BI Reporting: What it is and why it matters to your business 

If not, you don’t need to worry - the world will keep spinning and 2020 is just around the corner. But if it has been a great year, can you tell me this based on real-time numbers? Or are you going by the fat commission checks you’ve received every month? Either way, you’ve done your job I guess…

However, to truly keep yourself on the upwards curve, knowing the important numbers to you and your business in real-time is vital. This is basically what BI reporting is - the important metrics to your growth laid out visually and in real-time. 

Now, I know it’s cliche to harp on about knowing your numbers - but I’m not talking about the excel spreadsheet you tinker around with every few months here. If you currently have a great BI reporting system in place, then the following can serve as reinforcement of your system. If you’re operating without a BI reporting system, then the following will hopefully convince you to take action!

Below are three great reasons to get yourself a solid BI reporting system. And if you’re a current client of our’s not using our in-built BI reporting feature give us a call and we’ll take you through it anytime. 





One: Better business decisions


  

Duh...when the important metrics are visually laid out in real-time, you’re able to gain valuable insights that you otherwise might have missed. In sales, this could mean knowing what stock to sell, at the right time, to the right person. 

You might uncover that while you’re turning over plenty of stock, you’re not selling it in a way that generates the most profit for you and the business. Or, when you have enough data to look back on - say three years for example - you can predict what item is going to sell like hot-cakes based on historic data. 

When the important metrics are instantly accessible, displayed beautifully and in real-time, you’re not only able to gain unique insights that give you an advantage, but you can then take action on them with confidence as well.

Two: Increased productivity

BI Reporting - the system that puts an end to manual reporting. If you’re in sales, the half a day spent putting together a report so your numbers can be displayed, is time that could have spent closing a deal! 

But what we mean by increased productivity is knowing what actions you need to take, and what actions can be deleted from your schedule. If BI reporting was given a cheesy catch-phrase, it’s ‘work smarter, not harder’. Knowing what products to sell, or what products not to sell gives you the best chance of using your time productively. 

If the numbers around what’s selling - when and who to - are clear in your business, everyone from sales reps, to fulfilment staff and the people in the office can all be on the same page, which is the cornerstone of every productive business. 

By now, we know that BI reporting gives you insights that you never would have gathered to make great business decisions, and it’s drives productivity. Now, let’s move onto the most important insight around BI reporting of them all. 





Three: Minimise risk, or at least see it coming…



Everybody wants security. In our jobs, relationships and just about anything. As humans, we’re risk-averse and we spend our life either running from risk or going out of our way to avoid it.

BI reporting, when done properly is your businesses shield against risk. For sure, seeing downwards trends in business or sales can be scary - but that’s the deal we sign up for! It’s not always going to be plain sailing, and if we’re watchful, we can recognise these trends and make the required adjustments in our course. 

Great BI reporting gives us the chance to make these adjustments well in advance. In other words, we get to sort ourselves out before our back-side is on fire! Being able to analyse the important trends in our business doesn’t’ allow us to live a risk-free life, but it gives us the chance to see these risks and potential problems coming well in advance. 



Summary





In summary, the benefits of a great BI reporting system are worthy enough to be a priority for any business, big or small. With proper BI reporting, we gain valuable insights, become more productive as a business, and can see potential risks or problems coming from a long way out.

If you’re a current client, and this blog has inspired you to take your numbers to the next level, then our in-built BI reporting system is simple to use and can do everything we’ve mentioned in this article and more. As always, feel free to get in touch and ask any questions you might have. We’re here to help you grow!

If you’re not a current client of ours but are interested in knowing more about our mobile sales solution for people in wholesale sales, feel free to call us anytime. We can take you through a free no-obligation demo and basically show you exactly how our mobile sales solution will help your business grow specifically.