Personalization, convenience and value are what consumers demand and expect from retailers. The question for grocers is – how are you delivering on those expectations to drive growth?
Winning the customer engagement game in grocery retail reality is ever-challenging, especially given the ongoing influence of online shopping and social media in the consumer lexicon. Such consumer expectation and engagement tactics will be a key source of discussion at the Groceryshop conference in Las Vegas next week.
Today more than ever, grocers must hone their communications strategies in order to be more nimble, creative and authentic across every phase of the customer journey. One tactic is leveraging partnerships with the CPG brands that are ahead in the game.
The CPG brands that have a leg up in engaging consumers, especially the all-important millennials and Gen Z-ers, are the brands with which to partner. Social media is central to this demographic’s process of vetting products or merchants, and brands that ignore (or underemphasize) social outlets are already outpaced by competitors who have made social central to their marketing mix.
But grocery does have a key advantage over other types of retailing: consumers, for the most part, still want to shop for food in person. According to a February 2019 report from Bain & Company, only about three percent of U.S. grocery spending occurs online. The trick, of course, is getting those customers into your stores.
Why pay attention to how they choose you? We’re finding that harnessing client data – especially aggregating online reviews and segmenting results by location, brand and keywords – can unearth actionable insights that lead to smart consumer engagement tactics. We also use Artificial Intelligence (AI) Risk Roadmaps to help quantify brand risk based on a company’s position relative to its pace of AI adoption. Furthermore, we recently launched “What’s in Store,” a customizable and immersive journey through the world of experiential retail that helps clients learn first-hand the importance of in-store consumer engagement along the path to purchase.
At Ketchum, we’re drawing on decades of experience with CPG and retail brands to find new ways of helping our clients reach target audiences when, where and how they consume relevant content.
And as “the leading event for innovation in grocery and CPG,” the Groceryshop conference is sure to reveal the latest trends to strengthen reputation, increase engagement and drive growth for our clients.
I hope to see you there.
