As grocers, we’re all aware that the seasons and holidays dictate a lot of what we sell, but it most definitely dictates how we market our stores. While we’ve all run some promotions year over year, seasonal marketing in today’s grocery landscape takes a little more thought and care.
The term omnichannel is used a lot in the industry, for good reason. When you talk about omnichannel, that means marketing to consumers from as many different marketing channels as possible, with the customer at the center being able to choose how they want to interact with your store. Knowing that landscape can help you develop what your seasonal marketing strategy should look like.
AWG’s Retail Marketing Network is allowing retailers to have content to promote seasonal selling in many different ways.
Loyalty/Digital Coupons –One of the reasons to have a loyalty program in today’s grocery world is that it provides you with mountains of data. That data should be used to market to your customers on a more personalized basis. This is especially true of seasonal marketing. When you look at Thanksgiving or Christmas, you can look at previous years’ shoppers based on their purchases and then market to them specifically. Think of sending an email to customers who bought turkeys from you last year and a different email from shoppers who didn’t. The messages should be different and can feature different approaches.
Digital coupons are also important to seasonal selling. Vendors are well aware of the seasons and plan their digital coupons around their key seasons. But digital coupons are not like the movie “Field of Dreams.” You can build it, but they just won’t come on their own. You must tell customers about these offers both in omnichannel marketing and in store. This drives perception of value and savings—something that is essential in current times.
Social Media–You know a season is on its way just by the posts you see on social media feeds. To be a part of the conversation around a season takes more than just bringing up that the season has arrived. Below are a few ideas to stand out:
- What new seasonal products can you take pictures or videos of and feature for your customers?
- What are fun things your employees are doing to celebrate the season?
- Solve a problem for followers, This might be meal solutions, new ideas for entertaining, etc.
Websites and Online Shopping–Does your website immediately bring to mind the season when your customers visit? Remember, your website is another place to entice your customers to shop. So, you should commit to having seasonal content on your website. Seasonal content can include promotions, specials, recipes, contests and more.
For those retailers offering online shopping, remember that you have versatility in how you display your products. If you have groupings of items that are related to each other, create
special sections on the shopping page. Make it easier for customers to add several seasonal items to their cart. For instance, during Thanksgiving or Christmas, create baking subsections that feature baking staples in one place instead of making your customers hunt for the items they need.
E-Mail–Remember, e-mail is a very valuable marketing tool. It continues to drive traffic to AWG retailers’ websites as well as driving sales. But your email shouldn’t just be the same thing week after week. It should fit the season. Make sure you are putting thought into the design and written copy of your emails, because it’s a chance to engage your consumers and take notice of key items you want them shopping for.
How Do You Implement? That’s ultimately the question. The AWG Marketing department is well aware that most retailers have plenty on their plate and don’t necessarily have time to attack all these marketing channels. That’s part of the reason the Retail Marketing Network was created. If you want to be in some of these spaces, call Kurt Kloeblen [email protected] or Carissa Teschner [email protected] to get signed up.
