January 2020 - 38

New study analyzes consumers' path to fresh potatoes
Potatoes are a
POTATOES USA
Kayla Dome
Global Marketing
Manager for Retail
valuable commodity
to retailers. According
to a 2019 Information
Resources Inc. (IRI)
study on product
affinity analysis, fresh
potatoes can increase
the size of consumer
baskets at retail from
$42.60 to $79.49.
As retailers continue
to evolve to meet the
demand of consumers, it is important to know
how they are using both online and in-store
resources to decide to purchase potatoes.
Kantar Insights Consulting* conducted a
study for Potatoes USA analyzing the path to
purchase for the fresh potato category.
The study showed that 84% of consumers
decided on buying potatoes before entering
the store, with 66% of those shoppers
also having decided which type of potato
they would buy. This data indicates there is
an advantage to reach consumers before
shopping, as well as an opportunity to engage
with them in-store to drive their decision.
These consumers search recipes online
before shopping, use third-party shopping
lists, look at online and in-store promotions
and, most importantly, use secondary displays
in-store to remind them to buy potatoes.
The study also revealed three types of
fresh potato consumers:
THE AUTO-PILOT CONSUMER
Making up 63% of potato buyers, these
shoppers engage with one to two shopping
touchpoints before deciding to purchase.
Secondary displays of potatoes on previous
visits primarily impact the auto-pilot consumer,
as well as recipes and prices in the store. They
purchase potatoes most frequently when they
are located on an end-shelf, and they compare
the price per ounce on the different options
available. The auto-pilot consumer is more
likely to purchase potatoes when either onepound
or five-pound pack sizes are available.
THE IN-STORE CONSUMER
Twenty percent of potato shoppers fall
into this category. These consumers typically
engage with two to four touchpoints before
deciding to purchase fresh potatoes. Like the
auto-pilot consumer, the responsive in-store
consumer is primarily influenced to buy
potatoes after they saw them on secondary
displays during previous visits. They are also
heavily influenced by the availability of their
preferred pack size and when prices are
clearly marked in the store. These consumers
buy mostly in bulk or pack sizes between one
and four pounds. On average, the responsive
in-store consumer spends more than a
dollar extra on potatoes than the auto-pilot
consumer at $8.60 per purchase.
THE ENGAGED ONLINE AND
OFFLINE SHOPPER
Seventeen percent of consumers fall into this
category, and they engage with more than five
areas when deciding to buy potatoes. These
consumers are motivated to purchase potatoes
by influencers on social media, digital research,
cooking shows online and on television, price,
as well as seeing potatoes on previous trips to
the store. Mobile optimization plays a major
role in deciding to purchase potatoes as well
as price, information from the store associates
and in-store displays. These consumers are
typically purchasing one-, two-, three-, fourand
eight-pound packs. The engaged online
and offline consumer is very profitable, with an
average spend of $14.90 on fresh potatoes.
While the study showed the three types of
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consumers shop differently, they all add value
to retailers for the fresh potato category. Food
retailers are categorized by their focus on
groceries. Auto-pilot and responsive in-store
consumers mainly shop at this type of retailer,
while only 48% of the engaged online and
offline consumer spends their dollars here.
Mass merchandise retailers focus on more
than just grocery, most commonly supplying
apparel and technology for its consumers.
Twenty-five percent of auto-pilot consumers
and 20% of responsive in-store consumers
shop here while only 13% of engaged online
and offline consumers shop at this type of
retailer. Club stores are the smallest driver
of each category but are important to 7% of
auto-pilot consumers, 5% of responsive instore
consumers, and 4% of engaged online
and offline consumers. Online consumers
are largely made up of the engaged online
and offline category made up of 34% of
their consumers.
Email me at kayla@potatoesusa.com for
more on this study.
* The Kantar study surveyed 1,500 U.S.
shoppers about their most recent potato
purchases during a two-week period in the
summer of 2019.
38
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January 2020

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