The Power of Personalization

It’s no secret that people love personalization. Personalization makes any product, service or marketing message all the more relevant to shoppers. It boils down to how personalization can make a shopper’s life easier and make the options in front of them more suited to their way of life.

Nielsen recently released a report, "The ‘I’ in Personalization: Satisfying Consumers’ Individualized Preferences Throughout the Store," about what the future of personalization may look like for grocers. Personalization is a key component of many departments in the grocery store - think pre-cut sandwiches and fruits packaged with dips.

But, Nielsen points out how departments like meat and seafood, produce, bakery and deli have a long way to go to catch up to the growing demands of today’s picky shoppers. Let’s talk about how shopper demands can be not only met, but exceeded, through relevant content/information delivery and in-store efforts.

Personalization Matters as Much in Marketing as With In-Store Food Offerings

A study by Conversant Media found that 94 percent of customers and marketing professionals thought personalization was "important," "very important," or "extremely important" for meeting their current marketing objectives. How are grocery brands to personalize their messaging while creating scale? Influencer marketing has the ability to deliver both.

Social influencers typically have carved a distinct niche out for themselves that resonates with specific audiences. The key is partnering with influencers that have your target audiences already in their respective readerships. Influencers can then create content around your brand that is relevant and tailored to their audience. They have spent years cultivating a personal brand and style that their readers are enthusiastic about, so these influencers know exactly what content/messaging to create in order to drive shopper action. Scale is created by partnering with multiple influencers whose collective reach can reach hundreds of thousands of shoppers.

The Future of Personalization is With Experiential Content and Demonstrations

Grocery stores are offering more personalized items and services than ever before. But there are opportunities to take it a step further for shoppers. Many meat and seafood departments offer prepared and fully cooked options, yet these offerings are being purchased at slow growth rates, according to Nielsen.

This is a prime opportunity for grocers to educate shoppers on how these products were prepared and what pairs best with them (seasonings, spices, side dishes). Influencers can document their journey of buying these products at your store and what they did to create a complete meal for their families. It creates a relatable learning experience for their readers and touts the personalization qualities your store can offer.

Once shoppers are in-store, Nielsen also suggests having staff members prepare the items as requested (essentially a live demo) down to spices and cooking methods used. Creating personalized experiences for your shoppers will drive them to your store again and again. It allows them to easily visualize how the products will save them time, allow them to indulge, help them eat healthier...accomplish whatever culinary goal they may have.