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Start your AI journey today and let us help you understand your business better. Send us an email or book a meeting with one click!
Reach out to us!
Start your AI journey today and let us help you understand your business better. Send us an email or book a meeting with one click!
Summary
In physical retail, what you can’t see is costing you. With consumer expectations rising and every square metre under pressure, guessing just isn’t good enough. Merlin Cloud’s retail analytics capability gives you a complete, real-time view of what’s happening across your stores - who walked in, what they engaged with, how long they stayed, and what drove results.
One Platform
Retail data is only valuable when it’s complete, current, and connected. That’s why Merlin Cloud captures everything - foot traffic, engagement, content performance, shopper flow, and more - and displays it in real time across an intuitive, cloud-based dashboard.
Track activity across:
Store entrances and exits
Product zones and merchandising areas
Kiosks, QR codes, and campaign touch points
Conversion funnels linked to POS or purchase triggers
AI supported Insights
It’s one thing to know your campaign got views. It’s another to know which store, which content, and which zone converted best - and what needs fixing. Merlin Cloud’s retail analytic capabilities let you drill into performance by country, region, brand, or even device. You can identify which layouts drive engagement, which campaigns fall short, and where customers are dropping off.
Merlin Cloud connects the dots across the entire physical customer journey. You’ll see how many people walked in, where they spent time, what they engaged with, and what they scanned or purchased. This makes it possible to build accurate conversion funnels that link in-store engagement to actual outcomes.
It’s not just about who came through the door - it’s about purchase behaviour, shopper demographics, and the full impact of your in-store touch points.
Customisable View
Forget static reports. Merlin Cloud provides live dashboards that update as activity happens. From real-time retail data to historical trends, you get instant access to the metrics that matter - whether you’re checking kiosk sessions in London or footfall traffic in Madrid.
Data can be segmented, filtered, exported, or integrated directly with your existing BI tools. You’ll always know where you stand, what’s improving, and what needs to change.
Informed decisions
Data without action is just noise. With Merlin Cloud, your retail analytics are built for execution.
Analytics are embedded across the platform - powering smarter campaigns, more efficient staffing, and higher-performing stores. It's not just about tracking; it's about transforming how your business operates.
We have a friendly team of account managers who would love to answer any questions you have along with a complete knowledge base.
What is retail analytics are physical stores?
Retail analytics refers to the use of in-store data to understand shopper behavior, measure store performance, and improve the customer journey. In physical retail, this capability is essential because it helps brands move away from guesswork and toward evidence-based decisions. By tracking how people move through a store, where they spend time, and what influences their purchases, retailers can optimise everything from staffing to layout and product placement.
What types of in-store data does Merlin Cloud track?
Merlin Cloud captures a wide range of retail data in real time, giving you full visibility into the in-store environment. This includes footfall at entrances and exits, dwell time in specific zones, engagement with kiosks and QR codes, campaign performance, and content interaction. The platform also allows you to tie this behavioural data to sales activity when integrated with your POS system, offering a complete view of both intent and outcome.
How can retail analytics help increase sales performance?
Retail analytics improves sales by helping you identify what actually drives engagement and conversion. If certain products or displays are attracting attention but not generating sales, the data may point to issues with pricing, messaging, or placement. By understanding shopper behavior and removing friction points, you can create a more effective store experience that increases conversions and average transaction value.
Can I track retail performance across multiple store locations?
Yes, Merlin Cloud’s platform is built for multi-location and multi-region retail environments. Whether you’re managing five stores or five hundred, you can compare performance across individual stores, regions, or entire countries. This allows you to benchmark engagement, identify underperforming locations, and scale successful strategies quickly.
What makes real-time retail analytics different from traditional reporting?
Traditional reporting is often delayed, relying on manually compiled data or weekly summaries that are out of date by the time you act on them. Merlin Cloud’s real-time analytics gives you immediate visibility into everything happening in your stores - from foot traffic to content engagement - so you can make decisions in the moment. This kind of live insight enables more agile responses and smarter, data-backed retail execution.
Can I connect Merlin Cloud’s data to my existing business intelligence tools?
Yes, Merlin Cloud integrates with leading BI platforms and internal dashboards. This allows you to unify retail analytics with broader performance reporting, so teams across marketing, operations, and leadership can access insights in the systems they already use. It streamlines decision-making and helps teams collaborate around accurate, real-time retail data
How does retail analytics help with staffing and operational efficiency?
Understanding foot traffic patterns, peak hours, and customer movement helps you schedule staff more effectively. You’ll know when to deploy more team members and where they’re most needed based on actual shopper behavior - not just intuition. This reduces unnecessary labor costs, improves service delivery, and ensures your staff is focused where they have the most impact.
Can Merlin Cloud track the connection between shopper engagement and sales?
Absolutely. When connected to your POS system, the platform allows you to match in-store behavior - like kiosk interactions or product zone dwell time - with completed purchases. This makes it possible to measure how content and campaigns influence buying decisions and calculate the true return on in-store engagement.
Is Merlin Cloud’s retail analytics platform secure and compliant with data regulations?
Yes. Merlin Cloud is designed with security and compliance in mind. The platform uses end-to-end encryption, anonymous tracking, and GDPR-compliant architecture to ensure that customer privacy is protected. All data is processed and stored securely, with no personal identifiers collected during tracking.
Who typically uses retail analytics data inside a retail organisation?
Retail analytics is valuable to teams across the organisation. Marketing teams use it to assess campaign effectiveness, operations teams rely on it to improve store performance and staffing, and leadership uses it to track KPIs and guide strategic decisions. It’s a critical capability for any brand that wants to stay competitive in the evolving retail landscape.
