Shopper Marketing. How to Increase Purchase Decisions at the Point of Sale

Citation

Cavicchi, A. (2012), "Shopper Marketing. How to Increase Purchase Decisions at the Point of Sale", Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 29 No. 1, pp. 74-75. https://doi.org/10.1108/07363761211193064

Starting from the first humor‐filled chapter written by Paco Underhill, founder of Envirosell, the feeling is that this new intriguing book can bring a breath of fresh air to a field naturally constrained “in the box”. A total of 37 international experts give their advice and suggestions and try to predict future scenarios driven by their experience in this “relatively new” (back cover), as stated by the editors, area of marketing. Retail marketing is not, of course, a new discipline, but shopper marketing really may be the new wave of retail marketing as Brian Harris, the “father of category management” (p. 28) states in Chapter 5.

The interest (and rationale) for a book like this is justified by some very well‐renowned statistics in the world of retailers: around 70 percent of brand selections are made at stores; some 68 percent of purchases are not planned in advance; and only 5 percent of shoppers are loyal to one brand of any given the product group. Plus, the growing availability of data owned by retailers based on their loyalty programs has allowed this world to become more and more appealing, and in recent years, investments in store marketing have been growing by around 20 percent annually. Nevertheless, as recently stated by Stuart Aitken, chief executive of Dunnhumby USA, in an interview with the Financial Times (2011), “the growth in the field of data management has been enormous. But where companies fall down is in leveraging all that data, and how strategically they change all the decisions made in an organization based on that data” (www.ft.com/cms/s/0/cca74d5c‐4907‐11e0‐af8c‐00144feab49a.html#axzz1Iv05JQ9H)

Aiming to provide a better and deeper knowledge about these trends, this book explores which strategies, tactics and tools need to be adopted to turn shoppers into buyers at the point of purchase.

The book is structured in three different parts: Definition: What is shopper marketing? (11 chapters), Strategy: How should marketers approach shopper marketing? (14 chapters), and Execution: What is shopper marketing in action? (nine chapters). Chapters are very short, with five to six pages each, and the book can be approached with a consideration of its overall perspective or by focusing on one or more specific themes; as stated by the authors, “there is no single correct way of reading it”. Perhaps a thorough description of all 34 chapters would only bore the reader of this review, so I will discuss what are, in my opinion, the hot topics discussed by the authors in each of the three parts.

In the first part, two main issues seem to lead the discussion: overload of information and retail as a brand and as a medium. Several authors consider the first issue by referring to the milestone book The Paradox Of Choice. Why More Is Less, written by Schwartz in 2004. This is because an overload of information only leads consumers down a road of confusion. For instance, “store windows must be quick reads if you expect busy shoppers walking in dense clusters to see them. They must be both simple enough so that the products can be clearly identified and creative enough to catch the busy pedestrian's eye” (Chapter 1, p. 7). The problem of overwhelming information that can cause confusion and dissatisfaction is also stressed in Chapter 9, where Gerardine Padbury underlines the new needs and values required by consumers: “Most shoppers will tend to see only what is personally relevant, meaningful and valued by themselves, and consequently they filter out information that is not specifically relevant to them or their family… there is a real danger of information overload if the trend of adding more information to labels continues unabated” (p. 52). Finally, Chapter 10, written by Herb Sorensen to explore the whole nature of relationships that shoppers develop with the store and the products, well explains the feeling many shoppers have when they are overloaded with information: angst. This can lead to non‐purchase even when one's motivation to buy is considerable.

However, if properly managed, the store can be strategically considered both as a medium and as a brand. Like other media it has a format, an audience, and editorial content, and every retailer has a different focus: “Understanding the store as a medium and a brand helps one to deliver solutions that are relevant to the shopper, retailers and manufacturer” (Chapter 3, p. 20). Along the text this concept is well investigated, and I found Chapter 11 to be particularly enlightening with its discussion of the new competition and complex equilibrium that supply chains are experiencing “retailers and brand marketers are suffering from a disconnect about the very meaning of the term ‘shopper marketing’” (p. 68). Yes, they agree that it is about in‐store and the “first moment of truth”. Unfortunately, many manufacturers have yet to realize that it is the retailer – not the brand marketer – who is in control and dictating the terms. Jon Kramer, the author of this chapter, states that consumers are not in search of brands but in search of solutions, and retailers are obviously those who, in light of their proximity, can provide an answer.

The first part also suggests practical solutions to manage in‐store marketing. For instance, Chapter 4 outlines seven steps to follow in order to get an effective shopper marketing program. Among these, the knowledge of the shopper and of their shopping behavior is crucial, together with an everlasting measurement of performance to understand the impact of strategies adopted. How this knowledge can be achieved, which strategy can be performed, and which methods can be used to measure the effectiveness of shopper marketing are the main issues addressed by the second part of this book.

The second part helps the reader become more confident with the complex mix of strategies and tools that are used and implemented to get an effective shopper marketing program. Different points of view and suggestions to build strong and lasting customer relationships are covered, from emotional branding that represents the signal of a shift from selling products to selling experiences through sensory stimuli (Chapter 12) to the application of ICT media solutions to the store environment (Chapters 14, 15 and 17). In light of the evolution of the concept of retailers as media and the development of new advertising technologies like the digital signage, recent years have been characterized by the entrance of new and unexpected players such as advertising and media agencies, promotion agencies, and consulting firms. The problem outlined in Chapter 22 is that many have a narrow view of reality, and so the risk lies in planning communication or promotion tools that overly focus on one single expertise. Chapter 19, entitled “Capitalize on unrealized demand among shoppers,” based on recent research carried out by Burke and Morgan of Indiana University, suggests eight factors of shopper satisfaction at retail that can open new paths and horizons to holistically consider different know‐how and skills.

If the reader is looking for coherence among the authors' points of view, he will probably be surprised when reading Chapter 18. In fact, Toon Van Galen criticizes the basic statistics on which the whole book is built on and which I referred to at the beginning of this review. Based on some studies delivered by the author's research company that operates in Asia, he states: “According to Deloitte Development ‘70% of all decisions are made on the shop floor, and 68% of products are bought on impulse’. We would love this to be true but it does seem a bit high, doesn't it? Think about it … Do you shop like this yourself? Do you know anybody at al who shops like this? ... We just think that we should understand better what is really going on in shoppers' minds and get realistic data about how they are really influenced by impulses we design at the point of purchase” (p. 111). So, there is at least on one aspect that everybody can agree upon: there is a massive need for research and measurement of results. The second part of this book offers many cases and examples that can be considered by readers to understand the variety of tools and methods currently employed to get better insights on shopper marketing performance.

The third part takes the reader on a captivating journey through real (and hypothetical) cases, from the Nestlé group shopper approach in Russia with real life examples of strategy adoption (Chapter 27) to winning cases of cause‐related marketing through the involvement of local communities (Chapter 29). Moreover, the levers of the marketing mix to be managed in a store environment are considered as well: pricing strategies (Chapter 31), packaging (Chapters 32 and 33) and promotion campaign efficiency (Chapter 34). It is worth stressing the value of Chapter 30, particularly addressed to students on learning how a new brand can be built, or to those players who are looking for a successful case to consider for a me‐too strategy. Here, Simon Unwins, Chief Marketing Officer of Tesco's Fresh and Easy Neighborhood Market, tells the story of this business established in the Southwestern USA. The research process is particularly remarkable, based on a triangulation of results from several resources of both qualitative and quantitative nature aimed at developing a small food store that delivers an optimal shopping trip.

To sum up, it is true that this insightful book is mainly written by practitioners and consultants in the field of retail marketing, but the audience does not necessarily reflect that same category of professionals. In fact, the experience provided here can give many inputs for effective reality‐driven research questions to be investigated by academics to further bridge the gap between the existing and somehow aged statistics, and the new need of knowledge expressed by the players of the retail sector.