Retail stores and shopping malls employ various techniques to set the mood of customers and attract their attention like design, color scheme, lighting, and perfume. Many consider them ordinary things, but they play a significant role in influencing the minds of customers for shopping. Today, we’ll discuss what is shopper marketing; its various strategies and tactics, benefits, and examples.
Grocery Manufacturers Association conducted a study and it showed that approximately 70% of the consumer said that they make their buying decisions at the store. Marketers and advertisers invest billions of dollars in marketing outside the stores. However, it becomes useless when the setting of the store would influence their mind as soon as they enter.
What is Shopper Marketing?
The concept of shopper marketing concentrates on the target customers and how they make the purchasing decision. The environment of the store changes the attention of the customers into purchasing something or anything. In order to keep the attention of customers, marketers and advertisers run ads on TV, radio, print media, and other online and offline channels. But shopper marketing follows the direct and instant approach to influencing the minds of customers.
While looking for grocery items in the aisles at the store or the shopping mall; you would come across a lot of brands and they all are offering the same product with a little difference in price. Now, the interesting question is why customers give preference to one product or brand over others. It is because of the shopper marketing and they impact the purchasing decision of customers.
Benefits of Shopper Marketing
Some of the key benefits of shopper marketing are as follows;
High Sale
The focus of businesses and companies is to increase their sales and profitability. Shopper marketing strategies allow them to create demands among customers and make them into buying anything which would increase their conversion rate and sale.
Studying Customers
While implementing the shopper market approach in your business, requires you to study the behavior of customers and various factors that would impact their decision. The study would help you in both online and offline stores.
Collecting Data
The shopper market approach is highly effective because it helps companies to collect valuable data from interviews, focus groups, research studies, polls, and surveys. They can use this insight while setting the environment of the store because they would influence their decision.
Recognizing Pattern
It also helps companies to study the purchasing pattern of customers, buyer journeys, and the type they buy frequently. How long it takes for the company to convert them into actual customers? You have to recognize the price-sensitive and quality-conscious customers. Such information would offer you a clear description of your customers and their purchasing patterns.
Strategies of Shopper Marketing
Some of the main tactics and strategies of shopper media marketing are as follows;
Social Media Marketing
Social media platforms have got billions of users from across the world, it is the world’s largest consumer market. People use social media channels all the time and everywhere on their smart, and they come across online ads.
Ambiance & Designs
Along with playing light instrumental music, they also use perfume and scents to attract the attention of customers and make them feel at home. Roundabout 90% of the customers say that they visit the store and mall again repetitively because they would like to see the visuals, listen to the music, and sense the smell of perfume.
The smell of snacks, beverages, coffee beans, and juices would attract your attention and make you buy them. Shopper marketers have got remarkable skill and expertise in combining various sensory experiences to create demands among customers. They would come to your store repetitively.
Demos
Some people visit the stores to check out the demos and free products and services. Joe’s trader does this job so well. However, some retailers highlight relevant products and place them right next to the demos and free products, so that the customers would ask about them. Demos and free products would allow customers to try out the new product without paying for it.
Product Displays
They comprise placing pamphlets and banners of the particular product across the stores or leading customers toward the particular shop. Some customers are shy and they feel stressed talking to people; banners, displays, and signs would make it much easier for them to find the location. However, it is important for marketers and organizers to display products of different brands separately so customers don’t have to go through all of them.
Geo Targeted Ads
Facebook is the world’s largest social media platform and it has got daily active traffic of over a billion people. The platform allows businesses and companies to precisely target customers based on their specific location, gender, age, and interest. However, Facebook marketing is a highly effective strategy for businesses and companies.
Live Chats
Many brands offer the service of live chats to their customers, where the customers would text them if they need personal assistance about the relevant matter. They offer the option of quick replies and automated buttons, and they would save the time of customers.
Examples of Shopper Marketing
Kotex
Kotex ran a campaign with the cliché of “we got you at the Walmart” and it is to motivate people and tell them that the brand has got its stores and products available in Walmart. They would be a separate aisle of Kotex and it won’t be difficult for customers to find it.
Walmart
Walmart has got higher sales of cold and flu medicine during the winter season than any other brand. It is people know that it is difficult for them to visit the store when they are sick. Just before the arrival of the season, the mall starts promoting the relevant medicine and guides people to the relevant aisle.
Target
When it comes to the promotion of baby clothes and other products, Target changes the whole design and layout of the mall. Many research studies have shown that the focus of mothers is on the transforming phases of their child from diapers to training pants. However, they put both items right next to each other.
Conclusion: What is Shopper Marketing? Strategies, Benefits, Examples
After an in-depth study of what is shopper marketing; its various strategies, benefits, and examples; we have realized that shopper marketing is highly beneficial for your store. If you are developing its strategy, then you should keep in mind the abovementioned strategies and implement those that are relevant to your business.
Ahsan Ali Shaw is an accomplished Business Writer, Analyst, and Public Speaker. Other than that, he’s a fun loving person.