Amongst all the diversity of perspective in the industry on ‘where to shopper marketing?’ – in the broadest sense, there is one thing upon which everyone seems to agree – the need for a genuinely holistic approach; resulting in real integration. Between supplier and retailer, consumer and shopper, among currently disparate marketing tactics, and around concepts of value.

Within that, four key areas are standing out in the current landscape:

1. 1.       Digital and mobile – the new black
2. 2.       Holistic marketing – from consumer to shopper and back
3. 3.       Language and vision – supplier versus retailer
4. 4.       What ‘value’ means now

The first one, in particular, is the biggest ‘buzzword’ around, and consequently gets the most attention!

1.       Digital and mobile – the new black

Speaking of flat-earthing, up until recently in Australia the importance of digital and mobile has been pooh-poohed to some extent by the argument that 90% of sales are still physical. Well, yes, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use the technologies to influence and create the sale, not just to transact.

Digital/mobile is under still utilised in Australia for influence. Referencing Google’s ‘Zero moment of truth’ approach,  we’re currently undercooked at all points (Stimulus, Zero Moment of Truth, First Moment of Truth, Second Moment of Truth) given we are approximately 60% smartphone penetration in this country.

As a result of this lag, many of the Path to Purchase presentations focused very much on digital.

It is evident that many companies aren’t using digital very well. If they have it tends to be something like “hey let’s put our brand on Facebook” with little thought on how can we communicate with our audience and more importantly what do we want to communicate with this medium.

One company that is using digital media particularly effectively is Coopers. Here is a family-owned company rooted in tradition (in fact celebrating 150 yrs in 2012!) that has embraced digital and in the process shown the bigger players in the industry that you don’t need a big budget to be effective. Their Coopers Clear campaign used augmented reality to make a connection with both male and female shoppers but it was much more than that – it is one of the first examples in this country where a manufacturer has effectively utilised digital media to promote and bypass the retailer. (http://digitalmarketinglab.com.au/index.php/2011/07/17/augmented-reality-on-the-rise-in-oz/coopers-clear-ar-campaign/). One simply scans their smartphone over a symbol on the pack to see if they’ve won. Even better is that they didn’t even have to educate their shoppers on how to access the promotion. Coopers sales reps simply showed the store manager how to do it and got them so excited they were showing shoppers how to do it. “Clean store policy?” –  not a problem. They’ve also used their “order of Coopers” website to make a fantastic connection with consumers. In fact, I feel like a Coopers now.

While some are using digital effectively (Coopers obviously, Supre and Debenhams come to mind), examples of integrating it in a combined effort with other forms of marketing have historically been light on. Toby Desforges made a good point when he said that in the same way that marketing isn’t just advertising, promotions isn’t just shopper marketing. The point is that a marketing campaign needs to encompass digital, print, TV and in-store – and in fact whichever are the most appropriate marketing tactics to bring the bigger picture to life. Ann Mooney, ex P&G, shared some excellent examples of how they have been able to achieve this in the USA – which relate also to the need for a holistic and integrated approach, so we’ll discuss them under those points.

Moving forward, one of the ‘holy grails’ will be how to effectively measure the impact of digital media in the shopper process. There are lots of models around but the ones that are measured really focus solely on in-store.  Speaker Ben Grill who made a good point about the traditional ‘pathway’ approach, suggesting “we should call this the path to purchase and repurchase”.  Indeed. And this is where digital can potentially help to keep the connection with the shopper and consumer so as to encourage repurchase.

A cautionary word on social media, however…

‘Social media’ and ‘shopper’ have now become buzz words that are bandied with gay abandon but a lack of depth of understanding and strategic rationale. John Bastistich from Westfield made the point that some of the biggest brands have either closed down their Facebook online store or view it purely as brand engagement with no commercial expectations from it. Companies need a meaningful reason beyond ‘having a presence’ behind where they invest in the social media landscape, and what they invest with. When it comes to forums like Facebook, the gulf between awareness and purchase is wide.  Back to the point around influence – the acid test is how can each element of the mix influence the shopper decision-making process?

2.       Holistic marketing – from consumer to shopper and back

Back to this business of a 360 degree view.  In this era of rapid change and a fragmented marketing environment, it’s clear that a holistic whole-of-customer view is required, from consumer to shopper and back again (pre/in/post store) rather than shopper in isolation.

This is a re-emerging theme that also came up strongly in the POPAI / ShopAbility Shopper Marketing Industry Survey. That shopper is not just about in-store, and nor is it ‘just a mindset’ (as clearly stated by Ann Mooney at the Summit).

Shopper marketing involves pre, in and post-store and we need to understand the relationship between consumer and shopper.

Consumer needs and desires drive shopper purchase. At the point where those consumer desires and needs become purchase choices and decisions, we’re speaking to the shopper, whether or not they’re in-store at that point.  And there is any number of influences along this ‘path’, which is somehow no longer the right word to use, since it’s clearly not linear.  And to that point, when the shopper becomes the consumer again; using the product is also an ongoing expression of their choice.  And then there’s post purchase.

Post purchase is also currently underutilised (expressions versus impressions, to quote Ben Grill from Google).Post purchase hasn’t really been thought about for repurchase and transactions, just for ‘loyalty’.

This all points to the importance of tailoring offers based on an understanding of individuals as whole-of-customer. And technology enables us to do this now. We can find out more about our customers than ever in the history of marketing. The era of ‘mass communications’ is over, for those of us who still haven’t got the message and cling to our TVCs.

3.       Language and vision – supplier versus retailer

Another theme is the need for a common language for suppliers and retailers (and within suppliers) by putting shopper and store back, or ‘store first’, as Ann Mooney from P&G likes to call it.

It’s not just about ‘doing shopper marketing’, which isn’t a term retailers use anyway; all shoppers are ‘customers’ to a retailer.

From the successful examples given at the conference, it seems internal structure dedicated to shopper is less important than having a common language, clear vision and clearly understood process for getting things to market and using insights.

Several of the speakers, and in particular Ann Mooney (formerly of P&G), spoke of the need for genuine integration in shopper-led marketing initiatives. In order for all facets of a campaign to sing from the same hymn book (including digital) with shopper-focused messaging, this integration needs to be built in to process before a single campaign light bulb goes ‘bing’. Ann spoke to the realities involved in making that happen, including:

• Nominating lead agencies to coordinate other agencies (and the politics of that)
• Ensuring that Insights not only have a seat at the table, but that shopper insights actually inform all integrated marketing initiatives
• Building in processes for Retailer engagement from the outset (i.e. during the insights gathering stage) and a seat at the table for every stage

At this stage, the Australian market is still very tactical and for many working in the industry, the task feels overwhelming to get from where they are operating now and where they would like to be. There is a real need to get the attitude and processes (including who holds particular budgets and how they work together) within businesses right to ensure that the strategy (or in many cases tactics disguised as strategy) are not determined by company structure.

What ‘value’ means now

Low price is not a differentiator anymore, it’s a given. There is a need to define the types of value different shoppers look for, and this  means retailers will need to move away from a ‘lowest price’ to defining what ‘value’ actually means or find a different platform altogether.

Jon Bird of Ideaworks delivered a brilliant presentation which spoke to 8 Paths to Value; being:

1. Basic Buys
2. Proven Performer
3. Creative Solutions
4. Expert Advice
5. Built to Last
6. Affordable Chic
7. Small Indulgences
8. Everyday Heroes

Arnaud Frade from TNS also spoke to Values and Concepts being beyond price, and certainly in our own experience of category strategy and the development of category drivers, there is a need for a holistic approach to what value means to our customers, just as there is a need for a 360 degree view on the points we’ve mentioned earlier.

Ann Mooney also made the valid point that packaging is underleveraged for shopper communications and activations, not just as a brand platform. Packaging is often the only guaranteed communication medium there is. So, what are we communicating on it and how does that address this broader concept of ‘value beyond price’?

And… finally, back to being human.

Simon Small of Nestle Switzerland reminded us of the fundamental truth that ultimately it’s all about emotional connection. Which can be easily forgotten while trying to navigate what ‘shopper’ means now in an increasingly fragmented and complex communication world. Simon’s stories of powerful emotional connections between shoppers and brands in surprising environments, such as developing nations where retail channels are unsophisticated at best and chaotic at worst, prove that when you hit the emotional ‘sweet spot’ with shoppers, the dividends can be enormous.

So, in summary:

1. All tactics need good reasons
2. Shopper marketing is about whole human beings, who are consumers, shoppers and seek ‘value’ (whatever that means for them), and are influenced by a wide range of communication mediums before, during and after purchase
3. Real integration happens via common language, vision and meaningful process change
4. Emotion is at the heart of all good shopper marketing.  Actually, at the heart of everything, really.

Hosted by the US Path to Purchase Institute, the 2012 Shopper Marketing Summit was held in Chicago on the 16-18 April 2012. The summit boasted “a boat load of critical insights, information and solutions to help better connect with shoppers”. I attended the conference to gain a greater understanding of the level of sophistication of the US market in the discipline of Shopper Marketing, to uncover examples of best practice and evaluate how the Australian market compares. While I came back confident in the level of skill, thinking and leadership within the Australian market I do think there are things we can learn from our American counterparts especially in the areas of integration, execution and measurement of Shopper Marketing initiatives.

The Shift from Trade to Shopper

To set the scene for the three days the first session of the conference, a panel based discussion, explored the key differences between traditional Trade Marketing and Shopper Marketing. The panel included representatives of thought-leading manufacturers and agencies such as Nestle USA, Kimberly-Clark, Millward Brown and JWT. They outlined the key differences as per the following table.

The panel acknowledged that the increased complexity associated with a shopper-centric activities meant that campaigns involved a greater number of stakeholders, required longer lead times, required a new approach to budget allocation and in many cases were more difficult to measure. They did however also acknowledge that, if executed well, shopper-led campaigns had the ability to deliver more than just increased sales (e.g. improved retailer relationships, new occasions for a particular category or brand, increased household penetration, increased incidence of trip types, increased foot traffic, etc.).

The first day of the conference focused on two key elements of Shopper Marketing: Insights and Measurement, which are the bookends of any good Shopper Marketing campaign. Yet, these two elements are often those that are glossed over in the race to bring an activity to market. The truth is these elements are vital and can make the difference in elevating a basic trade marketing initiative to a true shopper marketing campaign, delivering exceptional results for a brand, category and/or retailer.

Throughout the conference the importance of quality insights was highlighted through the case studies presented by market leading organisations, including The Coca Cola Co, Pepsi Beverages Co., Procter & Gamble and Kimberly-Clark Corp. These companies demonstrated how insights into shopper attitudes and behaviours helped them to develop new products and campaigns that had been highly successful meeting, and in many cases, exceeding their campaign objectives.

The Path to Integration

While Shopper Marketing has existed in the US longer than it has here in Australia it is encouraging to know that we are keeping up with the level of thinking the US is demonstrating. That said, the head start the US market had in the field of Shopper Marketing has meant forward-thinking organisations have had the time to experience initial success of activating against shopper-related insights and have now set about fully integrating shopper into their business. Some have progressed further down the path of integration than others but all of the organisations presenting at the summit indicated that full integration was their end goal. Many spoke of the challenges in making such a fundamental change within their business but all recognised the benefit that would result once it had been achieved.

It is important to note that those organisations who have integrated shopper have not walked away from traditional consumer marketing, and nor will they. Rather, they have built shopper into the strategic business, category, brand and channel plans alongside consumer marketing, understanding that there is a place and need for both to sit side by side.

The more sophisticated have realised that their budgets are through-the-line rather than above and/or below. They believe that funds should be allocated to the points along the path to purchase where they will have maximum effect, driving business efficiencies. For many businesses this requires a fundamental shift in thinking which must take place from the top-down with cultural change led by a determined senior management team. Those who have made it work are singing the praises of a fully integrated strategy that elevates the shopper to the same status consumers have long held in the hearts and minds of marketers.

The Impact of Technology on the Path to Purchase

The two subsequent days split sessions into four streams:

• Digital Path to Purchase
• Big Picture
• Insights into Activation
• Mobile Solutions

It will be no surprise, given that two of the four streams relate to technology, that the impact of digital and mobile on the path to purchase was a hot topic with many manufacturers and retailers seeking to understand the impact that technology is having on the way shoppers interact with their stores and brands. It was encouraging though to hear repeatedly that the shopper path to purchase is not isolated to the four walls of the store with universal acknowledgement that the shopper exists pre, in and post store.

The idea that technology has meant that active search (otherwise defined as ZMOT or Zero Moment of Truth by Google) is crashing with the FMOT (First Moment of Truth, a phrase coined by Proctor & Gamble) is being embraced by some who are working on ways to encourage the use of technology at the shelf.

Piers Fawkes, President of PSFK, who spoke on the topic ‘The Future of Retail’ gave the example of retailers such as Neiman Marcus, Mercedes Benz and Burberry who have digitally enabled their staff to enhance the shopping experience making them better equipped to address any questions their customers may have regarding product availability, technical specifications, etc. as well as to help them customize the shopping experience of their regular customers.

Aligning Manufacturer and Retailer Objectives

Often it is easy for manufacturers to concern themselves wholly and solely with their driving growth and sales of their brand, creating activations that deliver on their internal objectives with limited consideration for the retailer, their objectives and how this activity may fit into the retail environment.

A number of speakers at the conference spoke about the importance of aligning the manufacturer and retailer goals. April Carlisle, a Leader of Shopper Marketing at Proctor & Gamble said, “it has to work for everyone, or it works for no one”. She gave the example of Tide laundry detergent within mass merchants.

P&G recognised that laundry detergent category was a low priority for these retailers who were much more concerned with achieving growth in higher margin categories such as apparel. With this retailer objective in mind, they developed a campaign which supported the positioning of their brand, based on a shopper insight relating to the shoppers desire to get longevity out of their clothes.

They created a campaign for Walmart, in conjunction with Levis jeans, which communicated to shoppers that Tide was the washing detergent they should buy to protect their new jeans. They achieved off-location displays in the apparel section of the store and saw a dramatic increase in the sales and trial of Tide laundry liquid. This campaign was initially executed in Walmart but was extended to Target, linked with an alternative brand of jeans, once the results of the Walmart activation proved so successful. This campaign has been repeated a further three times in Target based on the success and the link to a retailer-critical category.

Another session presented by Kellogg, Proctor & Gamble and Ubisoft emphasized the huge opportunity that exists in cross-category promotions. They identified six key principles for a successful partnership:

1. Start early and be transparent
2. Align shopper targets
3. Bring a valuable offer
4. Leverage unique partner assets
5. Activate around the path to purchase
6. Execute with excellence

They gave examples of two campaigns that linked the release of gaming titles Madden NFL and Just Dance 3 with Gillette and Kellogg cereal brands respectively. Both campaigns were hugely successfully in driving awareness of the release of the game, which was the objective for Ubisoft, and achieving the brand objectives for Gillette and Kellogg.

The Future of Shopper Marketing

When asked what the future held for Shopper Marketing, speakers observed a number of trends and challenges they thought have an impact in the next few years. Amongst these were the rise of digital technology, the emergence of a multichannel shopper, shoppers who expect access and engagement wherever they might be, further embedding shopper into the DNA of business, retail-tainment, price transparency and a more holistic approach to the path to purchase. If this short but diverse list is anything to go by, the world of shopper is only going to get more interesting and the one thing that was made abundantly clear at the summit was that those who are along for the ride and are taking shopper seriously are those who will reap the rewards in the future.

Until next time!

Going down to the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival in Mid-March, I had a chance to come face to face with Melbourne’s food trucks. What started as 1 or 2 mini-kitchens in a truck driving around the Northern Suburbs of Melbourne (c’mon south of the river Councils!) has now turned into something quite remarkable. At last count there were 10 different trucks including: Beatbox Kitchen, Cornutopia, Taco Truck, Gumbo Kitchen, Dhaba, Grub Food Van, Le Sausage, Massive Weiners and Grill’d Airstream.

Fortunately for me, the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival managed to organise Food-Trucks-Unite. On the day I went, the Taco Truck, Dhaba and the Beatbox Kitchen all converged in the same place on the Northbank for an afternoon of food tasting.

While the Curry Truck and Beatbox Kitchen looked inviting, there was only one place I was interested in – the taco truck. Unfortunately, so was everyone else! Luckily I just beat the rush because by 3pm they had sold out of fish tacos, by 4pm there was no chicken and by 4:30pm they had sold out of absolutely everything.

So what is it that makes these so attractive, is it the new format? Is it just a fad? Well not in my opinion. There are a number of reasons that the Taco truck has every reason to succeed. The food is fresh, it’s made right in front of you and the lemon and limes are right in front of you. It feels reasonably healthy, well, better than our other take away friends anyway. It feels authentic – fish tacos, chipotle mayo, Tapatio salsa all on the menu. It’s simple, there are 5 things you can order and that’s it. You can customise your heat for those of you that like your habanero sauce. And yes there is something intangibly cool about being able to park on the side of the road and serve food.

Oh and they are also fully integrated with social media, if you want to know where they are at during the week get onto Facebook or twitter. You can even try www.wherethetruck.at, which looks like it is trying to assemble them under one roof.

Now to find that Gumbo Kitchen…

Tying into the POS features in this issue of Retail Pharmacy, I thought it worth a refresher on how to get the most from your POS by understanding and applying how shoppers shop in pharmacies. These apply whether you’re a small community pharmacy, a generalist in a shopping centre, or a large footprint discounter.

Placement, Content, Creative

To be effective, point of sale materials need to have a compelling offer (content), communicated in a clear way (creative) and placed where shoppers both go and will see it (placement).

A poor offer in a good place in store will beat a great offer in a poor place in store, every time.

Don’t just put displays where you have space … if it’s in a corner with no traffic, it won’t be seen.

Which brings me to …

Put it where the shoppers are

The majority of traffic in community pharmacies and generalist pharmacies is to the dispensary first, with upwards of 40% of shoppers waiting near the dispensary for script fill.

This means that the major places for displays and POS communications are, in order of priority:

1. At the dispensary counter
2. Near and above the dispensary
3. Between the dispensary at the front counter, and
4. Between the store entrance and the dispensary (whatever the main traffic route is).

The dispensary is not just a transaction space, it’s a primary selling space. Around the dispensary is a communications opportunity for those waiting for scripts. Between the dispensary and the front counter is your primary impulse zone, particularly for low value items such as nail polish, as shoppers have completed their ‘main mission’ (script fill) and are more open to impulse and browse. Between the store entrance and the dispensary has traffic but shoppers are less likely to be open to impulse until their scripts are dropped off, so displays put in this zone need to be multiple sided and act more as a prompt/remind.

There’s also a difference between putting displays where the shoppers are, and irritating them by placing displays and POS in their way (ie across the path). Interruption is fine and the name of the game, but physically creating barriers with displays causes negative reactions. Displays and POS need to be in the major traffic areas, and in line of sight, but not blocking or impeding traffic.

Where shoppers look and what they see

Less is more. The human brain can only register groups of 5 things or fewer at a time. A store festooned with thousands of different posters and hanging signs means shoppers become visually fatigued and zone out, becoming focused on the shortest path to the shelf/dispensary. (JB Hifi is starting to reduce the amount of POS in their stores for this reason).

Fewer, repeated signs work better than having one of everything.  You’ll get more cut through by having only 1 or 2 promotions with POS and displays running at a time and repeating the POS for those two promotions around the store.  This is because it can take up to 3 exposures (ie in different places – think petrol station bowsers, signs at the front of store and then instore) for a shopper to register a promotional message. In a pharmacy this might look like, for a given promotion, 1 sign/display between store entrance and dispensary, another sign at the dispensary, and another between the dispensary and the counter or at the counter.

Pictures work better than words. Words and a price point, if applicable, should be kept to fewer than 5 and the picture should take up 2/3 of the sign. This is because shoppers (unless waiting for script fill) are moving, and the human eye and brain can only take in 5 letters (not 5 words) in half a second. So in a two-second walk past you can effectively communicate only 4 short words and a picture. And keep your fonts (letter sizes) LARGE, particularly for older shoppers.

The closer a shopper gets to their desired area the greater the downward angle of sight. Shoppers may enter a store looking up for navigation signs, particularly if it’s a store they’re not familiar with, but as they get closer to their mission area the line of sight becomes between shoulder and waist. So signs and displays need to be around shoulder height, on average.

Play to relevance – Opportunities may differ per area of the store

If you understand the role of each part of the store you can ensure that your displays and POS for each part of the store are relevant, meaning a better likelihood of shopper uptake.

• Front of store: is about traffic driving. This is about attention grabbing – what’s hot, new, seasonal or ‘big’. Attractive impulse items. Loss leaders – IF you dare (and will make money still … we’ve discussed the pros and cons of this before.)
• On the way to destination categories (eg baby, weight loss): these traffic zones could be used for uptrading, upselling or switching the brand/product of the planned destination category. Prompt or remind for key occasions and brands. Depending on location in store displays can act either as a switch from a planned brand to another brand, or an incremental purchase (something they hadn’t planned to buy) or as an uptrade (to a more premium/expensive product or to a larger packsize, both resulting in a higher spend).
• Between the dispensary and the checkout: good value discretionary and impulse items. They’re not going to pay $20 for an impulse item (if their script was only $20 to start with) but they might spend say $5. Shoppers think in terms of how many notes they need to hand over and what colour the notes are, so it’s good to keep items under key currency price points (ie just under $5, just under $10).
• Dispensary and checkout: impulse and add on items (particularly for complementary sell at dispensary). Items not on the shopper’s list at all – often emergency, stock up, ‘just in case’, ‘so I don’t run out’ and treat type items.

Some basics for displays

Stock sells stock is a retail cliche, because it is true. Displays need a reasonable amount of stock on them (see the point about shoulder height displays above) but they also need to look ‘shopped’ … if a display is too neat shoppers won’t want to disturb it. Also the psychology of it is that if there are products already taken from the display then those products must be desirable … if the display is full then nobody must want any. So better to leave a few products/cases OUT of the display.

Space them out a bit. Too many displays, or too many next to each other means you lose both your point of difference and shopability … you wind up with display clutter.

Change them frequently, based on average frequency of your shoppers. Most shoppers shop pharmacies every 3-4 weeks on average. So you need to be changing your displays and promotions monthly or so. Certainly at least every 8 weeks.

Keeping displays SIMPLE

A neat way of remembering some display and POS basics are using the acronym SIMPLE:

• Siting                            - where the display is situated
• Impact                          – is it eye catching – does it command attention
• Message                       - does it communicate the required message, can it be read when walking past
• Price                             – is the product priced correctly and clearly
• Life                              - will the display last and be kept clean and tidy
• Ensure safety                - displays must not pose a safety hazard.

A common sense checklist, really, but easily forgotten when you’re caught up in a million other tasks.

Happy merchandising!

Back in September last year we discussed here in Retail World the new path to purchase and the role of prestore stimulus vs active online/mobile search (the Zero Moment of Truth), its impacts on instore behaviour (traditionally the First Moment of Truth), and how conversion can now be happening prestore.

The need to explore the impacts and opportunities of this was confirmed with last night’s news story on the Woolworths virtual shopping wall at Sydney’s Town Hall station. This was preceded the day before by a front page story in the Sydney Morning Herald (18 Feb) on Sportsgirl’s use of QR codes in virtual shopping wall ‘billboards’.

Virtual shopping walls really started with Tesco’s Homeplus subway-located virtual shopping wall in Korea in December 2010 , where shoppers standing in the subway station could scan products on the virtual shelf and the products were delivered to them by the time they got home.  The technology is a simple QR code, a scanner for which is downloadable as an IPhone app.

During 2011 a number of companies have started to explore virtual shopping walls, with US-based department store Sears focussing on toys for Christmas via virtual shopping walls in airports, cinemas and bus shelters ,  and in September 2011 Procter & Gamble commenced activating a P&G brands-only set of virtual shopping walls in the Czech Republic with fulfillment provided by the Czech Republic’s largest online retailer, thereby bypassing that country’s traditional bricks and mortar retailers.

Virtual shopping walls will by their nature likely be temporary executions, a form of pop-up retail. Pop-up retail itself has been around for more than 10 years. And whilst likely to nip at the edges of top-up and dinner tonight shopping trips in grocery, the limited range provided on a virtual wall and the impulse/time bound nature of the virtual shopping location means they’re not suitable for longer stock-up shops.

So from a grocery store point of view we wouldn’t expect virtual shopping walls and pop up retail to cannibalise ‘mainstream’ sales, more to kind of nibble sales around the edges a bit. And depending whose statistic you use, online grocery shopping is still at fewer than 10% … it remains to be seen how well CatchoftheDay/Scoopon’s GroceryRun online grocery store does.

However, whilst still in their infancy, virtual shopping walls mean the advent of shopping anywhere (not just instore or online). Not only can shoppers receive and look up shopping related products and offers anywhere they are, they can order them anywhere they are. This throws up both commercial and marketing opportunities.

So the ‘where do I get it from’ options, from a shopper’s point of view, are becoming:

• Buy it in a store
• Buy it online and have it delivered to me
• Order it online and pick it up instore
• Order it instore and have it delivered to me
• Buy it from a temporary store (pop up retail, temporary)
• Buy it from somewhere that’s not a store or online (ie virtual shopping wall, temporary) and have it delivered to me.

What the advent of virtual shopping walls and pop-up retail does is to get shoppers comfortable with the notion they can shop from anywhere. Which in theory means they’re open to offers and communications anywhere. And this is where technology developments mean you have communications opportunities outside of traditional media such as television and catalogues.

PRESTORE

Anyone remember the 2002 movie Minority Report, where Tom Cruise winds up wearing a Japanese man’s eyes (long story), and as he walks around retail centres various anonymous voices address ‘Mr Yamamoto’ (or whatever his name was) with various tailored offers?

This is location based marketing, or geo targeting. We’re not doing it with eye retinas (yet), it’s happening with mobile devices where location based media deliver multimedia and content directly to the device. A number of digital and online companies in Australia have been offering these services for a year or two.

This can be used to drive traffic to your store as the field of the geo-target is not limited to within store, it can be up to 1 km or more. It’s great for local and community based stores with regular clients who go to their ‘local shops’ frequently and thus are likely to be ‘in range’ eg if a shopper is on a shopping strip or shopping centre, and your store is located on that strip/in that centre, they can receive offers from you.

Shoppers (well, people in general) are already actively, albeit unknowingly, helping you with this – telling you where they are – by ‘checking in’ where they are on Facebook, Foursquare, Yelp etc. (Feels like an opportunity for a location based media application that links the checkin sites with offers, if that hasn’t been developed already).

INSTORE

As we’ve discussed in other articles, grocery shoppers are crying out for information, education and entertainment (not just simplicity via range and space). A number of technologies and tools are available that can provide shoppers more information at shelf via their mobile device, without the need for paper-based pamphlets.

QR Codes are basically a re-routing application where the shopper scans the QR code with their smartphone and are taken to a specific website or landing page where the additional content is held. They can be used for product and process information, recipes etc. In consumer electronics for instance, the JBHiFi equivalent store in the USA, Best Buy, uses QR codes for product and technical specifications at shelf. But they can also be used to educate shoppers on health regimes, access promotions etc.

Augmented Reality is sort of the next step on from QR codes, where shoppers with smartphones and tablets scan an icon on a pack or shelf, such as Blippar, and additional ‘real-life’ content appears on their phone screen. Heinz have trialled this in the US with recipe books that ‘appear’ from their tomato sauce bottles when scanned. Augmented reality is also being used for promotions as the content is dynamic, in video format. Kit Kat Chunky have run augmented reality interactive promotions in other markets. Tablets like Ipads mean larger screen applications such as apparel where you can scan an item of clothing and it virtually ‘tries it on’ for you by placing the item over a head-to-toe image of you.

Words don’t describe it very well; you need to see it in action. Check out www.blippar.com as a starting point, or there are quite a few videos on YouTube.

With both QR Codes and Augmented Reality, as with any at-shelf promotion or information, the basic rules of communication apply. It needs to be made clear to the shopper that the additional information, via whatever technology, is available … just putting it on the pack of a specific brand may not make it visible enough. This will still require at-shelf signage to promote the information.

NOT ONLY FOR THE YOUNG

So what’s all this got to do with me, you say, because you run an IGA and the majority of your shoppers are people over 55 aside from the schoolkids who come in for drinks in the mornings and afternoons? Well, location based media is perfect for you, for a start.

Smartphones and tablets aren’t just for the young. Whilst the generational shift means that those under 25 don’t operate ‘offline’ (if you’re not digital, you don’t exist for under 25s) the penetration of smartphone users will be at 60% in Australia within 12 months (ie nearly 2/3 of all mobile phone owners will have a smartphone within 12 months) and the current penetration of tablets is around 15% (1 in 6) and rising quickly.

Many sectors are getting in on the act. A personal example was in Hobart’s MONA museum over New Year, where all exhibits have codes and you are given a smartphone with scanner on entry (a visual version of the AV ‘listening sticks’) to use to scan exhibits for artist and artwork details. My 75+ year old parents took to it like ducks to water.

The retail revolution is not just to ‘online’ retailing, it’s to mobile … anytime, anywhere. And this gives you more opportunities to communicate with your shoppers, not fewer.

There’s been a lot of media huff and puff lately about the growth of online shopping in Australia. But the larger revolution – albeit quieter from a media point of view – is the change in shopper behaviour before they purchase, brought about by the ability to search online for product information before they even get to a store.

This has implications for the ‘path to purchase’ and for impulse purchases. As the degree of prestore search increases, so does the degree of planning.

I thought it worthwhile having a look at this and its implications for what stores will need to do in order to retain a role broader than being a mere transaction zone. The game SHOULD be much bigger than just range and layout, which are hygiene, navigation and deselection (narrowing down) factors, they’re not strategy. Once you’ve got your range and layout right, then what are you going to do to increase your category sales in an environment where shoppers are getting harder to influence?

THE PATH TO PURCHASE IS BLURRING

Traditionally the path to purchase was thought to be prestore and instore.

Prestore was when shoppers were making lists and were the passive subjects of advertising and promotional stimulus. Prestore was about consideration.

Instore was where the shopper was influenced on which of their considered products in a category they would buy. Instore was where the conversion happened.

Now the model is blurred. We have conversion happening prestore, and consideration happening instore.

The advent of mobile search and compare is creating consideration at shelf, not just conversion. An example is a shopper standing in a shoe store looking at training shoes. The shopper can whip out their mobile phone and price compare the shoe in the store they are in versus somewhere else. And if the somewhere else is nearby they may change their store choice. You’re then relying on your store staff service and sales capabilities to keep the shopper in your store. Or they might be looking at a shoe on shelf and if a staff member isn’t available, look up the product information online using their smartphone.

This isn’t just for the ‘few’ who have smartphones, by the way. Australia has one of the highest smartphone penetrations in the world, currently nearing 40%, and set to hit 60% by the end of 2012.

THE ‘FIRST MOMENT OF TRUTH’ – JUST ONE OF A SERIES OF TRUTH MOMENTS

P&G are largely credited with coining the expression the ‘First Moment of Truth’ to describe the shopper experience at shelf, where theoretically all the prestore and instore marketing and category management efforts come together to create a purchase decision at the shelf (or offlocation display).

Now we have not only a First Moment of Truth, but a Zero Moment of Truth (prestore) and a Second Moment of Truth (post store, when the purchased product is actually trialled).

Google’s recent report (April 2011) on the Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT), whilst not expressing a new idea, has probably been the first to articulate it clearly.

It identifies the shift in shopper behaviour by differentiating advertising and promotional stimulus (considered passive) from online and mobile search (proactive).

The ZMOT is when a shopper actively searches for product information online. This may be from a retailer’s website, manufacturer’s website, product reviews, social media such as Facebook, and blogs (which are a form of organized word of mouth), among other things a search engine may dig up. ZMOT is everywhere because it can be accessed whilst mobile, and it’s not just for high involvement purchase categories like cars and entertainment systems. Shoppers are actively searching prestore in product categories ranging from plasticware to pet food.

The Second Moment of Truth (SMOT) – product trial, usage and experience – has an impact on ZMOT. Users of a product when they get it home may post a comment about the product (and their purchase experience) on a social media website, or a product review on a blog or website. These reviews then contribute to the next shopper’s ZMOT findings.  In a recent report from IBM it was stated that a shopper is more likely to believe a review from a stranger than what a retailer or manufacturer says about a product. This demonstrates the need/role for informal product advocates and ambassadors (rather than paid celebrity sponsors).

Whilst marketers can’t control what shoppers post for SMOT, smart marketers in manufacturing can use ZMOT tools – including offers – to mitigate retailer clean store policies.

So now we have a model where advertising stimulus and promotions (Stimulus) may be prestore or instore. The ZMOT is everywhere (accessed prestore, instore, in transit) as is the SMOT. The First Moment of Truth may now be online, or in bricks and mortar stores, or multichannel (eg order online, pick up instore or order instore, have delivered to your home).

I haven’t figured out how to draw this yet in a pretty diagram. Stay tuned. It’ll probably look like one of those communication network diagrams like a cloud with lots of lines where everything connects to everything else.

THE DEGREE OF PLANNING IS INCREASING

The more ZMOT proactive product search that occurs, the greater the degree of pre-store product planning.

Depending on the channel, category and trip type, there may be a lot or a little impulse. On average in Australia across a number of shopper research projects in the past few years, we’ve found that most categories in grocery are planned down to product or brand level between 60% and 70%. That is within a specific category.

But this doesn’t mean you can’t get switch, upgrade or impulse instore, or that a shopper doesn’t buy other categories/products on impulse. We know that around 80% of shoppers deviate from (add to) their grocery shopping list once instore. That is, they come in for 4 things totaling $20 and wander out $50 and 8 items later.

What it does mean is that you need to work harder to interrupt them within a given category.

Interestingly, the recent Coles and Woolworths smartphone apps have a number of functions that will actually increase the degree of planning (My List, My Specials, where items are located in my store so I can find them faster etc) with fewer of the apps to increase browse time/impulse/engagement (recipe finders being the main one at this point).

In an environment where retailers have trained shoppers to expect low prices as the cost of entry and promotional strategies have simply shifted the majority of a category’s sales to on promotion (and deflated category value in the process), the crying need instore is for INTERRUPTION. Shoppers want to discover, be surprised, delighted, and informed … this requires engagement and theatre.

THE NEED TO PLAY TO EMOTIONAL, NOT JUST RATIONAL

In ‘The Buying Brain’, Dr AK Pradeep emphasizes that 95% of human decision making is unconscious and emotional not subconscious and rational. He outlines 7 shopper experience dimensions. In no particular order, these are Information, Interaction, Entertainment, Community, Education, Simplicity, and Self Worth. These serve as a useful ‘retail health’ scorecard for a brand or category.

It’s evident from this list that grocery retailing only really talks to simplicity (ease of shop) at the moment, with perhaps some bits of information and some Community (charity) activities. But supermarkets have work to do on the interaction, entertainment, education and self worth dimensions.

When you look at the traditional point of purchase drivers (range, space & layout, visibility & display, price, promotion and persuasion) there are 3 that are rational (range, space, price) and 3 that are more emotional (display/theatre, promotion, persuasion).

Clean store policies are effectively stripping the emotion out of a shopping trip that for many is already a grudge trip or considered a chore.

When we run shopper research typically the retailers want to understand what their range and layout should be, and most of what shoppers want is not just a layout that makes sense but typically category information, samples, tastings and demonstrations. They want things that will help them with solutions and keep them entertained.

Interruption and engagement – the levers to pull for impulse sales and category growth – will come from more theatre; better thought through relevant/tailored/interactive promotions that pull levers other than price, and from personalized service.

In the brave new world of shopper-controlled retailing, the retailers who retain relevance will be those who can interrupt, surprise and delight by playing to emotions.

On the face of it, the New Zealand supermarket channel looks similar to the Australian one: a highly consolidated market with two big players who have the vast majority share between them.  But in NZ each of the supermarket retail groups are rowing their own boats, with mixed results.

Below we overview the NZ grocery market, what each of the major players is doing, and some two-way lessons from across the ditch.

WHO’S WHO IN THE NZ ZOO?

The NZ grocery channel is split roughly 50/50 between Progressive Enterprises Limited (locally known as Progs or PEL) and Foodstuffs (locally known as FS or Foodies).

Progressive, owned by Woolworths Australia, have traditionally had 3 retail badges with around 170 stores in total across Foodtown, Woolworths, and Countdown outlets. All PEL outlets are in throes, between 2011 and early 2013, of being rebadged as Countdown utilising the Woolworths green ‘apple peel’ logo and a store fitout similar to WW 2010 store formats.

Foodstuffs are proudly 100% NZ owned and this is a point of difference they flog hard. Foodstuffs have a number of supermarket retail banners: New World (135 outlets), Pak & Save (45 outlets), 4Square (280 outlets, skewing regional) as well as a couple of smaller regional banners with only a few stores (Shoprite, Write Food) and a chain of corner mixed business stores (‘dairies’ in the local parlance) numbering around 145 outlets.

HOW DO THEY COMPARE?

In the NZ market, there is not an overt comparison on price. Foodstuffs’ Pak & Save is renowned as a lowest-cost-operator (like an Aldi or Costco), but the two flagships of Countdown and New World compete head to head for shopper loyalty, albeit in different ways.

Below is a comparison table we have pulled together across a number of aspects for the two major players for their flagship banners (Countdown and New World, respectively).

HOW ARE THEY EXECUTING? EXAMPLE PROGRAMS

Countdown have recently instituted both Combo deals (some are true solutions such as fish and chips, some are multibuys by another name, as the attached photos demonstrate) and in the past few weeks launched Feed Your Family for Under $14, using shopper-submitted recipes in a form of competition.  The Masterchef program has been supported instore with recipe cards but also with specific ‘recipe bays’ featuring total meal solutions in one chiller compiled by 2010 Masterchef winner Brett McGregor.

New World have been using the ‘Clever Baskets’ mascot as a ‘discount price special’ ticketing visual shortcut. From a meals point of view, they offer pre-packed cross-category lunch solutions in chilled barges instore, and out of store run a meals TV program called  ‘World Kitchen on TV3’.

OPPORTUNITIES AND LEARNINGS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE DITCH

Although Australian supermarket retailers have only in the past 18 months started to employ occasion based solutions such as Feed the Family, these types of bundled programs are even newer in NZ.

Kiwi manufacturers are starting to employ simpler and clearer program messaging on POS, which is useful when the NZ supermarket retailer majors apply a clean store policy even more stringent than that in force in Australia. Very few POS communication pieces are allowed. This is limiting shoppers’ experience, and also renders less effective promotional mechanics. For example if you only allow on-pack promotions, destination categories with high household penetration levels won’t actually see much of an increase during promotions because the shopper was already going to put the category or item in the basket. These types of categories really require AWOP or frequency based activations. So an opportunity here is to allow more flexibility for different promotional mechanics that require activation away from the main shelf as well as at it.

Australian supermarket retailers could take a cue from NZ supermarket retailers (eg the Clever Baskets tags) and cut down the number of price specials, and therefore specials tickets, in each category at any one time, to make the category easier to ‘read’ for shoppers.

Stores on both sides of the ditch could be made more engaging with more instore theatre … particularly in fresh food, where ‘theatre’ is even more lacking in NZ (which doesn’t have specialist fruit & veg shops or butchers) than Australia. We know that the vast majority of shopping decisions are made emotionally. Dr AK Pradeep in ‘The Buying Brain’ refers to 7 dimensions of shopper experience, being Information, Interaction, Entertainment, Community, Education, Simplicity, and Self Worth. Yet most Australian and NZ supermarkets (Coles renewal stores excepted, perhaps) only really play to Simplicity, and perhaps a bit of Information and maybe Community (IGA, Foodstuffs). Entertainment and Interaction are currently largely missing.

The instore limitations have an upside however, and that is the NZ exploration of the digital space, with trial of different pre-store mediums (including QR response activations) high on the agenda.

All in all, it feels like NZ can learn from Australian meal solutions executions, and Australia should keep an eye on what NZ supermarkets are doing online and manufacturers do in the digital space.

It will be interesting to observe how the NZ and Australian grocery markets evolve over time, given their similarities and differences.

Working within the Shopper Marketing discipline we are often asked for the purchase decision hierarchy (PDH), consumer decision tree (CDT) or shopper decision tree (SDT) for a particular category. This raises a number of questions… Are they the same thing? Is there just one per category? What implications and applications do they have for retailers and manufacturers?

PDH, CDT or SDT?

The terms PDH, CDT and SDT are often interchanged and typically thought of as the same thing. But are they? As the name indicates the CDT is from the perspective of the consumer rather than the shopper. Whereas, the focus of the PDH or SDT, is the shopper.

Building brand equity in the mind of the consumer and creating consumer demand is the domain of the marketing department within a supplier or manufacturer business. They create demand for brands, give consumers a reason to believe that their brand has a unique point of difference and reason for being. This does not mean that the shopper is inconsequential to a marketer; it just provides another dimension for them to consider. Shoppers are the people who are making the decision at the point of purchase. They make the ultimate decision as to what goes into the trolley or basket. They are the ones navigating the shelf and selecting from the range presented. Therefore, it makes more sense, from a retail execution point of view to consider purchase decision hierarchies (otherwise known as shopper decision trees) rather than a consumer decision tree.

ONE PER CATEGORY?

So, is there just one per category? It is highly unlikely that there is. In our experience, there are different shopper segments that exist within a category and for each of these segments there is a different focus or priority. They may be price sensitive which means price will be higher on their PDH. They may be highly visual, meaning packaging and brand becomes key in their decision making process. Others could be looking for functionality and convenience so packaging functionality, such as the ability to reseal or the contents being individually wrapped, may influence their decision. See below for a simplified example of how this might work for a particular category.

The segments that exist are likely to vary by category so the key is to understand your shoppers and what is important to them. Quantifying the segments will allow you to understand not just how many of each shopper type there are but more importantly the value they represent to the category. Understanding the number and the value they represent will give you a picture of the most dominant PDH which will give you something solid to work with.

Purchase decision hierarchies are not usually as simple as those shown above. There are often a number of lenses or influences that come into play before the shopper reaches the store or the shelf. These variables again will vary by category but could include anything from the number of people they are buying for, their level of involvement with the category, to health concerns or even the mood the shopper is in. These lenses or influences can be represented above the hierarchy to demonstrate other considerations that influence the decision prior to the shelf. They can be shown as per the example below:

What this demonstrates is that purchase decision hierarchies can be more complicated that first anticipated. It isn’t typically as simple as a ladder with four variables, there are lenses, influences and shopper segments to take into consideration but once you unlock the puzzle it can be a powerful tool for both retailers and manufacturers…but not just as the basis for shelf layouts. PDH have impacts on packaging, marketing communications, point of sale, etc which we will examine now.

IMPLICATIONS AND APPLICATIONS

So, how can PDHs be used? Understanding shopper segments, and their value will help you to establish a dominant PDH, however it will never be a case of one size fits all. PDHs have different implications and applications for retailers and manufacturers but in both cases they present opportunities for development of the category and the brands and products that make up the category.

The most common application for a PDH is within shelf management and the development of shelf layouts. That said, within some categories it can be dangerous to lay out a category to represent a literal translation of the PDH as this can make the category difficult for shoppers to navigate and rather than assisting the decision making process will only act to confuse shoppers.

It is important when developing a shelf layout to understand not only the decision-making process but also the beacons and navigation aids that shoppers use to visually segment the category and make sense of the shelf. In a category we examined recently functionality was the highest variable on the PDH however shoppers navigated the category by brand. Where the shelf was laid out according to functionality, shoppers found it difficult to find what they were looking for. Rather, their preference was for brand blocking which, in this case meant colour blocking, and aided navigation. From there they would look for the functionality of each of the products within the brand ranges.

Another valuable outcome of understanding the PDH for retailers is the opportunity that arises for store clustering. Understanding shopper segments and catering to these segments through layouts and ranging developed according to the variables prioritised within their PDH can lead to category growth, increased profitability and greater shopper satisfaction.

Other opportunities come from understanding the PDH to develop category navigation aids and point of sale which may help to enhance the shopper experience.

From a manufacturer point of view, the application of the PDH is even more diverse. Understanding how different shopper segments make their shopping decisions can assist with new product development, packaging design and brand messaging. Uncovering a segment that is, for example, more visual than price sensitive may provide an opportunity for a premium offering with greater focus on stimulating the senses rather than competing on price.

It can also help to understand the elements of packaging requiring increased emphasis and those that may be dialed down. Strong communication of a variable that is high on the PDH can act to differentiate one brand from another, strengthening the brands reason for being and giving it a unique point of difference, in turn aiding value growth as price potentially becomes less important.

Purchase decision hierarchies can often be more complex than they appear on the surface, however, once unlocked can be a very powerful tool for retailers and manufacturers alike. They are even more powerful when shopper segments can be identified, quantified and a value attached to each segment. Retailers and manufacturers who can harness this information to develop ranges, layouts, products and communications which are tailored to these segments will drive category growth and value.

Until next time!

Last article Alison discussed the role of price based on shopping trip types by channel and within convenience channel segments.

Here we’re going to take the same approach to discuss the opportunities for year-round general merchandise and personal care in the convenience channel.

WHAT ARE YOU, OR CAN YOU, BE KNOWN FOR?

What you range needs to be driven by why shoppers visit you. Last time we outlined that convenience channel shopping trip types are largely for fuel, destination (snack, beverage, newspaper), services (eg ATM, trailer hire, gas bottle refills), entertaining, and quick meal.

Within destination, there’s a subset of ‘run out/emergency/distress’ type items that include personal care categories like feminine hygiene and toilet paper.

Where do general merchandise and personal care sit within the trip types? Let’s hypothesise what categories by trip type might look like.

It should be evident from the above there are cross category bundling opportunities to talk to a specific trip type. Particularly with entertaining, you have the opportunity to be a one-stop shop.

Which trips apply to you will depend on your channel segment. Obviously the travelling ones apply more to roadhouses and outbound major arterial road sites in outer suburbs.

Identify the trip types that are either unique or drive significant footfall to your store type and make them work in your favour. Look for opportunities to create bundled cross-category offers that compliment these trip types and increase basket size.

Pick the categories that make the most sense for your channel segment based on shopping trip types and consumption occasions.

For a Local outlet that would likely be Entertaining and Services related categories. For a Minimart it would be more meal components. For Arterial and Roadhouse it’s travelling related.

The role of these categories is profit generating, rather than stock turn.

HOW DO YOU BECOME KNOWN FOR SOMETHING ELSE?

Over time, ‘$2 shops’ have become known for being the places you can get ‘weird stuff’ (party costumes, fairy lights, cheap heaters and fans, cheap homewares if you’re moving house) that you can’t get in mass merchants or hardware. Ultimately they play to several specific occasions: party, moving house, and gifting.

Even if you pick the right categories to range for your channel segment, store type and location, there’s no point in merely ranging something and expecting it to move off the shelf by itself. You’ll need to promote it. (7Eleven have been doing this with their slurpee offer both outside of store with advertising and on-site using their roadside fuel signs, BP did a similar thing with Wild Bean cafes).

For local and minimart stores you can do this with direct marketing campaigns (ie letterbox drops, email lists) for your immediate catchment area. For Arterial and Roadhouse outlets it’s based around external signage. And then there’s above-the-line (eg TV, radio, print, digital/online media) … which is expensive and therefore a longer term drip-feed strategy.

Playing to specific occasions, trip types and needs would give Convenience a reason for being outside of fuel and drink/snack multibuys.

Feels like an opportunity for broader industry based, or at least retail banner based, campaigns to create awareness around reasons to visit convenience … and you’ll sell more general merchandise items at a profit!

Following on from our Rise to the Occasion article last year, about occasion based shopper marketing opportunities, let’s take a look at the opportunities winter presents.

HIBERNATION BEHAVIOUR

People are more likely to stay in during the winter – even in subtropical towns like Sydney and Brisbane – because they don’t want to venture out ‘in the cold and rain’. Unless they’re going to the snow. This is why restaurant patronage generally drops during the winter … people ‘go out’ and socialise in the summer and ‘stay in’ during the winter.

So how can you leverage these natural behaviours?

Play to the ‘quiet night in’, particularly for girls – flannelette pyjamas, DVDs and popcorn. As a bundle. Or you could go one step further and do what the breast cancer guys have done by creating a group ‘girls’ night in’, book-club style with champagne.

For mass merchants and discount department stores it’s all about ‘rug up’ items for indoors – blankets, throw rugs, heaters, warm pyjamas (again). And slippers. And of course you’d bundle it all up as a ‘stay warm this winter’ deal.

WINTER WARMERS

So here we’re talking about Dinner Tonight shopping trips, but for heavier and heartier fare.

Stews mean you can do bundles of recipe ingredients. Heavier pasta types such as gnocchi can also be bundled with other ingredients.

And it’s soup season, as well as pudding style ‘hot’ desserts. So there’s a 3-course meal suggestion that will drive AWOP – soup, stew and pudding.

If summer is synonymous with BBQs, what dining/entertaining occasion can we create or leverage for winter? The Great Sunday Roast? Traditionally the Sunday Roast (or baked dinner, depending on what state you come from) was family oriented, but what’s to stop it being promoted as a big night in with friends, thereby tapping into Entertaining shopping trips?

In liquor, it’s all about dark spirits – bourbon, scotch, dark rum. And red wine, to go with those Sunday Roasts. Stretching it a bit, you could include fortifieds such as port and sherry (which aren’t just gifts for Grandpa).

SNOW HOLIDAYS

This is all about the après-ski back in the chalet … a form of entertaining as the nature of ski and snow trips tends to be just as much social and friends as it is family.

Stocking up and entertaining in the ski chalet sense is about alcohol … red wine (and bottle openers), ingredients for gluhwein, sparkling/champagne as well as cheese/dips/pates etc – opportunities for cross-channel bundles here.

If you’re a mass merchant or specialty retailer the snow holiday opportunity revolves around snow and ski gear rather than food. Apparel, boards, poles etc. Plus some of the ‘rug up’ items discussed in Hibernation. You could get greater spend by bundling it all together as a series of package deals – apparel deals, gear deals.

JUNE LONG WEEKEND

Some hardy souls in this country still go camping in winter (generally coastal destinations where it’s slightly more temperate).

Camping trips generally involve more cooking for oneself than do snow holidays (where people eat out more). So there’s an opportunity here to package up a series of meals for several days of camping … the BBQ meal, the burgers and hot dogs meal, the roast meal (again!) … including packaged desserts (ie frozens).

Similarly to the snow holidays, for mass merchants and specialty retailers the opportunity is around bundling camping gear. Everything from eskies to travel rugs to thermos to tents. And entertainment – games for the kids to play in the back of the car, board games for the adults.

SNIFFLING AND SNUFFLING

Let’s not forget that winter is also ‘cold season’. Sales of tissues, sinus and cold/flu treatments go up, an opportunity for a ‘cold and flu family bundle’ or similar.

People not only get colds in winter, they generally feel more sorry for themselves and therefore get more massages and remedial therapies – in the summer people have too many fun things on, and are too busy and social to be sick!

So the principles are to look at the natural occasions the season provides, and create bundles for the whole occasion, rather than just promoting single items.

And then there are all the instore ‘theatre’ opportunities – snowflakes, log fires etc -  that these winter occasions provide …