All words pointing to the same thing – I am passionate about shoppers. I love the discipline it takes to find the issue or barrier keeping shoppers from purchasing a product. I love the vision it takes to find shopper insights and then bring it to life in a relevant way. I love the curiosity it takes to stay on top of the technology and trends that are changing how shoppers approach retail environments, whether brick or click (traditional stores or online).
10 years of shopper marketing experience has brought along some awesome opportunities. I have worked on some of the largest retailer and manufacture brands around, from Walmart to USPS, Walgreens to P&G and have lived in some great cities along the way, from Fayetteville, AR to Cincinnati, OH to Chicago, IL. And this experience has led me here, to birdsong gregory in Charlotte, NC. Why? The answer is based on how I view the future.
I believe the best way to predict the future is to create it. And I believe the role of future creators will belong to smart, strategic, neutral and nimble companies, those who choose to approach problems as conversations. A conversation requires approaching challenges engaged in actively listening, watching and focusing on what factors are influencing the situation before responding. birdsong gregory has taken a purposefully conversational approach to their 10 years of growth, building their business on the idea that facilitating a conversation requires low overhead and high access. The fact that Charlotte ranks 8th in the US for Fortune 500 companies has provided a perfect regional and national proving ground for this philosophy.
Have a passion for shoppers? Have a shopper challenge you need help solving? Let’s start the conversation.
We are officially in the middle of shopping season. Terms like Black Friday and Cyber Monday are not only part of our vocabulary, but are increasingly how we search for deals. According to a recent MediaPost article, the search term "Cyber Monday" led all google.com search terms, jumping 120% from last year. "Black Friday" rose 60%.
While it is not news that consumers shop more and spend more during this time of the year than any other, what is news is how we are shopping. This year, more than any other in history, consumers shopped differently. Consider these statistics from this week:
PayPal saw a 511% increase in mobile payment volume on Cyber Monday vs. last year.
17% used a mobile device to visit a retailer's site.
10% used a mobile device to make a purchase.
5% of mobile traffic came from the iPad.
Year to date, online retail purchases are up 16%. All of this points to a healthy start to the holiday buying season and more, illuminates the continued adoption of mobile as a critical shopping tool.
Shoppers are multi-channel creatures of purchase and smart phones are their multi-functional swiss army tool of choice. Shopper behavior has forced retailers to stretch their offerings across channels in order to enhance shopper engagement. Retailers have started to focus on creating a seamless and similar shopping experience regardless of which channel shoppers are engaged.
What does all this mean?
Shopper technology, that is, technology that enhances the shopping experience, has to be a focus for marketers.
Digital Shopper Marketing strategies and insights are increasingly critical for retailers and manufacturers.
Organizational silos that separate online and in-store need to be unified under a renewed focus on shopper experience.
Mobile executions need to consider context. Reapplying traditional or web programs is cutting your effectiveness short.
The brave new world of the integrated, informed consumers is here. How have you adjusted your engagement with them?
Quantifying and capitalizing on digital behaviors is a focus of many marketers, as a lot of traditional shopper behavior has migrated online. Based on this, I thought the below infographics from Nielsen on the most valuable digital consumers presented some compelling information.
Based on reaching the tipping point of 50% smart phone penetration, understanding your target market's needs, behaviors and opportunities is going to become even more important.
The technology tipping point is here. More phones are sold than computers, becoming the preferred way to connect and compute in the twenty first century. Nielsen estimates that smartphone penetration will be over 50% by the end of 2011. With the increased adoption there is enhanced integration of technology into everyday life. And more strikingly, in shopper behavior.
55% of smartphone users believe the shopping experience is more enjoyable thanks to smartphones (Internet Retailer).
73% of shoppers would rather use their phone than talk to a sales associate (Internet Retailer).
41% of iPhone owners have made a purchase from their smartphone
These are not just shifts in behavior. They are step changes in beliefs. This is not just about digital shopper marketing. The conversation is no longer about adoption. It is about adapting marketing strategies and tactics to harness the power of this technology for your business.
So how should you adapt? Your customer should be your starting point, not technology. Watch how they are and are not using technology today. Look at trends that will continue to evolve their behavior tomorrow. Find opportunities to provide value beyond the realm of just your products. Just like shoppers have integrated technology into their experience, so should you look for ways to holistically integrate technology into your plans. Not just as the strategy, but as a way to better connect your strategy to your audience. Want to learn more? Visit www.birdsonggregory.com
Retail associate are a personification of your brand. They are front line brand builders or brand breakers. They have a direct impact on your store's shopping experience.
This is a reality that spans retail channels - how associates choose to interact with your customers will form an impression of your brand. Whether shoppers are looking for a product recommendation, need help navigating the store or seeking information, when your associate doesn't take the time or have the answer, you are missing a critical shopper engagement opportunity.
Sadly, we all have examples of bad retail associate experiences. It is an unfortunate retail reality these days. But think about your recent positive associate interactions. What was common about these experiences? I would argue good retail associates are like bartenders. A good bartender engages you and seeks to understand what you want. They are ready to make a product recommendation if you aren't sure what you are having - based on understanding inventory and market trends. They know their tip is directly related to the level of service they provide and as such, they put service before product. They have the background knowledge to make what you need and the empowerment to deviate from a specific menu item to make you happy. There is follow up to make sure you have what you need.
For all the focus put on marketing, don't forget the most important contact point you have with your shoppers. How are you empowering them to build your brand with customers? Maybe it is time to start viewing your associates more like bartenders.
Think the shopper behavior of finding ways to save money is going away anytime soon? Not according to a recent Mintel report.
Shoppers continue to look for discounts. While this is not a total surprise based on the sluggish economy, what is surprising is how this behavior has seemingly shifted away from doing this out of need and into doing this out of enjoyment. According to the report, 64% of US Moms say they are spending more of their time looking for details, sales, etc.
In other words, they are spending more of their personal, pre-purchase and pre-store time seeking these deals. This is no longer just about saving money, but about finding enjoyment in the “hunt” for these deals. It is about the process as well as the outcome.
With the boom of shopper technologies, the challege for marketers is not creating and helping shoppers find deals. Instead, the important consideration is how we are shifting shopper engagement strategies to talk to customers pre-store and at the point of sale to effectively drive brand preference.
There is no doubt that this focus on price and finding deals presents significant shopper marketing challenges. However, given this reality, how you adjust and directly impact your shopper's choice to put your brand in their cart? Perhaps birdsong gregory can help?
While f-commerce continues to lead the digital shopper marketing push for retailers and manufacturers, it is quickly becoming obvious there are critical differences between f-comm successes and duds. From a recent NY Times article, Doron Simovitch of SortPrice offers 7 f-comm tips:
Engage users creatively (and consistently) with likeable wall posts to support your f-commerce offering
Provide exclusivity with promotions, discounts and sales that are exclusive to your Facebook fans
Attract new fans with added incentives with one-time promo codes, coupons or discounted shipping for those Liking your page
Solicit input by asking your fans directly how you can improve the f-commerce experience
Make Facebook a PR tool with wall posts that provide news beyond retail – such as charitable and community service initiatives
Incorporate Facebook into Customer Service by enabling customer product reviews, a forum to share shopping experiences, and proactively, publicly and transparently addressing customer concerns
Keep an eye out for new features and tools with new f-commerce tools such as flash sales, group-buy offers, and contests – designed to may the f-commerce experience more fun and social
While there is benefit for brands to have a f-comm presence, it is important to ensure your strategy reflects the unique opportunity the Facebook shopping experience provides. It is not just another commerce outlet - it is an opportunity to engage your audience, allow them to interact with your products through unique offers and provide compelling incentives to purchase and share.
How empathetic are you as a marketer? An easy way to answer that question is to consider how focused are you on improving your customer's shopping experience.
PSFK shares a great example of utilizing technology to improve the customer experience. BMW has started testing the use of iPads as a way to speed up the customer's application process, allowing customers to spend more of their time at a dealership doing what they are there to do - find and purchase a car.
The impact? BMW doubled customer's satisfaction surveys at the lease-end process.
While improving your customer's experience may not produce as dramatic and timely results as BMW experienced, a focus on customer empathy will result in experiential and business gains.
PSFK is back with this year's Future of Retail report. This is a great forward looking report, capturing some of the key trends happening across different channels of retail. While the report predictably focuses on shopper technology, the focus is on how these technologies enhance and enable improved shopping experience.
One of the more interesting bits of information coming out of the recent announcement of Apple's retail leader Ron Johnson going to JC Penney are insight into Apple's retail "secrets." While it is too simplistic to assume a short list of secrets are all you need to unlock your retail potential, there is much to learn from Apple's approach to retail.
As retailers and manufacturers know best, your front line is where the interaction with the shopper happens. It is where impressions are made, brands are built and products are sold. And yet, even with all the complex training and engagement strategies this is one of the biggest industry weaknesses. Given this, Apple took a KISS (keep it simple, stupid) approach to employee engagement - bringing their philosophy to life through an acronym. A: Approach customers with a personalized warm welcome. P: Probe politely to understand all the customer's needs. P: Present a solution for the customer to take home today. L: Listen for and resolve any issues or concerns. E: End with a fond farewell and an invitation to return."
What a great reminder that retail marketing requires as much simplicity as it does strategy.
This video explains Facebook commerce (f-comm) in a pretty simple way. As shopper marketing expands beyond the walls of traditional retail to include digital shopper marketing, the fundamentals of understanding shopper behavior to create a positive shopper experience is still critical to retail success.
While brands and retailers are still trying to figure out how to use Facebook, this video proves there is a lot of opportunity for creating meaningful shopper engagement through social media.
Looking for a partner to help you determine if you should enter f-comm or help you differentiate your f-comm from your m-comm? Reach out to bg - we believe not all comms should be treated equally. In this digital age, we are an equal comm opportunity shop that loves helping clients navigate the new world of retail activation.
As retail marketing evolves, talking about how retailers are changing has been easy. I have already spent time contemplating the role of retailers and talking about how they continue to evolve.
What hasn't seen as much evolution is the role of manufacturers in all of this change. The creators of brands and products now find themselves competing with their retailers for shelf space and dollar share. Even worse, as retailers evolve their brands, manufactures now compete with retailers for shopper share of mind as well.
While this is not to say that manufacturers have been sitting back or standing still, retailers have led this round of evolution with manufacturers observing and learning. Why? For one, manufacturers have more to lose as they risk angering retailers by sidestepping retail outlet to sell direct to shoppers. And yet, as brands seek to stay relevant, it is essential to be where their customers are.
Which brings us to Facebook, the worldwide phenomenon that it is. Based on the scale of the audience and share of time Facebook continues to amass globally, manufactures have been dipping their toes in the water, testing out different f-comm (Facebook commerce) models. P&G has just announced the creation of new Facebook commerce pages for Tide, Gillette, Olay, Gain, Covergirl, Luvs and Febreeze, complete with product information and purchase capabilities.
P&G is viewing these pages as "live learning labs," further ways to garner shopper insights and e-comm experience. While it will be interesting to see how this evolves (will this be the tipping point for other manufacturers to dive into f-comm) what remains to be seen is how shoppers will respond. While it may be convenient to purchase products on facebook, mixing friends and brands has yet to prove a sustainable business for most manufacturers.
Are retail employees supposed to sell products or help shoppers?
A retailer's lifeblood is sales and therefore every retail employee needs to sell products. Your retail marketing should be oriented to sell-through. But there is a difference in the answer to this question that results in a short term (sales) or long term (service) focus.
Apple's retail stores are as oriented towards service as they are sales. In fact, a quote from their training manual reinforces this: "Your job is to understand all of your customer's needs - some of which they may not even realize they have."
Said another way, your job is to help shoppers. And through that help, based on having relevant products, the solution could be a sale. But the employee's focus is not a sale, and as a result, Apple's stores provide a richer shopping experience.
The world of commerce has exploded, expanding from the traditional store to include e-commerce (internet), s-commerce (social) and m-commerce (mobile). Pour on the fuel of personal payment options (Paypal, Google, Facebook, Square, clearXchange, etc) and you have a multi-dimensional retail marketing revolution that is no longer bound to place or time. What an awesome time to be a growing shopper marketing agency!
The above info graphic from Microsoft's Tag does a great job of bringing to life the adoption of m-commerce.
While a bit long and missing a compelling soundtrack, this video powerfully frames the digital life of our consumers, both today and tomorrow. The PSFK article provides a deeper recap, but here are a few powerful reasons to invest in truly understanding the insights that influence behavior:
What do consumers want? Localization, segmentation, customization, community and creation
Breakdown to time spent online: 16% social networking, 9.2% instant messaging, 6.6% on e-mail and 6.2% with ‘multimedia’. Note, time on social networks is up globally.
Localize, not globalize: Regardless of the global availability of the internet, a local strategy still makes the most sense based on the geographical differences in our behaviors.
Mobile domination: By 2015, mobile could to overtake the ‘keyboard & mouse-based’ web.
What is creative effectiveness? How do you judge it?
While these are relevant and important questions to ponder, they have been asked and answered countless times in countless ways. Interestingly, the famous international advertising award show Cannes has just (finally) announced their intention of bringing the perspective of effectiveness into their judging. The new Creative Effectiveness award will be judged 50% based on sales results the creative delivered, while the other 50% will be made up of strategy and the idea. While long overdue, this is a sign of the times we marketers must embrace. Marketing spending is crunched. Technology is bringing about constant change. Results and measurement can no longer be an afterthought. Shopper scrutinizes every product decision. Retailers are building private brands to compete for every dollar.
It is the new reality and in this reality, creativity that embraces the challenge to evolve will thrive. This new reality evens the playing field, forcing agencies to embrace change. It favors the nimble and the curious - regardless of size. It is in this new reality that bg thrives. While we bring a heritage of creativity, we are purpose built to connect our strategy with best in class execution vendors.
As a retail marketing focused shop, the idea of creative effectiveness is not a new one. We firmly believe that the strategy, the resulting idea and ultimately the creative output must leverage shopper insights. Why? Because without an understanding of your audience, their needs and resulting behaviors, you are creating noise. And in today's noisy economy, who wants to spend marketing dollars on noise? Not our clients.
So what is creative effectiveness? It is about creating relevant work. Work that embraces and thrives in today's new marketing reality. It is work we love developing and delivering for our clients.
As another sign that retailers are looking for ways to adapt and adopt new technologies, Express has announced they will make their whole clothing catalog available on Facebook. As Jim Wright, SPV of CRM and e-commerce at Express explains, “If you look at what's happening today, top-down marketing and driving people to places to transact has changed. We need to be where customers are having their experiences and sharing information. We need to take down the barriers preventing a shopping experience.”
Did you catch that important shift? Retailers can no longer afford to wait for shoppers to come to them - they have to be where their shoppers are. Technology, in this instance Facebook, has brought about the means for retail marketing to evolve beyond the traditional four walls of the store. The result is a whole new world of retail.
The article goes on to quote Patti Freeman Evans, VP and research director at Forrester Research as saying experimenting with social commerce is valuable for retailers even if it doesn't drive direct sales. Why? Because retailers “get insight into customers that are much more intimate. Retailers can pull those insights and turn them into analytics and use those analytics on their website to make recommendations to customers based on friends' purchases.”
The implications are far reaching. You have to be where your shoppers are to get the shopper insights you need to stay relevant. Even if that means being willing to experiment with new ways of being where your shoppers are.
Retail Marketing continues to evolve. Retailers have become manufacturers, creating brands and products to sell in their stores. Manufactures as retailers, looking to create more direct interactions with shoppers. Based on this, here are two interesting examples of manufacturers blurring the lines beyond their traditional roles.
Pepsi's Social Vending Machine: This new execution from Pepsi mixes the lines of retailing, manufacturing and social media. As the video shows, you can purchase or gift a drink as well as explore ways to get involved with their Refresh project. Will it result in more sales? Increased brand engagement? Stronger brand preference? Maybe, but more importantly, the ability for shoppers to interact with products and as a result, for Pepsi to gain shopper insights from those interactions can be priceless.
P&G's Art of Shaving Store: While not a new execution, I had my first visit recently and came away impressed. From the merchandising to the store employee training, it is obvious P&G has invested a lot into making this store work. And while it may or may not be successful, the learnings, interactions and sampling the Art of Shaving provides could be a differentiating factor as P&G looks to evolve the men's grooming business.
There are many examples I could pull from, as evolving roles continues to be a trend changing marketing. While the implications are many, the central focus for retailers and manufactures is the same - relevance. In today's shifting landscape, having an opportunity to engage consumers and gain shopper insights is critical to keeping your store and brand relevant.
I focus a lot of these blog posts on how the intersection of technology and marketing is reshaping marketing in general and retail marketing specifically. At bg, we fundamentally believe you can't (and won't) stay relevant unless you understand how shoppers are adapting their behaviors to new technology. It is a fascinating and evolving world, and mobile continues to emerge as a key part of this. Not a surprise given that it is the device in more shoppers hands in more places for more of the day than any other.
While I have spent time focusing on how to integrate mobile into your marketing plans, I think it is important to step back and ensure we are taking a broad view of mobile. As this article points out near the beginning, mobile includes a lot more interaction than purely a purchase. As Rosen defines it, they include "using one's phone to facilitate any part of the shopping experience -- from comparing products, evaluating prices, and selecting where to buy, to sharing product photos, tweeting price details, and actually completing the transaction. The mobile shopping experience can also include activities post-purchase, such as returning or servicing a product."
The mobile usage funnel gets smaller the closer to a purchase you get. But that doesn't mean the end point is where you should focus your efforts - it is important to see mobile with a broad lens. Shoppers are using mobile for a variety of activities, and most of the time they vary by trip type, product or category. We no longer live in a one-size-fits-all marketing world and given this, it is critical to understand how, when and where your target is using mobile.
Wondering where to start? It all comes back to your shopper insights - how well do you know your audience? How and where are they getting their information? Where are the other influences or considerations? Given how differently shoppers are approaching retail and using different tools like mobile, it is critical to have a bedrock of understanding and a partner that can help convert these insights into initiatives. Give us a call and lets get started.
Want a preview of what media consumption will look like in the future?
In this world of media fragmentation, consumers are adapting and adjusting how and where they consume media. And while there is no denying today's media landscape is a lot different than it was even 5 years ago, it is becoming harder and harder to predict what it will look like in the future.
Which is why this presentation from the Kaiser Family Foundation is so interesting. It provides a fascinating look into the media habits of kids ages 8-18. This group represents tomorrow's target shopper insights and the findings should interest any marketer who wants to be on the leading edge of trends.
Some particularly interesting insights:
We live in a connected world. While not a surprise, it will be interested to watch the changing realities of an "always on" generation.
Mobile will continue to become the primary way media is consumed and shopping is completed.
While the role of a phone is still primarily to connect, what they are connecting to has changed. Talking on the phone is out, accessing content is in. (pg 10)
While total media consumption is up, how the media is consumed represents a significant shift. Media is consumed based on convenience - live events are on the decline as this group accesses what they want when they want. (pg 6 & 12).
71% have a TV in their bedroom (pg 44).
Majority have no rules about the amount of time spend with certain media (pg 45).
The implications of such media consumption will be far reaching, impacting how traditional and retail marketing approach their audience. The implications for your plans today:
1. Understand these new media channels, especially mobile. I wrote a previous post on Integrating Mobile as a helpful reference. 2. Gather better shopper insights. The best way to build relevant marketing is to use relevant insights. Get out, observe, understand and integrate. 3. Begin building an understanding of the new realities surrounding consumer purchase paths. No longer one size fits all, these many paths to purchase require customized, nimble solutions. 4. Test and Learn. There is no better way to learn than from doing. With media, the ability to target and test can be customized based on your budget and needs. Start futurizing your plans today. At bg, we are equally passionate and curious about how marketing continues to evolve. We would love to put our knowledge to work for your brand.
All words pointing to the same thing – I am passionate about shoppers. I love the discipline it takes to find the issue or barrier keeping shoppers from purchasing a product. I love the vision it takes to find shopper insights and then bring it to life in a relevant way. I love the curiosity it takes to stay on top of the technology and trends that are changing how shoppers approach retail environments, whether brick or click (traditional stores or online).
Think the shopper behavior of finding ways to save money is going away anytime soon? Not according to a 
As another sign that retailers are looking for ways to adapt and adopt new technologies, 
I focus a lot of these blog posts on how the intersection of technology and marketing is reshaping marketing in general and retail marketing specifically. At bg, we fundamentally believe you can't (and won't) stay relevant unless you understand how shoppers are adapting their behaviors to new technology. It is a fascinating and evolving world, and mobile continues to emerge as a key part of this. Not a surprise given that it is the device in more shoppers hands in more places for more of the day than any other.
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