How to create and optimise a product database for your retail store
Every retailer needs to keep tabs on their inventory, as products can come and go quickly and this is the only way to ensure customers are satisfied when they want to make a purchase.
This is why you need a modern database solution to store, organise and track product info across your operations. To help you get started, here’s a look at the best ways to create and optimise a product database.
Choose a software solution
There are a multitude of database platforms which are suitable for retail stores; the trick is to pick the one which matches your needs and your budget.
If you have a small operation with a limited inventory, something basic like Microsoft Excel or Access might suffice. If you have a larger retail business to wrangle, with a vast inventory of products and multiple locations under your control, then a fully-fledged database solution like SQL Server will be more appropriate.
Another consideration is whether you will also be selling online as well as from a bricks and mortar outlet. Some e-commerce platforms have their own integrated product database solutions, while others will allow you to harness your own setup.
Ensure optimal performance
Once you have your product database up and running, you need to monitor its performance and implement optimisations where necessary.
For example, avoiding any possible SQL deadlock error is sensible as this can slow down your database, make it less responsive and also cause certain processes to fail entirely.
The latest database monitoring software makes tracking and troubleshooting performance problems far easier, and it also means that you can take care of this in-house, rather than having to outsource it.
Another aspect which influences database performance is the hardware that underpins everything. If you have a server setup within your store, then you can obviously control the hardware directly, adding more storage, increasing the RAM allocation and swapping out faulty components as necessary.
The alternative is to make use of a cloud-powered hosting service, which removes the burden of maintenance but does mean you aren’t afforded the same level of control.
As with most aspects of running IT resources in retail, it’s all about striking a balance between what would be ideal for your organization and what you can actually afford to implement.
Plan for the future
The final factor of creating and running a product database for your retail store which you need to take into account is how future-proof your setup is.
If you don’t anticipate seeing any significant spikes in demand on the hardware and software resources you choose in the months and years to come, then you only need to accommodate for your current needs.
If you expect to undergo significant growth, or you want to plan for seasonal peaks in usage, then it pays to factor this in sooner rather than later.
Every retail store will have its own unique requirements when it comes to a product database, so try to aim for a solution that ticks as many boxes as possible.
