Product ranging in Eebz: AAA to C

Rate how widely each product should be stocked, from AAA to C, so Eebz flags the gaps that matter and ages each listing correctly.

Not every product belongs at every retailer. A flagship model should be everywhere. A product for enthusiasts belongs with the specialists. An exclusive belongs only where you agreed it. Ranging records that intent for each product, so Eebz can tell a gap that is costing you sales from a gap that was never meant to be filled.

Product Ranging is one of Eebz's 12 foundation models. It works with a second model, Retailer Category Strategy, which says how broad a range each retailer carries in each market. Ranging says how widely the product should go; category strategy says how far each retailer reaches. Put together, they give the range you should have at each retailer.

The ratings

Ranging	What it means	Expected at
AAA	Core range: every retailer that ranges the category should stock it	Destination+, Destination, Routine and Convenience retailers
AA	Strong seller: retailers with a good range should stock it	Destination+, Destination and Routine retailers
A	Catalogue: retailers with a full range should stock it	Destination+ and Destination retailers
B	Specialist: only category champions should stock it	Destination+ retailers
C	Exclusive: only where you have agreed it, such as an Amazon-only SKU	Not expected anywhere by default

Ranging is always a letter, AAA to C. It is separate from the star rating you give retailers to mark your key retailers.

Where to set it

Open the product and set Assortment strategy in the Lifecycle section of its sidebar. You can also set it per SKU, for example to make one colour an exclusive. A SKU without its own rating takes the product's.

Set ranging when you add a product, and review it when the product's role changes: when a newer model takes the flagship slot, say, or when an exclusive deal ends.

How Eebz uses it

Ranging status

For every SKU at every retailer in a market, Eebz compares the product's ranging with the retailer's category strategy and gives it a ranging status:

Icon	Status	What it means
	In range	The retailer's strategy covers this product and it is listed
	Missing	The retailer's strategy covers this product but there is no listing
	Out of range	Listed, but outside the retailer's strategy for this product

This table shows which ratings each strategy covers:

Retailer category strategy	AAA	AA	A	B	C
Destination+	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Destination	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
Routine	Yes	Yes	No	No	No
Convenience	Yes	No	No	No	No
Profit	No	No	No	No	No

A Profit retailer stocks opportunistically, so nothing is expected there and nothing is flagged as missing. A SKU is also out of range at a retailer that doesn't carry its market, or in a territory the SKU isn't sold in.

Filter listings by ranging status to see your gaps retailer by retailer, or add the Ranging Status and SKU Ranging columns to any listings table. Ranging is also a filter in Reports Playground.

Listing lifecycle

Ranging also changes lifecycle stages. Each listing's lifecycle is the product lifecycle adjusted for the product's ranging and the retailer's category strategy, so a lower rating means the listing reaches late life and end of life sooner at a retailer with a narrower range. That in turn changes how often Eebz reads it. See product and listing lifecycle.

Get the range right at each retailer

Rate to your plan, not your hopes. Rating everything AAA turns every gap into an alert and hides the ones that matter.
Chase Missing first at Destination+ and Destination retailers. They are the retailers whose strategy says they should carry your product, so the gap is the easiest to argue in a range review.
Read Out of range as a signal. A B product listed and ranking well at a Routine retailer may deserve a higher rating. A run of them at one retailer may mean its strategy for the market has changed.
Keep C for real exclusives. An exclusive is never flagged as missing, so use it only where you have agreed it with the retailer.