Understanding the Category

You can use the following resources to research the product and category.

Review the entire PIF to understand the products and category. It is a good idea to get a sense of the equivalent units, sizes, and customer buying habits for the products. You can use the following resources for your research:

• Category Manager interview - The Category Manager is a great source of information. Conducting a store walk-through or an interview with the Category Manager is a good way to get to know a category before the attributing process begins. It is a helpful way to understand the product, see product placement, and identify unknown or new products within the category.
• Store walk-through - The store walk-through can provide some valuable information, especially if a sub-category structure is required. You can work with the Category Manager to understand the optimization strategy and how to optimize the prices.
• World Wide Web - These web sites offer user manuals, product information down to the equivalent unit detail, as well as valuable preferences and decision trees:

• UPCdatabase.com
• Your company’s web site
• The manufacturer’s web site
• A specific UPC entered in a search engine of your choice, such as Google, Yahoo!, MSN, etc.