Retailers employ a variety of tactics to get to know their customers more, such as asking for feedback and remembering past purchases and personal details. One solution that can help merchants' with their goal of increased consumer understanding is retail management software. These solutions provide businesses with the tools needed to store shopper data and determine which products and service methods are preferred by individuals.

Econsultancy writes there are several aspects pertaining to consumers that retailers can maintain within their software systems in order to make more informed decisions regarding shoppers wants and needs. The source outlines these elements as data points, one of which includes the average order values of individual patrons, both in stores and online. This information gives companies insight into customers' favorite products and how much they spend. In addition, responses to marketing methods can also be measured through management systems, like how much sales increased due to direct mailings or how many email messages were opened and then resulted in website visits.

"Knowing your customers is about recognizing the valuable customer data you have, associating it with each customer in a meaningful and usable way, and making sure that the right people can and do apply that customer data to their decision-making processes on an ongoing basis," Econsultancy writes.