Scanning for marketing information

Donald McCurry's primary concern is with the use of scanning as a source of marketing information — information which can affect the products the retailer should buy and stock, questions of shelf allocation, shelf position and product position, and how to display and merchandise goods. Another interesting aspect of his comments is his analysis of the misuse of the system. He outlines the retailer's responsibilities in these areas, where information can be lost at the check‐out, thereby limiting the potential which scanning information has to offer. This is a further paper from the CIES conference (EDP: focus on store operation) and what follows is a selection of those points most directly relevant to the retailer.