Make the shopper the cornerstone of your marketing strategy

Every brand will tell you that this is obvious while most brands get this wrong. Here is why this matters. 

Remember the old argument which is more important, features or benefits? Most marketing focuses on the features and/or benefits from the brand's perspective thus overlooking the shoppers. There can be a subtle difference between the two but the impact can be dramatic from the perspective of the customer. 

People don’t want to be sold, they want to buy. They want what they want and no amount of paid marketing will influence every shopper – especially the committed health-focused customers. In fact, these tactics can actually act as a repellent for some shoppers. 

What if I told you that there was a better way to convert casual customers into loyal brand evangelists?  Interested? 

When I was the Grocery Manager for Price Club (now Costco), I also managed a team of in-store product marketing people. You know the ones who give you free samples while you shop. It was stunning how much a properly done product demonstration would increase sales, sometimes well over a 1000% sales increase. More importantly, the repeat purchases remained steady for many of those products long after the sampling program ended. They were a huge success.   

I have yet to see any other kind of promotion generate that kind of volume increase – no matter how deep the price discount was. More importantly, those promotions did little to encourage repeat purchases or develop loyal shoppers. In fact, most of those promotions were largely ineffective when you consider all of the costs associated with them. 

The goal of every marketing initiative should be to introduce your product to new shoppers – PERIOD! While it’s nice to reward existing shoppers to re-purchase your products, there are more effective ways to do this than from traditional marketing programs.   

The point is this. The hallmark of an in-store marketing program is that you have the undivided attention of a future customer for a few moments. You have the unique ability to make a lasting impression that could convert that person to a loyal product evangelist – when done right. 

I’ve heard estimates that it takes seven impressions to get your product noticed. Those are impersonal impressions that generically speak to a broad audience and not to an individual person. 

Consider the difference and how this could help explode your growth when you develop your future marketing strategy. Include all the elements to maximize each and every customer impression. That’s the focus of this week's podcast and this week's FREE online mini-course.  

In podcast episode 123 I discuss in depth, the strategies that will help give you a significant competitive advantage. Podcast episode 123 is an excerpt of the free online mini-course Essential In-Store Marketing Strategies That Put Customers First And Grow Sales