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Three Indicators that Buying In-Store is Back (at least for groceries)

Last year, the number of retail customers using buy-online-pick-upin-store services “all the time” declined from 45 percent to 32 percent (indicator #1). This year it is expected to decline even more.

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That’s what ChaseDesign discovered in a recent survey, which also revealed that the number of shoppers who use home grocery delivery services – after making purchases online – will also shrink (#2).

Based in Skaneateles, New York, ChaseDesign works with consumer product goods companies and retailers worldwide on projects that span all shopper touchpoints.

“With the pandemic receding, online shopping has now clearly become a convenience, and one that comes at a premium price,” said the company’s press release. “The core of shopping trips remain in physical retail, where the vast majority of grocery purchases are still made.”

The survey also found home delivery, which grew tremendously during the two years of COVID-19, is facing challenges such as perceived value offered, given the current inflation affecting consumers. The number of consumers who claimed to “always” use delivery to home when buying groceries dropped by half, 16 percent in 2022, down from 31 percent in 2021, according to the data (#3).

“This is driven by a lack of trust in having retailers pick and deliver exactly what the customer wants,” says Joe Lampertius, ChaseDesign president. “Our survey shows 33 percent of shoppers have issues with the quality of products selected and a slightly lower percentage are worried about availability through the digital platform.”

“It also pinpoints several opportunities for retailers trying to take advantage of the new shopping environment. For instance, 10-percent more curbside pickup shoppers complained about the time wasted in their cars waiting for their order in 2022 compared to last year. If the retailers use that captive time average five to 10 minutes with some shopper engagement and improved impulse merchandising strategies, brands and retailers will be rewarded with a more loyal customer and incremental purchases,” he concludes. Three Ways to Improve the Shopping Experience during Your Biggest Season

In an article for Forbes, Vu Hoang, CEO of market platform RocketLevel, offers the following ways to improve the customer experience.

1. Employ omnichannel communications such as voice, email, chat, social, text and more.

“How do you currently shop for and purchase products or services?” Vu asks. “Whether it’s live chat, live events or messaging – or Facebook, Instagram, or Google Business – how many are you also using in your business? If you’re not activating the ones you use most often yourself, chances are you’re missing out on several significant sales opportunities.

2. As a business, staying ahead and pivoting to more effective marketing channels is important.

Social media has become more than just posting photos. Forty percent of Gen Zers prefer using social media over traditional search engines, according to Prabhakar Raghavan, a senior vice president at Google.

But in terms of your website, “build up, don’t tear down,” writes Vu. “Instead of revamping your entire website, you could add web chat and make sure all of your stacked efforts (including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Google, etc.) are connected in a way that enables customers to access your offerings in one click.”

Investing more into social media and text-based marketing doesn’t mean you can leave your old website the way it is and move on. “That is a common misconception among small business owners, especially those who don’t have the time or money to invest in a new site,” Vu adds.

3. Offer online payments like Google Pay, Apple Pay or Samsung Pay; plus buy now/pay later options that include Affirm, Zilch and Klarna.

They give your customers more financial flexibility over their purchases. “The Amazon model teaches us that what customers really want is whatever they want, delivered quickly and efficiently,” Vu writes. “They don’t mind storing their payment information in their account forever because it enables one-click purchasing. In two clicks of a button, you can choose your item, then pay for it and arrange two-day delivery.”

Three Essential Elements for a Successful Holiday Social Media Campaign

In a guide she prepared for Social Media Examiner, digital marketer Anna Sonnenberg offered advice on executing successful campaigns, from its essential elements to recommended timelines. Among them were these tips. Anna is a proponent for planning sooner rather than later, but small retail businesses may still have time to put together a campaign for an early November launch.

1. Clarify your objectives.

For most holiday marketing campaigns, sales and conversions may be the ultimate targets, she writes. But before that can happen, you may need to increase awareness of newly launched products or generate qualified leads.

“Once you’ve decided on one or more objectives, set goals for each,” Anna advises. “Use your team’s key performance indicators for click-throughs, leads, conversions, and/or revenue to set realistic campaign goals and measurable outcomes.”

2. Choose your platforms.

It may make sense to leverage all the social platforms upon which your brand has a presence, or to focus on just one or two. To guide your decision, review your goals for the next social media campaign and your results from past holiday marketing efforts.

“It’s also helpful to consider the built-in capabilities of each platform,” writes Anna. “For example, if a landing page is a key part of your campaign, then Instagram may not be a good fit. Likewise, if product tagging is critical to your campaign, then Twitter may not drive the results you need.”

3. Devise your strategy.

Start by creating an offer for your target audience. Here are a few ideas Anna recommended in the guide. • Provide a seasonal discount or create a promotional code to drive sales. • Give away a downloadable or viewable lead magnet to generate leads. • Use a loss leader to incentivize more purchases. • Create a tripwire to pique people’s interest and get new customers in the door. To help you come up with ideas, ask yourself Who is your target customer? What do they want? What’s preventing them from getting what they want? How can you provide a solution? • Collect and share user-generated content to connect with customers. • Host a contest or giveaway to boost awareness and promote your brand. • Run social-media ads to amplify reach and revenue beyond organic limits.

A holiday campaign – which should include plans for Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Boxing Day shoppers – should be ready to go by early October, she adds. That way, there’s time to work out the fine details before it rolls out in early November. (“Start the planning process in June,” says Anna.)

“In most cases, you can wrap up Christmas campaigns right after the holiday, but Kwanzaa and Boxing Day may last into the new year,” she notes. “Aim to report on them in the first half of January.”

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producer and marketing exec at Disney Studios, then SVP & publisher at HarperCollins, which included ideating innovative concept-driven titles and curriculum development – not just publishing authors. Dana and I leaned into our backgrounds and skillsets to gamify conversation and interpersonal communication.

You’re homeschooling parents. How does that experience influence your products?

It definitely influenced the content development. The games have an educational component in the soft skills: interpersonal communication, empathy, understanding and inclusiveness. They’ve waned in the decade since social media has become so pervasive, but they’re so important for civil discourse.

Our games DRAUL, Betcha Switchup, and Swipe Swap Swindle require hard skills like math and probability, as well as reading the other players’ body language, rather than just playing the hand you’re dealt. That’s helpful for life application!

Our kids and many homeschooling families participated in our playtesting and supported our Kickstarter crowdfunding campaigns. It created strong word-of-mouth marketing and drove traffic to retailers.

What kinds of stores do you sell through?

The Rank Game launched at Toy Fair New York in 2020 where it was a favorite pick by ASTRA members. Since then, our primary focus has been to support and partner with independent brick-and-mortar stores. We have also attended ASTRA Marketplace, homeschool conventions, and Christian and Catholic retail trade shows. Buyers at all of those shows are stores that are independently owned and focused on serving customers who value family and community.

Long Beach was our second ASTRA show. We found that many retailers, sales reps and distributors had heard of us. At last year’s show, we played The Rank Game with attendees in the aisles to bring people into our booth. This year, it was more of us responding to demand.

Will you exhibit at The Toy Association’s holiday market in September?

We have a scheduling conflict, but with our sales reps and potential distributors, we hope to have a presence there.

Are all your products available now for 2022 holiday ordering?

Yes. All 23 SKUs are in stock and shipping now.

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