Wednesday, 20. January 2010

Innovative Price Cockpit aimed at controlling, optimizing and verifying prices

Saarbrucken, January 19, 2010. The Dacos Software GmbH, a leading provider of analysis and simulation systems for the retail market, has presented today the Price Engine 2.0. The core of the software consists in the innovative Price Cockpit aimed at controlling, verifying and otpimizing prices. In addtion to the intuitively usable management console panel the Price Engine provides a number of functions substantially facilitating the Category Manager`s daily work. As the Price Engine is geared to processes the Category Manager has to accomplish at regular intervals, he does not have to worry about changing purchasing or competitive prices – the Price Management of the Price Engine will accomplish this task on its own and automatically initiate the pricing process.

In the light of today`s intensifying competitive activities the right price management determines more than ever what degree of success a retail company is able to achieve. The daily work of the Category Manager is characterized by an increasing demand for information and by the necessity to take plenty of individual price decisions, thus confronting this occupation group with the need to satisfy high expectations. Prof. Dr. Joachim Hertel, CEO of Dacos Software GmbH, explains: „A price policy anchored in the corporate strategy that is intelligently linked to instruments of price differentiation is able to support the Category Manager quickly, comprehensively and efficiently in his task of price management. With the Price Engine 2.0 we have succeeded in complementing our software with features that allow to meet exactly these requirements.“   

The new release 2.0 of the Price Engine is equipped with an innovative user interface. The so-called Price Cockpit is clearly arranged and intuitively usable, thus enabling a quick execution of the pricing processes. As to this Hertel says: „When developping the new Price Engine we placed our focus exclusively on the users´ requirements and on their daily business. Due to the intuitive user interface, training in how to use the software has been reduced to a minimum.“  

Event-driven price management saves time

The Price Cockpit provides the Category Manager in his daily work with answers to central questions – e.g. what price events ought to be responded to. In case of changing purchasing or competitive prices an efficient and adaptable pricing process will be initiated. This procedure saves the Category Manager a lot of time, as it supports him in taking his daily price decisions quickly and comprehensively, thus allowing him to concentrate on other tasks.

Customer-oriented price optimization ensures gross profit

The Price Engine 2.0 optimizes prices in complete product lines thus increasing the retailer´s gross profit. As the Price Engine is able to optimize the prices of complete product lines from the customer´s point of view, the optimization takes into account also the customers´ purchasing behaviour: Contrary to the price optimization of individual articles, the new Price Engine also incorporates the interdependencies of articles. This new feature allows the retailer for example to detect if  customers visiting his shop to purchase a low-price article, in addition acquire a comparably more expensive product. 

Price rules always in view

Another breakthrough of the Price Engine 2.0 consists in comprehensively taking into account price rules that ensure the respect of all restrictions in connection with the price optimization. Price zones can be mapped in a flexible way. The release 2.0 of the Price Engine incorporates both dependencies between price zones with regard to pricing and competitive prices thus offering the possibility to make best use of all alternatives in connection with price differentiation.

Price monitoring provides transparency and control

The software includes a price monitoring function providing the user with maximum transparency and control possibilities. The prices and margins are supervised by the Price Engine; in case of plan deviations the user will receive recommendations how to react. This procedure allows an active and event-driven indication of price optimization potentials. After having completed his optimization, the Category Manager is at any time able to verify the realized prices and the resulting margins. 

Flexible connection to heterogeneous data sources

The Price Engine 2.0 allows a flexible connection to heterogeneous data sources, thus considerably reducing the implemention expenditure on the one hand and the burden weighing on the retailer´s operative systems on the other hand.