2 CDT Editor Task

Consumer Decision Trees (CDTs) are used to understand consumer buying behavior and to identify key product attributes that influence consumer buying decisions from a consumer segment perspective. The use of CDTs as an alternate hierarchy in the assortment planning process ensures that key product attributes are well represented in the assortment. Assortments can be viewed by CDT hierarchy across the assortment planning task flow. The CDT Editor task is used for CDT maintenance by a Merchandising Analyst or CM Administrator.

CDTs, with their dynamic hierarchical structure, provide a visual representation (tree-like CDT structure) of the relative importance of product attributes to a consumer segment in a product category. CDTs are used to rationalize and align assortments towards target consumer segments. RCM sources CDTs from ORASE. CDTs can also be sourced from external parties such as manufacturers or suppliers and market research companies providing syndicated data, such as IRI and Nielsen.

Two techniques are applied in tandem to derive a CDT:

Market Structure: A method to identify the product attributes that influence a customer's buying decision. These product attributes define the competitive relationship between the products under a sub-category.
Preference Segmentation: Identifies and divides the market into unique customer segments based on the similar buying patterns.

The CDT structure provides attribute ranking, which measures the importance of each attribute to the consumer relative to the other attributes within the category. A consumer makes a specific judgment first (such as, what flavor do I want), then proceeds to the second most important decision (such as, what size?), and then proceeds to the third decision (such as, do I want a branded SKU or retail branded SKU?). Therefore, the market structure of a category (the relationship between products) can be thought of as a road map that consumers use to find their way through the maze of products and product segments to arrive at a purchase decision.

The decision process can vary for each consumer segment for the same category. Assortment planners can use CDTs for different consumer segments to shape the assortment towards target consumer segments per their relative importance to the retailer.

Figure 2-1 shows an example of CDT for the Detergents product category. It enlists key product attributes in this category in a tree-like structure, in their relative order of importance, which forms the basis for the consumer's purchase decision.

Figure 2-1 Detergent Product Category

The following capabilities are supported:

Viewing the assortment by CDT.
Viewing and comparing different CDTs.
Editing the current CDT.

For more information on viewing and editing the CDT, see the Oracle Retail Predictive Application Server User Guide for the Fusion Client.

This task has the following step:

CDT Meta Data Step

Create the CDT Editor Workbook

To create the workbook:

Navigate to the Category Management Administration Activity.
Select the New Workbook icon in the CDT Editor task.

Figure 2-2 CDT Editor Task

The workbook wizard opens.
Select the categories and move them to the Selected Items box. Click Next.

Figure 2-3 Workbook Wizard Select Category Page
Select the Trading Areas and move them to the Selected Items box. Click Next.

Figure 2-4 Workbook Wizard Select Trading Area Page
Select the consumer segments and move them to the Selected Items box. Click Finish.

Figure 2-5 Workbook Wizard Select Consumer Segment Page

The workbook is created.

CDT Meta Data Step

This step has one view. Use this view to review and make changes to the CDT. After all CDT edits are made, commit the workbook. Figure 2-6 shows a CDT for the Coffee category for the consumer segment, Soccer Moms.

Figure 2-6 CDT Meta Data View

Custom Menu Option

The CDT Editor workbook has a custom menu option available called Accept XML. Acceptance of the XML is necessary for the changes made in the CDT Editor to be visible in the rest of the application. The custom menu option processes all new and modified CDTs. This processing sets up the dynamic hierarchies that are available in Assortment Planning Analysis, Assortment Planning @Cluster, and Assortment Planning @Store tasks.

After the Accept XML custom menu option has been run, the CDT must be enabled in the domain. For more information, see "Select CDT Version View" in Chapter 3.