Tag Archives: food retail

Online retail: how to turn a negative consumer feedback into a positive one

Retailers who are going to open online shops often fear about negative feedbacks from online shoppers. “What if I receive a negative feedback? Should I ignore it or answer?” The most common retail behaviour is to ignore it, hoping it will be ignored by other consumers too. But this is a great misconception.

Retailers have an opportunity to fight back and use social media to turn unhappy customers into brand advocates, says the Retail Consumer Report, commissioned by RightNow and conducted online by Harris Interactive in January 2011 among 1,605 online US adults. The report shows how retailers are using social media to win back customers and drive buying decisions.

  • 68% of consumers who posted a complaint or negative review on a social networking or ratings/reviews site after a negative holiday shopping experience got a response from the retailer. Of those, 18% turned into loyal customers and bought more.

By listening and proactively responding on the social web, says the report, retailers have a chance to turn disgruntled customers into social advocates.
After a positive shopping experience, half of consumers cited great customer service and/or a previous positive experience as influencing their decision to buy from a specific online retailer.

Social advocacy can also help drive sales, the survey found:

  • Nearly a third of consumers researched what customers said on social networking and reviews websites while shopping online.

For those consumers that had a positive holiday shopping experience with an online retailer during the past holiday shopping season:

  • 21% recommended the retailer to friends.
  • 13% posted a positive online review about the retailer.

The survey found that 38% of consumers turned to the retailer’s website for information or support with online shopping. However, one of the top frustrations consumers had when shopping online was a lack of consistent information from retailers. Specifically, 22% of consumers were frustrated by information that was inconsistent between the retailer’s website and customer service agents.

For further research on how customer experiences impact the bottom line, including the fact that 85% of consumers said they would be willing to pay anywhere between 5-25% over the standard price to ensure a superior customer experience, RightNow makes the Customer Experience Impact Report 2010 available to download. (Source: MediaPost)

How to deliver customized in-store offers to shoppers?

One of the in-store marketing biggest issues ever is how to reach customers with customized offers while they are shopping. U.S.A retailers and consumers are going to have a solution handy in the next future: Shop O’Lot.  

Shop O’ Lot is a self service platform which makes major retailer participation very easy. The model is based on a predictive analysis engine, that builds a customer’s shopping profile, then allows retailers to reach these customers in real-time while they are shopping, offering them customized discount coupons.

The app uses GPS and bar-code scanning for delivering the content and will be released on the iPhone and Android OS platforms.

Bob Pack, CEO says, “major retailers are now competing with product search and comparison apps that can actually drive a customer to buy from a competitor, a practice known as “scan and scram.” We have a complete solution to really help drive retail purchases, this goes well beyond mere Geo- location and focuses on individual target marketing. Once we understand the shoppers tastes, delivering them customized product deals only by the store they are in, will help keep shoppers loyal.”

Shop O’ Lot is still in the testing phase and plans a 2011 launch and retailers and consumers, can sign up now to be part of our beta program directly on Shop O’Lot website. (Source: americanbankingnews.com)

Italian consumers love sustainable products but need better product information.

One of the findings of the “For a Sustainable Supply Chain: business and consumers point of view” survey conducted by the GfK Eurisko and promoted by the Sodalitas Foundation,  the product/service sustainability is ranked fourth among the criterias used by consumers when choosing, but if better communicated, will become an increasingly important requirement. During the investigation 500 consumers and 183 businesses were interviewed . To more than a third of the companies, sustainability is very important. However, only a minority (29%) in the interviewed sample declares to be thoroughly familiar with this concept, while a substantial percentage (45%) say they have “enough information”, confirming the gradual integration of this concept in the corporate culture .
The majority of consumers (63%) had heard of sustainability, even if only 19% of them (mostly young and with a high level of education) believe to know well its meaning, with a prevalence of the environmental (83% ) on the social aspects (64%).

The responsibility for a “sustainable development” is primarily attributed to the central Government (86%) and to local governments (82%), but a very high percentage of respondents (over 70%)  thinks businesses and citizens responsible to ensure the sustainability of the development. The opinions about the companies’ commitment to sustainability is different: one third of the sample (35%) expressed a positive opinion, a  third is critical and another third has no a definite opinion about it.

Only a third of consumers (32%) had heard of “sustainability of the supply chain” (a percentage that is growing in those aged more mature and – especially – among those with a higher education degree). But after the concept was briefly explained a large majority (76%) said to believe that companies must ensure the sustainability of their supply chain. Today, already one quarter of Italian consumers are chosing which products to buy also using supply chain sustainability criterias. Three quarters of consumers also agreed to pay more for a product which is guaranteed in terms of its sustainability. The focus is on all product categories but in particular on food (71%) and detergents (65%). And, at least in theory, the majority of consumers (76%) would be willing to pay more for a guaranteed product in terms of sustainability (though – the majority said to be ready to pay only “little” or “very little” more). (Source: GfK Eurisko, Image credits: Transocean)

Sustainable Coffee: what is it and is it really profitable?

Sustainability in the Retail & Ho.Re.Ca Business, what our ECOFFEE project is about, is based on a main concept: communication to consumers and customers must be clear and simple to make them better understand what are the added values of buying/consuming sustainable products.

For instance, let’s talk about Fairtrade, organic, Rain Forest Alliance or UTZ certified coffee. These are some of the labels with which coffee is traded nowadays and consumers can be quite confused by this abundance of sometimes not well explained terms. 

Among the many information source we always refer to when asked “What is sustainable coffee about?” we found that the Imbibe magazine one is the most consumer-friendly one, covering all main aspects of sustainability in the coffee business.

The other well known issue to our blog readers is “Is it really worth investing in sustainable coffee?”. Commodity traders know the answer, and this is “Yes, of course”. A recent publication by Intracen organization (International Trade Center), shows that “Demand for conventional (i.e. non-certified) coffee is largely stagnant in these markets, whilst it is thriving in emerging markets. Certified coffee, however, is showing strong growth and higher retail prices, particularly in mature markets. This trend is also followed by other commodities, including tea, cocoa and cotton. A new industry of inspectors and technicians has emerged to service the sustainability segment of the market”. 

How to add another plus to organic food: this is marketing!

We have always written about communication being the success key to sustainability in the retail business. Thanks to communication retailers can help consumers understand the real value of their efforts when it comes to sustainability: why they choose this product instead of the competitor one, why they are recycling, why they are preferably purchasing locally grown food and so on.

A post on Hive Health Media made me smile, considering it a great example of how to market organic food in a more appealing way. Everywhere, organic food is associated with “not that good-looking food that does not pollutes the Earth” concept. This might be not strong enough to convince the average consumer. But what about saying: “Buy organic and keep in a good shape”?. This was essentially the message broadcasted in that post. Three key points:

– The organic food at the supermarket is often 30-50% more expensive than standard food, doesn’t contain chemicals such as herbicides, pesticides, hormones and antibiotics( This means is healthier and it is true  that consumers buy less because of the price, but in this case, less food means a better shape.)
– Organic food also helps detoxify the body and puts it in a state that makes it easier for the consumer to get in shape.
– As an added bonus, an overall sense of wellness will develop over time when consumers are living organic.

Obviously, there was some marketing in that post, not related to organic food though but to how to cook it, but this is a different story.

Biometrics and retail marketing: the future is now

Biometrics, methods for uniquely recognizing humans based upon one or more intrinsic physical or behavioural traits, is very important when evaluating the efficacy of a retail store design or display and assessing counter actions to make the retail environment more customer friendly. According to NY Times, IBM is currently testing a revolutionary biometrics method in two location in downtown Milan – a fashion company flagship’s store and an electronic store. Biometrics the future of retail marketing
The I.B.M. solution, involves tracking biometrics through a mini camera in a mannequin’s eye or placed somewhere in a store and the collected data will be aggregated so that not to be traced to any individual.

“We started with fashion because it is a creative and innovative industry, but it’s clear that people have to be educated so they know their privacy will not be compromised,” said Enrico Bozzi, the manager of I.B.M. Forum Milano, the department that developed the technology. “It is a question of changing people’s perception.”

 The IBM biometric test is already showing its first results. At the pilot in the Milan fashion store, for example, the client noticed that almost all Asian customers enter the store through one particular door, even though five are available. “We thought it was a mistake, but we checked it out and it was right and it continues to happen,” Mr. Bozzi said. “We don’t know why yet but, in the meantime, the store is considering positioning products by that door that are known to appeal particularly to Asian shoppers.”

I.B.M.is now also working on software that will let clients try on jewelry and makeup wirelessly thanks to a mobile phone or computer, with an iPad application likely to debut soon.

GoodGuide for Good Products for a more sustainable Retail

Yesterday I was reading a post concerning Levi Strauss & Co as the Top Jeans Brand, scoring a 7.4. The brand Prana was listed as the next highest, with a score of 6.3—followed by H&M (6.1), Banana Republic (6.1), and Old Navy (6.1).

I did not know what GoodGuide is – shame on me – so I checked out their very interesting website, which is said to be the world’s largest and most reliable source of information on the health, environmental and social impacts of consumer products. And I think it really is, rating over 95000 products, mainly available on the US market only: from food, toys, personal care to apparel, electronics and appliances. What is really striking is the scientific approach they have on their ratings, which are compiled from three sub-scores addressing Health, Environment and Society.


 Each of these sub-scores are based on an analysis of a set of indicators that GoodGuide has determined are the best-available measures of performance in these areas. Their methodology differs from the product belonging to different categories, each and every one having its own scoring methodology. Amazing. Let’s talk about apparel for example.

Quoting the Good Guide site: “Until (apparel) companies do a better job of providing transparency into their supply chain, our ability to accurately score brands based on their relative performance will be subject to significant uncertainties Environment scores are assigned to apparel brands by combining GoodGuide’s standard company indicators of environmental performance (weighted at 50%) with brand-level environmental indicators that address issues that are specific to the apparel sector (weighted at 50%).(….) Social scores are assigned to apparel brands by combining GoodGuide’s standard company indicators of social performance (50%) with brand-level social indicators that address issues that are specific to the apparel sector (weighted at 50%).(…) Health scores are not assigned to apparel brands because this product category does not generally pose health risks to consumers.”

The Good Guide website is also very good at using the Web 2.0 tools to “spread the word” and improve the accuracy of the product information thanks to a “support product info” page which enables visitors to add further details.

It would be also very interesting to test the effect of this kind of structured and scientific information directly at the point-of-sale, to see how the consumer react when discovering that his/her favourite brand of pasta is not that “good”. Because thanks to GoodGuide mobile App this is possible: consumers can scan the product, check the GoodGuide database and then purchase, or decide to choose another brand.

With this detailed level of “scientific” information, producers and retailers have nothing to hide and their achieving a high/low score can have a boomerang effect on brand reputation which must not be ignored and will not be ignored by consumers. Sustainability pays, and it will pay even more in the future.

Sustainability and retail: a big Italian player point of view

Two days ago a couple of ECOFFEE‘s team members attended an interesting meeting regarding the Retail landscape in Italy, with a special focus on the sunglasses and eyeglasses sector. When the “Any question?” moment arrived, we asked to the speaker “What about sustainability in the Retail business?”. The answer was a HUGE “?”, followed by a: “Maybe in 2015”.

This answer made us smile, because it was the usual answer of those professionals in the Retail field who pretend that a trend does not exist until the trend has changed into an issue to be solved. 

No more than two weeks ago, Andrea Illy, Chairman and CEO of illycaffè S.p.A,  expressed his point of view about sustainability in a very interesting post published by Fastcompany. Here’s a couple of key sentences. “I’m taking about a broader notion of sustainability that includes social and economic equity right alongside environmental responsibility, serving a triple bottom line. (….) The key is acting early–acting now–before the confidence of consumers, investors and other stakeholders is irreparably damaged. The best rescue of sustainability’s meaning and power is one that is never made….Consequently, a genuinely holistic approach to sustainability is required: one that creates value throughout the entire supply chain. And in order to do that we must focus on raising quality. (…) By perpetually seeking higher quality, a cycle goes into motion, creating sustainable value for every player. The result is long-term viability in lockstep with ever-increasing quality in the cup.(…) Broader adoption and smart marketing of a powerful certification symbol (….) will create widespread understanding of what sustainable agriculture means, and place the power to demand genuinely responsible production squarely where it belongs: in the consumer’s hands.” We obviously share Andrea Illy’s point of view, and we wish that knowing his opinion about sustainability, all the skeptical retail professional will make up their minds. 



What we do care about

As designers & consultants who are in stores every day, we see the good, the bad, and the ugly in this business. We see what works and what doesn’t. We admire those who take the time to share with us new ideas to build beautiful stores, who really establish solid connections with us, who agree with us that it’s imperative to have a winning concept in today market.

This might be true for many generic consultants around the world. But one of the things that we’ve noticed, is that we provide one other thing that is perhaps one of our greatest values. It’s that our customers can talk to us about their business, freely and openly, and get the help they need.  

Many Retailers certainly seek out advice from a number of sources, and most commonly from vendors.  Vendors certainly have a great view of the marketplace, and they too see a lot of what goes on in the Retail space. 

But at the end, the vendor’s solution to a Retailer’s problems will be to buy their product.  It’s a little like that old saying, “To a carpenter, everything is solved with a hammer.”

For us as designers & consultants, the only thing we honestly care about is whether or not that Retailer has made money, and if they are happy doing so.  In terms of product or vendor solution, we don’t have any “hammer” in the pocket.  Yes, we can suggest but a the very end, it doesn’t matter to us which vendor the Retailer buys, as long as it contributes positively to realize our design store, collaborating and to make the Retailer money. 

Please meet us soon at:

– Euroshop in Dusseldorf on the 26th and 27th of February

– Gulfood in Dubai on the 1st and 2nd of March

Two social media tools for retailers: local buzzing with enterprise control.

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We often talk about social media, buzz marketing and online reputation. Big corporations can find it quite difficult to control and “direct” all the related online communication, especially when this is done at local level – agents, retailers, franchises. But now there are platforms that can help corporations achieve great results with just a couple of clicks.

Yesterday I stumbled upon an interesting Tweet by Mashable, regarding a new startup, Hearsay, whose product – Hearsay Social- is a social media management platform, that gives companies with a national presence and local agents or franchises the ability to manage all of their social media in one place. Hearsay calls organizations that fit this mold “corporate/local.” Hersay Social is a web-based software that a corporation and its local branches can use to coordinate their social media efforts. The dashboard gives local agents or franchises the ability to manage their own local Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn accounts. It also also gives corporations the ability to monitor local engagement. Not only can they access detailed analytics for all of their agents, they can also catch when they step out of line. Hearsay clients list includes State Farms whose case study is availaible online.  Here’s an interesting video about the product features.

Another software that can help companies achieve the same result: Expion. Expion provides Social Media Management Software that enables large Enterprises to publish and aggregate social media conversations that can scale to hundreds of local based Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, and YouTube channels, etc. This software allows maximum employee social reach within a company’s defined social guardrails, allows for employees across all your locations or departments to deliver coordinated and consistent brand appropriate messaging. At the same time Expion’s unified database aggregates and tracks all employee and customer social interactions. This centralized intelligence will profile customers, identify advocates and critics, track behaviors and create best employee practices, while measuring effectiveness of messaging for continued optimization. Expion is already used by Coldwell Banker Advantage, Applebees’s Restaurants and Mark’s among the many