Preparing sales exports so trend charts stay honest
Trend analysis fails quietly when a store code changes or a category rename splits history into two series. Before sending files to an analyst, freeze a store ID list and a category map for the full period under study.
Flag refunds and voids the same way every month. If one export nets them and another lists them separately, charts will jump for no trading reason.
Note the day a new till or ERP went live. We draw a vertical marker on charts at cutover so readers do not treat a system change as a sales miracle.
Hong Kong retailers often run bilingual product names. Keep one language key for category grouping; mixed keys create duplicate lines that look like growth.
Spend an hour on export hygiene and you save days of back-and-forth. Sitebloomcore includes a short intake checklist with every sales trend analysis engagement for this reason.