The DSI Member’s Framework for Digital Shelf Performance

Our membership is continually asking how other Digital Shelf Institute (DSI) Executive Forum members measure their performance — and what metrics they use for digital shelf optimization.

We partnered with Profitero, a leading ecommerce analytics platform, to create “The DSI Member’s Framework for Digital Shelf Performance,” an inventory of frequently used key performance indicators (KPIs) and benchmarks for brand manufacturers at each stage of digital shelf maturity.

How Did We Make This Framework?

We interviewed 15 members of the DSI Executive Forum, asked them how they measure their digital shelf performance and what metrics they use, and then anonymized and collated their feedback.

We also took note of the level of maturity each metric represented (e.g., beginner, intermediate, advanced).

Evaluate Your Measurement Maturity and Drive Digital Shelf Optimization

This framework is divided into three sections:

1. Are we investing enough? These metrics guide how much you should be spending on the digital shelf.
2. How is that investment paying off? These metrics are for measuring your high-level performance in the channel, including category share leadership, online versus offline share, performance by retailer, channel economics, etc.
3. How do we improve our return on investment? These metrics contribute to performance — both positively and negatively, including assortment and availability, pricing, search, content, ratings and reviews, etc.

Use this framework to assess where your organization stands in terms of measurement maturity — empowering you to drive digital shelf optimization and success.

Each section provides a list of metrics, as well as insights into why to use each measurement, what your peers consider a reasonable range of success, and specific data sources and tools to use.

Value for Every Stage of Digital Shelf Maturity

For beginners: Form a new measurement and tracking practice. This guide will establish what to measure, how to measure it, and how different KPIs relate to one another. 

For intermediate brands: Evaluate your measurement practices against your peers. This guide will demonstrate the breadth of digital shelf metrics so you can uncover additional metrics and enhance your performance measurement.

For advanced practitioners: Communicate the value of your measurement practice across your organization. This guide will provide reassurance that you have all your bases covered as it relates to measurement — providing benchmarks and metric definitions for you to build upon.