Data and analytics are the fuel for innovation, performance optimization, and digital transformation. As part of TecAlliance, TecCom supports clients in optimizing their order-related processes to drive efficiency and reduce costs. With tens of thousands of buyers and hundreds of suppliers trading on the TecCom platform, we have access to valuable insights. Therefore, we have set out to make this intelligence accessible to our clients.
Dr. Anastasia Steiner-Kogrina, the Product Owner for our Analytics Suite, explains what we do in the analytics space and why.
TecAlliance is not yet known as an analytics provider. Why do we consider this a logical next step for us?
Dr. Anastasia Steiner-Kogrina: At TecCom, we run the Independent Aftermarket’s largest B2B order-to-invoice-to-returns platform. This gives us access to critical intelligence on performance, trends, and developments. This intelligence provides insights for strategic and tactical decisions on how to maximize sales performance on the platform. For our clients, up-to-date insights on sales performance and purchasing behavior are invaluable in navigating the dynamic aftermarket landscape.
We deliver the latest data regularly, just a few of days after months-end. In today’s competitive environment, maximizing sales continuously across all channels, staying ahead of the competition, and responding promptly to trends is essential.
Although TecAlliance is no stranger to analytics—our TecDoc practice already offers Product Management Analytics — we are now developing an analytics suite based on TecCom sales. With this we want to empower our clients to make decisions based on reliable data rather than gut feeling. We also aim to bring greater transparency to the entire Aftermarket by illuminating the significant trade activity on our platform and provide guidance for the broader market.
How is analytics used in other industries, and how does it differ in the aftermarket?
Dr. Anastasia Steiner-Kogrina: Many industries today rely heavily on analytics to inform decisions and drive business growth. In sectors like telecommunications, media, banking, or healthcare, data is used to refine products, enhance customer experiences, increase operational efficiency, and optimize marketing and sales strategies.
In contrast, the Automotive Aftermarket is still in the initial stages of adopting analytics. There is a significant lack of comprehensive data on the overall market size and sales volumes by region, country, or product group, making it difficult to evaluate potential and identify growth opportunities.
My background includes many years in analytics within the telecommunications and media industries. In these highly competitive sectors, analytics has been the cornerstone of strategic planning and execution. Applying this level of analytical rigor to the Automotive Aftermarket could transform the industry.
What are the challenges in setting up an analytics practice, and how do we try to overcome them?
Dr. Anastasia Steiner-Kogrina: Currently, we are not well-known for analytics. To change that, we talk to customers, presenting our proposition, and gathering feedback. We focus on understanding them better and tailoring our products to their needs.
One big challenge is that, given the industry’s lack of market intelligence, our customers want to use the insights from our platform to also improve their business beyond the platform. They often ask about TecCom’s overall market share in a specific country and product group. However, it is hard to give precise answers as there is no exact data on the overall market sizes. All estimates available from external sources are based on assumptions, and figuring out how accurate they are is difficult.
So, building the market transparency, I mentioned before, is indeed a formidable task, but one we are fully committed to. Today, our analytics clients can already benefit from our extensive TecCom coverage across European markets, while we are rapidly expanding into international and emerging markets.
What feedback did you get from clients so far and what is the future roadmap?
Dr. Anastasia Steiner-Kogrina: There’s great interest among our clients in getting more market and competitive intelligence to better identify opportunities and manage risks. on to better identify opportunities and manage risks better and faster.
A recent survey among our German clients showed that they were most interested in analytics helping to improve their product range, predict market trends, understand consumer behavior, and find out why they lose sales.
All these areas revolve around business questions that we can answer with our data. For example, a TecCom hit list of “best-selling spare parts at the OE number level” can inform product range and portfolio optimization. We have data on buyer behavior on the platform, and “lost sales” reports can provide root cause analysis.
Next, we plan to release a Minimal Viable Product (MVP) for portfolio optimization by the end of the year.
The first Analytics product is already available. How does TecCom Market Share Analysis help clients improve their business?
Dr. Anastasia Steiner-Kogrina: TecCom Market Share Analysis enables parts manufacturers in the Automotive Aftermarket to gain full visibility into their competitive position and the latest sales trends on TecCom. With this, they can monitor their share over time and devise strategies to defend or grow it. Our customers get robust insights as an early warning system to remain competitive and spot threats in time.
Covering an unrivaled number of countries and product groups, these insights provide a great basis for clients to identify areas of opportunity across the globe and along the entire automotive aftermarket product spectrum. And with TecCom being the Independent Aftermarket’s largest B2B trading platform, our insights are valuable indicators for the broader market.
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