To set the right prices for your products, start by assessing their perceived value within the category and aligning your prices accordingly. For example, by adopting a value-based pricing strategy for your premium denim line, you ensure that the prices reflect the exceptional quality and unique design features that set your products apart.

Next, analyze competitor pricing to gauge where your products stand in comparison. Adjust your prices as needed to stay competitive, making sure any changes align with your financial goals and overall strategic objectives. Additionally, consider incorporating promotional pricing strategies, such as offering discounts, coupons, or bundle deals. For example, you could introduce seasonal discounts on select styles to attract more customers and encourage sales.

• Promotional strategy development – Identify the most effective marketing channels by considering the demographics, psychographics, and behaviors of your target audience within the category. These channels could include online advertising, social media, email marketing, or in-store promotions, such as sponsored product banners on Amazon Marketplace. Once you’ve chosen the right channels, develop engaging promotional campaigns with compelling content, visuals, pricing, and offers that resonate with your audience and drive sales. For instance, to boost sales of your sustainable activewear, you could target eco-conscious fitness enthusiasts aged 25 to 40 with tailored social media ads or marketplace promotions.
• Implementation and Monitoring – Once you’ve developed the different components of your e-commerce category management strategy, the next step is to implement it. For pricing strategies, this means updating the prices across your product listings using your catalog management software. To evaluate the success of the category, track key performance indicators (KPIs) such as sales, market share, customer satisfaction, and profitability. Based on these results, identify areas for improvement and make the necessary adjustments to the strategy to optimize future performance.

Category management aims to optimize product performance online and it offers a multitude of benefits such as;

• Enhanced customer experience- effective category management establishes a well-organized, user- friendly product structure that makes it easier for customers to find what they’re looking for. Moreover, by curating products that complement each other you can encourage cross-selling and upselling, enhancing the shopping experience and making it more personalized for customers.
• Increased sales and revenue- e-commerce category management allows you to gain category-specific insights, which can be leveraged to refine pricing strategies and create targeted promotions that drive sales while protecting profit margins.
• Improved inventory management- category management helps monitor demand patterns and seasonal trends, enabling more accurate stock forecasting and reducing the risk of stockouts or overstocking. By prioritizing high demand products within each category, you can optimize order fulfillment, lower storage costs, and avoid excess inventory.
• Deeper customer understanding- By analyzing sales data and customer behavior at the category level, you gain valuable insights into preferences and needs, allowing you to adjust your offerings accordingly. Furthermore, making timely changes to product assortments and strategies ensures that you remain flexible and responsive to shifting market trends and customer demands.

In e-commerce, category management relies on online data, customer behaviour, and digital shelf analytics, leveraging software to centralize, digitize, and optimize processes across all categories while providing actionable insights. This is achieved through automation, step-by-step guidance, real-time monitoring and analytics, strategy execution, integration, and the use of artificial intelligence.

Retail category management is centered around optimizing the store layout, product assortment, pricing strategies, and promotions to boost sales and profitability within the constraints of limited shelf space. It involves strategically positioning products to guide customer flow and promote impulse buys, while carefully selecting items that meet customer needs and maximize space efficiency. Pricing is thoughtfully set to remain competitive and profitable within the category, aligning with market trends to maximize margins. Well-planned promotional efforts are implemented to drive sales, and inventory levels are managed to prevent stockouts and reduce holding costs, ensuring product availability without excess inventory. By integrating these elements, category management seeks to enhance the shopping experience and achieve financial objectives.

Retailers use category management software to analyse, optimize, and manage product categories, enhancing efficiency and profitability by simplifying tasks such as assortment, data consolidation and analysis, shelf-space optimization, demand forecasting, pricing and promotion, and supplier management and compliance. Some of the software retailers use includes Centric Software, Oracle Retail Category Management Planning and Optimization, and SAP Ariba Category Management.

In conclusion, category management is a crucial strategy for both retail and e-commerce businesses, optimizing product assortment, pricing, and customer experience. By leveraging software tools and data insights, retail and e-commerce companies can enhance profitability, streamline operations, and effectively address customer demands.