Influence Purchases Through “Disruption” At Regional Grocers With Shelf2Cart Solutions
Whether you are a small or medium sized grocer, the goal is the same: move products from the shelf to the cart – as many and as often as possible. Great branding, marketing, and products are certainly key to attracting shoppers. But since customers themselves have to be the ones grabbing items, influencing shoppers once they are in the store is where the money is.
While there are countless ways to influence customer behavior, one particularly effective technique uses labels and signage to “disrupt” autopilot shopping and reshape their journey throughout the store. Such disruption creates novel reactions and experiences that keep shoppers engaged and interacting with more products, which can translate into higher cart totals.
It’s great for the bottom line when a store receives temporary customers, such as a tourist, who makes a trip or two for supplies. But the bread and butter of a sustainable operation is, without doubt, repeat customers. And over time, repeat customers become loyal, shop only with you, and often tell their friends.
So, while customers need to find what’s on the grocery list, they also want to have a good experience. Nowadays, what seems to separate one grocer from another is the quality of that experience, and the sky is the limit on what that can look like.
Thoughtfully designed labels and signage, well placed, are proven strategies to create new experiences and transform these one-time, occasional, and regular customers into loyal customers. Shelf2Cart, part of ID Images, is a one-stop shop for all point-of-sale labels, signage, and supplies, and is a proven partner for grocers looking for this competitive edge.
EVOLUTION OF GROCERS
Back in the day, loyalty was built through personal interaction in small stores.
You handed the grocer a list, and they retrieved the items from behind the counter. Customers knew their grocers by name. The grocer might discuss the grocery list with them, make suggestions, and place custom orders to meet their needs. It was a personal and personalized experience.
As demand for variety, convenience, and speed grew, stores became bigger and one-to-one relationship with the grocer became a relic. Nowadays, as the pace of life has grown frantic, the grocery experience has mostly shifted into fast and predictable journeys up and down the aisles.
Disrupting The Journey Throughout the Aisles
Research indicates that labels and signage in grocery stores can disrupt predictable journeys and have a significant impact on shopper behavior and sales. Here are some key findings:
Attention and Decision-Making: Clear and visually appealing signage draws attention to specific products, guiding customers toward higher-margin or promotional items. Studies show that well-designed signage can influence up to 70% of in-store purchase decisions.
Perceived Value and Urgency: Labels that highlight discounts, special offers, or limited-time deals can create a sense of urgency, leading to impulse purchases. For example, “Buy One Get One Free” or “Limited Time Offer” signs can quickly disrupt a shopper on autopilot.
Health and Sustainability Cues: Shoppers are increasingly looking for health-related and sustainability information. Labels that emphasize organic, non-GMO, or eco-friendly attributes can drive sales, as consumers are willing to pay more for products that align with their values.
Navigation and Flow: Signage that clearly marks different sections or provides wayfinding cues can improve the shopping experience by making it easier for customers to find what they need, which in turn increases satisfaction and encourages repeat visits.
Emotional Triggers: Creative signage with appealing visuals, colors, or even humor can make the shopping experience more enjoyable, leading to longer browsing times and more purchases.
Strategically placed and well-designed labels and signage can alter a shopper’s normal path and lead to higher engagement and sales by influencing decisions, enhancing the shopping experience, and prompting impulse buys.
Shelf2Cart Labels, Signage, and Supplies
Every single product in a grocery store has a label and these are your direct communication with consumers. When done well, they replace or even improve upon those old one-to-one conversations with grocers.
They communicate both factual and qualitative information. This might be allergen, ingredient, and/or nutrition information. In some markets, the origin of food is very important, so this could include information on which farm a vegetable was grown or livestock was raised.
Regional grocers tend to have their own line of products next to national brands. Historically, these were seen as “generic” versions of superior products. However, perception is changing, and it is not uncommon for discerning customers to choose regional brands over national brands on the basis of quality.
There are countless products on countless shelves, and so there is no one size fits all solution for labels. A labeling company who already offers thousands of options, and can accommodate any color, size, shape, and adhesion type, can help grocers who want to test and discover how thoughtful labeling can influence what makes it into the cart.
Shelf and case labels are versatile and have many applications. They are effective at drawing attention to sales or specials, as all customers are attracted to saving money. Like a product label, they can display attributes – like “keto” or “gluten free” – but in a different or expanded format.
Done well, they educate and inspire, supplementing a customer’s interactions with employees and help create a personalized experience. Such shelf and case labels can also be purely directional, guiding shoppers in unique ways throughout a store.
Creating various signage for a grocery store is a great step, although it requires a retail sign holder to ensure it is placed properly and lasts. These holders, purchase sign clips, channel clips, suction cup hangers, and various shelf edge accessories are all an important part of an ecosystem that influences shoppers.
New technology is making it possible to continuously enhance the quality and impact of product labels. The Merchandiser® system, by Shelf2Cart, can create customized labels, on-demand and at the store, empowering grocers to make fast, creative decisions on how to communicate and interact with shoppers. Among other things, this technology can take ordinary labels, such as those in the meat or seafood area, and upgrade them to better reflect the brands of the product and the store.
Conclusion
As grocery stores have grown to include more products and aisles, catering to shoppers seeking convenience and speed, the journey of those shoppers throughout the store can be predictable and automatic. What then makes it from the shelf to the cart is often limited to the grocery list they came in with.
But like the grocers of old who created personalized relationships with shoppers, modern operations can recreate or even improve upon history by deploying a thoughtful ecosystem of labels and signage.
While many shoppers will dart in and out and get only what they need, grocers who deliberately enhance product labels and store signage can more effectively capture the attention and interest of those open to a more premium experience. By disrupting normal shopping habits, higher engagement with products and with the overall store tends to follow, influencing the size of carts and, over time, their repeat business and loyalty.
Contact ID Images today to talk with a label and signage expert about how to transform your grocery operation and earn more loyal customers.
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