Retail Audit entails monitoring the distribution of consumer goods. It is based on in-store observation during which the presence and prominence of certain products being checked.

The study provides an assessment of the presence and availability of a brand to the consumer. It seeks to measure if the shelf presence of one brand is better than the position of competing brands, and the impact of additional product displays, promotional materials and prices on the level of sales.  Retail audit data yields a wealth of information that gives the client basis for tactical decisions to strengthen their market position.

Retail Audit involves:

• measurement of product availability on the shelf,
• measurement of share-of-the-shelf,
• measurement of promotional displays,
• measurement of shares / number of facings,
• measurement of shares / number of SKUs,
• price measurement,
• measurement of the degree to which merchandising objectives have been met,
• measurement of the degree of fulfillment of promotional actions,

Retail audit projects are used primarily by manufacturers and distributors of consumer goods, retail outlets, sales support and marketing agencies. It is run like an Omnibus, where various clients come on board to share costs of running the study. Retail Audit is an important study for people in marketing and sales departments.