This step is fairly straightforward. If you are not already tracking your retail stores and comparing and contrasting sales information, now is the time to start. Large companies often have staff dedicated solely to tracking this information, but for smaller companies it is often taken for granted.

Simply make a chart including your current retailers and any other information you believe is appropriate. You may consider including dollars of merchandise sold, units of merchandise sold, retail demographic, etc. etc.

Using this chart, begin to think about what areas of retail are more or less successful for your business, and consider why this might be. Ask yourself questions about the data that you are collecting and if this data is consistent with your target demographic. This information will come in handy in Step two: evaluate your marketing plan (see next blog).