Retail is arguably changing faster than ever before. Every market I visit is changing in many ways, and while each country is different, there are a number of unifying trends that are hitting almost everywhere. Yes, the balance between the trends might vary, but each of these is hitting pretty much everywhere to some degree. But if retail is changing, then manufacturers and suppliers (as well as retailers) need to adjust their strategies and plans to address each of the trends, to realize the huge opportunities that each offers, and to ensure that the (equally huge) threats they pose are under ..read more

What do you typically expect from a training workshop? Better skills? That would be a start, for sure. But what if you could run a workshop that did much more than that? What if the training workshop built skills? And drove massive additional sales revenue? And profit? What if the workshop delivered a huge return on investment? What if it changed how different teams worked together, delivering a measurable change in cross-functional collaboration levels? What if (and I quote the Sales Director of a recent client here) “This workshop has basically guaranteed that we’ll hit our targets this year ..read more

You’ve got a great brand. Consumers love it. Or they would. IF… If they had it in their hands at the right time: just at the point of consumption. Trouble is, it isn’t available to consume. Why? Because for some reason, a shopper didn’t buy it. Why not? Why not indeed! The most powerful question in all of marketing. Why not? Discover the shopper barriers – the reasons why a shopper didn’t buy your brand, and you have the keys to overcoming that barrier and triggering a purchase. Shopper barriers – possibly the most powerful concept in all of marketing! And a key concept we will be exploring an ..read more

Another week, and another set of bad financial reports from retailers. Big supermarket chains have been under pressure for some time as e-commerce, discounters and convenience stores and specialists all vie for share. Then inflation hits both store operation costs as well as cash-strapped shoppers. And all this at a time when there is a desire and a need to update and renovate stores, as well as investing in new channels. It’s a tough time for many retailers, and by extension, for the companies that supply them. And if we have learnt anything from the past, retailers will look to reduce their ..read more

“How much money should I spend on consumer marketing versus shopper marketing?” It’s a question I’m often asked by clients and at conferences. They question is sometimes phrased differently (“what percentage of my spend should go in-store”; “What is the best split between above-the-line and below-the-line spend?”). The answer is “it depends”: every situation is different. Different brands, different consumers, different shoppers, different channels. But there is one factor that is critical to answering this question. Its critical to understanding where to spend your money. In fact this piece o ..read more

I’m often asked why we need shopper marketing (thankfully less now than before). There are many possible answers. The consumer isn’t always the shopper, for one thing. And even if they are the same, their behavior and responses are different. But here is a difference that you might not have thought about: Shopper marketing exists because shoppers and consumers have fundamentally different relationships with brands. In a nutshell? Shoppers don’t love your brand! Think about how and when you love a brand There are some brands I really love. Not many, but some are truly awesome. But let’s explore ..read more

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start writing! The post Hello world! appeared first on My Blog ..read more

We consistently get loads of requests from clients wanting for help with creating shopper insights. And as data becomes more and more available this demand seems to increase. When we speak, they share their frustrations: conducting research only to be disappointed by what the agency presents, and what their team is able to do with the data afterwards. Part of the solution is in creating better shopper research briefs, and having a more effective agency selection process. But in my experience, enabling your team to create better insights is key. So how do you do this? And why is it that teams s ..read more

As e-commerce sales eat into physical retail numbers, questions about the viability of offline retail abound. Is this ‘Retail Armageddon’? No – but it is a significant shock to the retail ecosystem. A shock that has implications for retailers and brands alike. There is talk that stores must become ‘experiential’ – but what does that mean? Most shoppers, most of the time, don’t want ‘an experience’ when they shop! So, what is the future of physical retail, and how should brands and retailers face up to this difficult challenge? Pressure on physical retail is pressure on everyone This might not ..read more

Articles and secondary reports are a critical part of any journey to get a better understanding of shopper behavior. This is true for everyone, but especially true if your shopper research budget is small or non-existent. Many of us have to rely on secondary data, found in reports discovered in our LinkedIn feed. But in my experience, some of what is shared is inaccurate or misleading. If we blindly follow what we read, there is a danger we’ll make poor choices. Yet we can’t afford to research everything ourselves. So how to handle secondary data from third-party sources? Secondary Data and re ..read more