Retail Merchandiser

Stephen M. Brown, SVP at MS&L, details ways retail marketers can take the lead to drive communication and consumer activism.

Reaching retail consumers these days takes more than off-the-shelf thinking. There are five steps you can take to advance the relationship with the people who pay you to stay in business.

1. Offer your customers a sample of what’s to come.

Retailers accustomed to measuring missed margin after product discounts or weighing food and paper costs of any restaurant promotion may shudder at the thought of offering something for free, but the PR rewards in the current economic climate are undeniable. Sampling is an age-old tactic, but the PR value of sampling on a large scale is as irresistible as Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry’s.

Sampling doesn’t have to be in-store. Hershey’s launched its Bliss chocolate line with 10,000 in-home viral marketing parties targeted to 24- to 49-year-old women seeking a bit of “indulgence” amidst busy lives. Harlequin Books sampled its Intrigue mystery series at 100 bed and breakfasts. Reaching folks at their “point of need” has been an effective approach for the marketers of Tums Cool Relief tablets, which distributed 2.2 million sample packs on Carnival Cruise ships where some vacationers may have overindulged and were glad to have the tablets handy.

The only decent type of product placement for foods these days is right into a customer’s mouth. Despite a sizable marketing spend and the task of operationally pulling it off, Denny’s scored off a PR coup with 2 million consumers sampling its free Grand Slam Breakfast and millions more reading and hearing about the massive nationwide giveaway in traditional and online media. Every operating group of the restaurant chain had to work in tandem to pull off this integrated moment of zeitgeist.

Sampling also gives retailers a way to measure success by keeping track of how many samples are distributed, increased awareness of the product, customer feedback, and repeat purchases.

2. Provide your customers something of value.

Demonstrating ways your business is helping customers achieve value above and beyond obvious goods and services is one of the quickest ways to their heart. For some, extra value can be in the form of a coupon, a free music download, or a courtesy call. For many, the greatest value is time.

Check any search for business in any local community, and the blogs will be abuzz with this topic. Gyms that offer free daycare while the parent exercises have now given way to grocery stores that do the same. One blog posting about a supermarket: “I admit that if I had to list the top three reasons why I shop at this Big Y, it would look like this: 1. Free childcare 2. Free childcare 3. Free childcare.”

Educating customers both off and online is a great way to save customers time. Dick’s Sporting Goods offers in-depth how-tos on topics ranging from how to buy sports memorabilia to tips for cycling safety. The Home Depot runs a dedicated channel of videos on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/user/HomeDepot), which is a veritable paradise for DIY’ers interested in finishing projects around the house. Walgreen’s Health Corner is another example of a content-rich site on a variety of healthy lifestyle issues, often narrated by celebrities.

Lately, product companies have designed high-impact events to both showcase their wares and bring traffic to retailers. For instance, to raise awareness and promote prevention of fraud and identity theft, Shred-it organizes highly visible, highly visual “Community Shred” events in the cities where it has a presence.

3. Give your customers something to talk about.

Conversations can turn into conversions when you become a successful storyteller and deputize key influencers to trumpet your brand. The old school approach was to urge third parties to parrot your key messages, but now getting others to share critical anecdotes or even “social objects” such as digital photos, music files, or online videos will underscore your brand’s authenticity.

One brand that harvested its customer stories nicely was Best Buy in its publicity around Black Friday, one of the busiest shopping days of the year. The company sponsored a Black Friday VIP contest via its askablueshirt.net blog. Through the contest, consumers wrote submissions about their Black Friday traditions and why they should be treated to “VIP for the day” status in their local community. Winners were treated to cash prizes, an early-morning limo ride, front-of-the-line access complete with pampering and first opportunity to enjoy “doorbuster” savings. Each winner chronicled stories on video cameras provided by the company. Loyalty and amazing publicity ensued. One on-air marriage proposal even resulted and made national news.

Other retailers are playful in pushing lines of niche products they carry in stores. PetSmart, for example, routinely hosts costume contests on blogs in which consumers submit photos of their dogs and cats in festive holiday attire. Others tackle serious seasonal issues, such as Office Depot’s contest to promote hurricane preparedness among small businesses in Florida
during a particularly vulnerable season.

4. Engage your customers with something fun or meaningful to do.

Consumers are relying less on the traditional retail calendar to dictate what’s hot in a particular season and are instead looking for experiences that will stimulate their state of mind any time.

Co-creation has tremendous upsides both in marketing campaigns and actual product development. One initiative hit at the heart of participatory PR and targeted a generation of doers: Starbuck’s MyStarbucksIdea.com contest. It invites consumers to come up with the next big idea for the coffee retailer and has served up ideas as profound as “coffee cubicles” for those who use the stores as a virtual office to “oatmeal cookies without raisins” for the fruit-impaired snack seeker.

Some brands have developed full-fledged in-store events that create an excellent vessel for their brand messaging. Viking Cooking Schools, associated with Viking Stores, give visitors a chance to express their love of cooking while using—and often buying—Viking appliances, cookware, and cutlery.

We’ve grown accustomed to in-store video game tournaments, but what about at unexpected stores where the games aren’t even sold? The convenience store AMPM, owned by BP,
spotlighted its tagline “Too Much Good Stuff” with a rocking tournament surrounding the popular video game Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. To recognize the fun-loving, free-spirited “living room” rock stars in various cities, the retailer hosted a month of play-off events, culminating in a championship play-off and exclusive rock concert. The halo effect of the video game tie-in brought value to the retailer and connection with its targets.

5. Present your customers with a reason to take a stand.

Giving customers a reason to believe and, ultimately, to take a stand is the true mark of a successful retailer with eyes on the sustainability of a loyal customer base.

Getting folks active means tying your charitable and community acts to the core of your mission. It’s the reason folks affected by natural disasters have become so loyal to The Home Depot: the company was there to help before, during, and after the calamities and worked harder and stayed opened longer to be there in a time of trial.

Companies can advocate for key issues and rally their customers to become activists in the campaign. On Earth Day 2008, Whole Foods Market eliminated the use of disposable plastic grocery bags company-wide. Customers can now choose between paper bags made from 100% recycled paper or from a selection of reusable bags. The move from the traditional paper/plastic system to environmentally friendly and reusable bags has been packaged as an initiative the company calls “BYOB—Bring Your Own Bag.” The campaign is aimed at reducing pollution by eliminating plastic bags and reducing waste by encouraging bag reuse with “bag refunds” of five to 10 cents, depending on the store.

Sometimes a strong sense of purpose can rally your organization into developing whole new product lines and can provide new touch-points for offering meaning to consumers. Hallmark Journeys are new lines of cards for inspiration, hope, and support beyond the traditional card-giving occasions including more than 170 encouragement cards. Journeys cards are available at Hallmark Gold Crown stores nationwide.

The future lies in everything you do: from your mission statement to product mix, to locations to customer service. Other issues are more nuanced: Are you successfully telling your story? Are you connecting with people on their terms? Are you offering an experience that brings joy and meaning? These are questions we as retailers and marketers will continue to explore as we interact with a new kind of customer.

Stephen Michael Brown is senior vice president of the consumer practice for the Atlanta office of MS&L Worldwide, a public relations and communications firm. He heads the specialty area MS&L Retail and regularly shares trends and insights about how businesses can navigate changing consumer behaviors and media habits. He can be reached at 404-870-6857 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . He can also be contacted through Facebook and can be followed on Twitter at stephenATL.