While the need for social distancing is keeping shoppers physically apart, consumers’ thirst for connecting and getting closer to the brands they love has never been greater, and this has prompted shoppers to want to know more and more about the products they buy.
This means retailers need to build this new-found need for knowledge into the buying journey, serving up digital information to meet those needs and enhance the experience through digital displays.
Consumers are increasingly taking control of their own buying journeys in-store, and that means self-service – allowing them to access information independent of a store associate or in a more contactless manner. As a result, the shelf should no longer be seen just as a display to hold products – by digitalising the shelf-edge, it can now become a source of interaction and information – from marketing to brand-led lifestyle content, stock availability and promotional information.
Research in our latest report showed almost half (49 percent) of UK shoppers would like more digital signage or information at the shelf edge to help inform their buying decision, while 45 percent said they had been put off buying an item because there wasn’t enough product information available in the aisle.
The shelf is now both the beginning and the end of the customer journey that may well have started with supplier advertising, progressed through the media and internet to the final choice at the point of sale. Or it may be the start of the journey, as consumers look for inspiration.
Published: June 8, 2021 (article published June 3, 2021, in A1 Retail, https://flickread.com/edition/html/60a8cdbb628f1#30)
