Worksheet: Log competitor shelf prices for twenty items each month

Competitor prices gathered for a range review and thrown away afterwards cannot show what happened last year. This sheet picks the twenty items that set the category's price points and logs their shelf prices monthly by channel. Promoted price and depth from scan data follow. It builds the Competent step of the check:

Competitor shelf prices for the category's key items are logged on a schedule by channel, so movements over time are visible.

Use prices any shopper can see: shelves, retailer websites, catalogues and advertising. Scan data shows the same prices as shoppers paid them. Never ask a competitor for its prices or plans, and never share yours. If a buyer passes on a competitor's cost price or terms, do not record it.

Step 1. The twenty items

Pick the items shoppers compare: the main pack in each price tier, the own-brand equivalent and the items where you lose share.

#	Item, with each competitor's and the own brand's equivalent	Price point it sets	Competitors tracked
e.g.	Our 500 g pack; Competitor A 500 g; own brand 500 g	Entry price for the main pack	Competitor A, own brand
1
2
3
4
5

Continue to twenty.

Step 2. The monthly shelf price log, by channel

Month	Item	Competitor	Channel	Retailer	Shelf price	Source (store visit, website, catalogue)	Logged by
e.g. March	Item 4	Competitor A	Grocery	Retailer 2	$6.50	Website	Category analyst

Step 3. Add promoted price and depth from scan data

Month	Item	Competitor	Retailer	Promoted price	Depth (% off shelf)	Promotion weeks in the month
e.g. March	Item 4	Competitor A	Retailer 2	$4.90	25%	2

Step 4. The owner and the quarterly look

Quarter	Owner	Months logged	Our shelf gap to each competitor, start and end	Biggest move seen	Taken to (meeting)

Done when: shelf prices for the twenty items are logged monthly by channel. The log is long enough to show how competitor prices moved.

Adapted from our own pricing process (PSP, 2004).