British retailers may be living in the short term and focusing on immediate sales rather than strategy, new research suggest.

The Insight Awareness Report from database software provider FileMaker shows that UK retailers are more interested in gathering data that aides customer service (65%) and sales and marketing (62%) rather than risk management (23%) and strategic business planning (22%).

In a poll of 100 UK SME retailers, the report shows a sector drowning in data, but with little understanding of how to turn it into useful practical actions. More than 80% of respondents said they had more access to data now than five years ago, and 65% said they found it easy to measure metrics - but only half said they were satisfied with their company's ability to translate data into strategy.

Half felt thy lacked time, while 34% felt they didn't have the staff or skills to properly analyse the information they had collected. In fact, a quarter of retailer surveyed felt they had more data than they could effectively use.

Over 90% of retailers have at least one tool to process customer information, but only 27% have data on customer satisfaction or loyalty. Three-quarters have no customer relationship management (CRM) system at all.

Nearly a half are using electronic communications for marketing purposes, but only 22% have implemented a system to make sense of the information they get back.

Tony Speakman, director of FileMaker Northern Europe, said: "With the focus place squarely on gathering marketing and sales information, it looks like UK retailers are treading water to some extent; prioritising tactical survival techniques over strategic business planning.

"While factors such as economic recovery are justifiably hard to predict, a clear understanding of the tools that are available for collecting and analysing meaningful data can go a long way towards setting an achievable long-term agenda."Consumers are shifting their colour preferences in range cooker design, according to online retailer rangecookers.co.uk.

Analysis of more than 2,00 online purchases shows a shift in overall colour trends from the previously dominant cream to black, with 39% of consumers choosing choosing this option.

Stainles steel is the next most popular choice with 33% of purchases, then cream with 18% and other colours including silver, red, blue and white making up the other 10%.

In fuel options, dual fuel makes up two thirds of purchases followed by electric at 18% and gas 15%. In the dual fuel models, stainless steel is the most popular colour (38%), closely followed by black (36%), cream (16%), and other colours.

It is slightly different with electric range cookers where black accounts for 45% of all sales, followed by cream with 21%, stainless steel 20% and other colours 14%.

Cream is still the most popular colour with gas models representing 40% of sales, followed by black (34%), stainless steel (21%) and silver (5%).

Christopher Parker, rangecookers.co.uk director, said: "It is clear that professional chefs, passionate cooks and foodies everywhere will always choose the dual fuel option above all the others if they have access to gas and electric.

"We have seen growth in the sale of electric models as a consequence of modern living, the increasing number of apartments and new build houses. We attribute the popularity of black appliances to the trend for bold colours in the kitchen. Any quality range cooker makes a strong statement, but in black the impact is truly inspiring and we expect this trned to continue in 2011."