Planogram Analytics: How to Measure What’s Working on the Shelf

With the right data, retailers can track shelf effectiveness, identify bottlenecks, and boost product visibility. That’s where planogram analytics and retail reporting come into play.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to measure planogram effectiveness using actionable retail data, and how PlanoHero makes it easy.

What Is Planogram Analytics?

Planogram analytics is the process of using data and performance metrics to evaluate how well your planograms are working in-store. It helps retailers answer critical questions like:

Are high-margin products getting enough visibility?

Are the shelves compliant with the original planogram?

Are planogram-driven product placements increasing sales?

By combining sales data, layout compliance, and store execution, retailers gain a complete picture of what’s working — and what’s not — on the shelf.

Why Planogram Analytics Matters

Implementing planograms without tracking their impact is like setting up a marketing campaign without checking the results. Here’s why analytics is key:

• Improve sales performance: Identify underperforming SKUs and shelf locations. Measure which products and placements drive the most revenue.

• Optimize shelf space: Allocate space based on product performance, not just category norms.

• Identify compliance issues: Monitor planogram compliance in the stores. Detect stores not executing planograms properly.

• Enable data-driven decisions: Use real data to guide visual merchandising strategies.

Key Planogram Performance Metrics to Track

Sales by Shelf -  Understand how each shelf or zone contributes to sales.

Sales per Facing - Measure how visible placements drive revenue.

Planogram Compliance - Track store adherence to planned layouts.

Stock Availability -  Detect out-of-stock issues due to layout or replenishment problems.

Product Performance by Segment - Analyze which categories or SKUs perform best in specific layouts.

Task Completion Rate - See whether merchandising tasks were executed on time in each store.

How PlanoHero Helps You Analyze Shelf Performance Using Planogram Data

Understanding how your products perform on the shelf goes beyond just creating planograms. To truly improve merchandising, retailers need to track how layouts are executed and how they impact sales, stock, and space efficiency. With tools like PlanoHero, it’s possible to analyze the entire shelf performance lifecycle — from initial layout to in-store execution and results.

Monitoring Planogram Execution

One of the first steps in shelf analysis is confirming whether the planograms were implemented correctly in stores. This can be done through photo reports sent from individual locations. Each report can be reviewed, approved, or returned for revision, allowing central teams to control in-store planogram execution, regardless of who carried it out. The PlanoHero Layout mobile application helps with this. It allows store managers to receive new planograms with all the layout details and send photo reports directly through the app.

Execution tracking helps ensure consistency across retail chains and makes spotting errors before they affect sales easier.

Analyzing Sales and Space Efficiency

Once planograms are implemented, performance can be measured using a variety of retail metrics. These include:

• Turnover and profit by product, category, or shelf.
• Sales per linear or square meter of shelf or display space.
• Profit per meter of equipment or display.
• Change in sales or profit over time.
• Product availability at the end of the period.

These indicators show not only which products are selling but also how efficiently the space is being used — a key factor in improving profitability per square meter.

Comparing Performance Across Stores

Retailers managing multiple locations can use comparative analysis to understand which stores are underperforming or excelling — and why. A "chain sales analysis" compares key indicators such as turnover, receipts, and stock between different branches, highlighting potential layout or inventory issues specific to each store.

This makes adapting planograms or merchandising strategies easier to local shopping behavior.

Visualizing Product Display and Shelf Load

Tools like PlanoHero also allow retailers to visualize how well each shelf is stocked. Through layout-based heatmaps, planograms can be highlighted according to how full they are, showing where stock levels are low or space is underused. Retailers can filter by product group, category, brand, or supplier to identify patterns.

Additionally, retailers can assess the layout share — that is, what percentage of a shelf or equipment is occupied by a product, brand, or supplier — and compare this to the share of sales or profit those items generate. This helps evaluate whether shelf space is allocated fairly and effectively.

Tracking Customer Behavior In-Store

Some reporting tools offer insights into shopper movement within the store using sales data and receipt patterns. By generating visitor heatmaps, retailers can identify which shelves attract the most customer attention and which areas remain overlooked.

This type of insight helps link product visibility with actual shopping behavior — a critical component when optimizing layout strategies.

Measuring Shelf Stock Accuracy

Shelf stock analysis shows how well stock levels match real-world sales. It helps identify situations where there are too many or too few products on the shelf, using ratios like stock days, excess/lack percentage, and average sales per day.

By identifying mismatches between display stock and sales demand, retailers can fine-tune product quantities and avoid both out-of-stocks and overstocking.

Final Thoughts
Analyzing shelf performance is not just about reviewing sales — it’s about understanding how shelf space, stock levels, and layout decisions interact to drive results. By combining layout compliance, sales metrics, stock tracking, and customer behavior data, retailers can optimize every square meter of their store.

Planogram analytics tools provide a structured way to gather and interpret this data, helping merchandising teams make more informed, data-driven decisions.