Guide to Range Reporting

Why? To save both you and your customers time, and support you in identifying and fixing any potential data anomalies.

So, what are the different reports and their contents? We’ve put together this guide explaining the contents of the new range reports and how to interpret them, along with some helpful advice on best practices.

Please note - this guide includes all possible reports, and of course, not all may apply to your current range.

New Matches

Description of report

Products identified on Erudus based on the data in your most recent range.

Actions required by Wholesaler

• Check each ID on Erudus to ensure it corresponds with your product
• Confirm matches with Erudus - who will add them en mass OR manually link each Wholesaler Product Code to the product when checking its Erudus ID

Wholesaler Product Codes will continue to appear on this report until they have been accepted, and will appear on your dashboard.

Data Quality Review

REPORT NAME: Missing Wholesaler Product Codes

Description of report

Any row without a Wholesaler Product Code will be removed from the range file and will appear on this Missing Wholesaler Product Codes Report. This is because every product in your range must have a Wholesaler Product Code, to allow Erudus to search the Data Pool.

This rule includes rows where the entry under Wholesaler Product Code is anything other than a code - such as “not applicable”, “n/a”, a single zero “0” or a clearly erroneous entry.

Actions required by Wholesaler

• Check each product line on this report in your internal database
• Update the Wholesaler Product Codes in the range file sent to Erudus to ensure each product row has a unique Wholesaler Product Code

Duplicate Wholesaler Product Codes

Description of report

This report is for when a single Wholesaler Product Code has been assigned to 2 or more products.

A Wholesaler Product Code should be a unique identifier and appear only once in a range - any rows with duplicate Wholesaler Product Codes will be removed from the range file and will appear on the Duplicate Wholesaler Product Codes Report, as Erudus can not determine which product is accurate.

Actions required by Wholesaler

• Check each product line on this report in your internal database
• Update the Wholesaler Product Codes in the range file sent to Erudus to ensure each product row has a unique Wholesaler Product Code and delete any rows which are purely duplication

When using split codes it is best practice to have unique Wholesaler Product Codes for each level of product, i.e. the case, pack and individual.

Duplicate Outer/Inner GTINs

Description of report

Flagging of duplicate Outer/Inner GTINs - distinct products in your range should have unique outer and inner GTINs. While some items, for example a multi-pack, will legitimately have the same outer and inner GTIN, duplicates of either GTIN often highlight errors.

The reporting of duplication related to supply of both case and individual (split) units can be avoided by indicating split items (see below).

Actions required by Wholesaler

• Check each product line on this report in your internal database to confirm the accuracy of the GTIN data
• Update the GTINs in both your internal system and in the range file sent to Erudus
• Apply split codes where appropriate. Split codes can be indicated by applying a second Wholesaler Product Code or writing “split” in the “code_type” column of the Erudus supplied range template

If you do not use the Erudus range template, please discuss this with your EPR provider or forward a separate list of your split codes to your Customer Success Manager.

OUTER / INNER GTIN Errors

Description of report

GTINs that appear in this report do not comply with the GS1 standard for 1 or more reasons, such as the inclusion of non-numeric characters, length of GTIN (see here) or invalid check digit (see here).

If you have a query regarding GTIN e.g. non-standard forms please reach out to the Erudus Support Team for guidance.

Actions required by Wholesaler

• Re-examine GTIN values of your products and seek advice if uncertain
• Avoid entries such as “No bar code” and “n/a”
• If no GTIN exists, simply leave entry blank

Barcodes can be searched on the GS1 website, which is a great resource if you need help in this area.

No Match Criteria

Description of report

Products appear on this report when none of the below descriptors are included in the range:

• Outer GTIN
• Manufacturer name PLUS manufacturer product code or
• Manufacturer name PLUS inner GTIN

In order to obtain a match on Erudus at least one of the above is required, and a total absence makes it impossible to identify a match on Erudus (Any GTIN included here has been determined to be invalid, hence it cannot be used to obtain a match. See above’s “Outer / Inner GTIN Errors” report for more information).

Actions required by Wholesaler

• Provide one or more of the values described above to enable a match

No Manufacturer Name Provided

Description of report

A report for when no Manufacturer name has been provided which may impact ability to identify a match (see “No Match Criteria” above).

Actions required by Wholesaler

• Include Manufacturer name

Please consider that Manufacturer names must be spelt correct and be the legal name of the supplier. If the product was purchased from a distributor please consider the original Manufacturer.

Unidentified Manufacturers

Description of report

While Erudus will endeavour to identify the actual Manufacturer based on information supplied, if the name differs from the current legal entity, is a subsidiary, a brand, or your internal code for a Manufacturer we may be unable to confidently make a match, and will ask for clarification rather than risk an erroneous match.

Actions required by Wholesaler

• Update / correct Manufacturer name, or supply Erudus with additional details such as an address, so we can confidently assign the correct manufacturer to the product

If, to your knowledge, you have provided the correct name of a Manufacturer and do not think you need this report please contact your Customer Success Manager.

Redundant Live Codes

Description of report

Report flags if previously matched Wholesaler Product Codes are no longer present in your current range. While best practice (GS1) recommends Wholesaler Product Codes are not recycled, if you do re-use Wholesaler Product Codes any new match cannot appear on your dashboard until the existing (potentially now erroneous) link is manually removed.

This is by design to prevent multiple Wholesaler Product Codes linking to the same Erudus ID, which could result in confusion and/or error.

It is a good idea to remove Wholesaler Product Codes, as these become superfluous, to avoid potential errors.

Actions required by Wholesaler

• Delete redundant Wholesaler Product Codes from your dashboard as soon as the existing match is no longer applicable/required

Management of redundant codes should be maintained over time.

Potential Erudus ID Mis-Matches

Description of report

For when a Wholesaler Product Code previously assigned an Erudus ID (i.e. a match) now finds a match against a different Erudus ID based on the latest data provided. It is not always immediately obvious why the discrepancy exists - there are several possibilities including:

• Manufacturer archiving of a product
• Wholesaler Product Code recycling
• Erroneous manual assignment of Erudus ID to a Wholesaler Product Code

Given that these entries represent live matches on your dashboard, they should be reviewed as a matter of priority.

Actions required by Wholesaler

• Check both Erudus IDs on the system and determine which is correct
• If the Erudus ID under “Current Data” is correct then delete the associated Wholesaler Product Code from your dashboard then re-assign it to this Erudus ID
• If the Erudus ID under “Existing Match” is correct then re-check the product data in your range

This report should be prioritised to ensure your Erudus account is linking to the correct specifications.

Please contact the Erudus Support Team if you have any issues.

Potential Live Code Issues

Description of report

When an existing match on your dashboard is not supported by current data in your range. Furthermore, no match is possible with respect to the current data. In some instances data provided may appear similar to that associated with the actual product on Erudus, however, nevertheless there’ll be a subtle difference.

Given these are live matches on your dashboard they should be reviewed as a matter of priority.

Actions required by Wholesaler

• Review existing matches
• If correct, update your system to include one or more valid matching criteria e.g. GTIN and/or Manufacturer product code
• If no longer valid, delete the Wholesaler Product Code from your dashboard

Need more help?

The Erudus Knowledge Base is full of guides taking you step by step through many Erudus functions - from how to add a product to managing brands in Erudus. You can visit Knowledge Base here.

And of course our dedicated Erudus Support Team are always on hand to help and can be contacted on 0333 121 8999 or via email at support@erudus.com.