This article was written on April-11, 2022.

LIVE Selling and Customer Data Collection Without Expensive Systems

First, let me explain that this stems from a problem my friend faced. When her live sales started attracting many customers, she encountered issues:

1. Slow order summaries
2. Incorrect order summaries
3. Difficulty remembering who paid and who hadn’t (due to overwhelming Line messages)

With basic Excel knowledge, I designed a live sales data collection table for her, featuring three simple columns: product code, customer’s Instagram username (for easy copy-pasting), and product price. I then created a simple PivotTable, which significantly sped up her order summaries compared to other shops. Immediately after a live session, she could see the total sales and identify who bought what, how many items, and their total spending.

When I started live-selling my own jewelry, even though it was a side hustle, the PivotTable revealed valuable data beyond mere gut feeling:

• Instantly recognized regular customers, distinguishing those who bought many low-priced items from those who preferred fewer, high-value, or rare pieces.
• Identified popular product categories.
• Determined average order and item values.

This led me to explore further data extraction for business development. I created my own dashboard, yielding fascinating results:

1. Simplified data interpretation, making it instantly understandable.
2. Gained deeper insights into customer spending habits, identifying top spenders and frequent buyers.
3. Understood the nature and role of each product. Some high-value, rare items served to attract customers and build reputation, while others generated high-volume sales.
4. Determined pricing adjustments based on average order and item values, allowing for increased profitability.
5. Optimized cost management by understanding how value-added services impacted costs, encouraging investments in customer experience.
6. Made informed decisions about inventory management, knowing which products to stock more or less of.

Instead of just saying “data is important” or “data is the new oil,” I’d emphasize how data confirms our instincts. It helps us gauge the viability of our ideas, allowing for calculated risks and efficient resource allocation, especially for businesses with limited funds.

With numerous tools available, I believe we can adapt them to our needs. My journey started with basic Excel skills, leading to cost-effective problem-solving and further learning opportunities.

P.S. But if you have the budget, invest in a system! 😂

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