Category & Insights

First impression – make or break?

Posted on 27th March, 20203 min read

The depths of winter are behind us, the weather has become less inclement and we start to emerge from our homes to embrace the changing season. At the same time your favorite football code is reaching the pinnacle of the season, spring racing carnival is starting to ramp up and the great outdoors is ready to be explored and enjoyed. 

This is a critical time for retail sales particularly for brands that align themselves with some of these major events in the lead up to the peak Christmas selling period. For FMCG channels the focus is on getting the right range, in the right place at the right time, engaging with shoppers and encouraging them to take your product off the shelf and placed into their basket for purchase.

The plethora of choice for shoppers in most, if not all categories, makes it mandatory to present your brand proposition in the most compelling way possible.

Every shopper is unique and while we are creatures of habit, we may not shop the store the same way every time. How many times has your mission been to simply pick up some bread and milk, yet you leave the store with a chocolate bar, packet of crisps or bottle of soft drink as well? We are influenced by store layout, lighting, music and offer so there are plenty of distractions and temptation when we pop into the supermarket to pick up a few items. While there is no magic solution to giving your brand the best possible chance of success there are several activities that can be undertaken to improve the chance of a sale.

First impressions matter.

Shoppers are quick to judge a product or brand so if your communication is not effective or your product is not presented in a visually appealing manner it may never feature in the shoppers evoked set for consideration to purchase. A positive first impression can encourage trial and can help anchor your brand in the market place and in the household pantry. 

 

How do you give the best first impression to FMCG shoppers? 

Answering these questions underpins your brand strategy and goes a long way to determining which should be your focus products, where they should be placed in-store and how should they be presented. 

 

1.Planning – understand who you are targeting.

  • How do they shop? How do they shop the store? 
  • How do they shop your category? 
  • What else do they buy when they purchase your product?
  • What barriers are there to purchase?

2. Partnering – all the planning in the world amounts to little unless it is effectively executed. Choosing a partner who can deliver in full and on time to the plan is critical to maximising sales and return on investment. How the brand is positioned on shelf, prominent ticketing and timely stock replenishment to ensure availability are all critical to success. 

3. Positioning – the importance of planograms cannot be understated determining where the product will be positioned on shelf and within each category universe. The location and quality of displays to intersect with the shopper as they navigate around the store and gaining incremental display space are all paramount to success.

4. Post activity – a regular collection of task-based information, analysis of this information and the effectiveness of your campaign to calibrate future activity is mandatory. Even the most well planned and executed campaign needs to be reviewed, benchmarked and if warranted revised. Bringing these four pillars of success together in an integrated solution helps simplify the process of making a great first impression on shoppers and increasing the chance of purchase.