Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 14

SOCIAL/MOBILE

"Such interactive [social media] connections
with customers are very important. If you
don't respond to issues and concerns in a
timely manner, or don't do it properly, the
customer will go elsewhere."
- ALAIN DUMAS, Sobeys

The social media footprint is expanding
with the proliferation of digital applications
that consumers can download to their smartphones to help them save time and money.
"Today the decision is in the customers'
hands," says Anderson.
Sobeys' App once downloaded to consumers'
phones can make their weekly shopping trip
smoother and more convenient. According to
Dumas, in homes it will replace the paper shopping list stuck on the fridge door. Consumers
can type in the items they want to buy. Or they
can also scan the bar code into their phones to
add them to the electronic list, find the price of
the item, its availability and whether or not it's
on special. Once in the store, the app will help
customers navigate aisles with the most efficient route to find the items on their list.
Such tools also enable grocers to gain data related to consumer habits for analysis. This kind
of data enables grocers to connect with shoppers in-store by tracking in real-time what they
are buying. It can make individualized suggestions based on past purchases and preferences.
As well, grocers can now offer more open-ended
choices similar to online sites which tell you
that people who bought x also bought y.
Despite their convenience, in-store guidance
tools can have a downside. Tony Kleiner suggests that retailers ask permission and receive
buy-in from shoppers to avoid "creepiness" and
possible privacy concerns.
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CANADIAN RETAILER | SUMMER 2016

It's a local thing

Social media is also helping grocers serve the locovore market in ways they haven't before. Conscientious consumers are
actively seeking to buy produce and goods grown or made
locally. During the pre-shopping stage, retailers can highlight
on social media that it will be offering ten different types of
locally grown mushrooms or other fruits and vegetables in season. It can also offer images or video of growers and producers
on their farms or in their workshops.
Large chains may need to give store managers more leeway to order and display such products to reflect local content
faster rather than simply following corporate-wide uniformity.
Dumas explains that Quebec Sobeys-IGA outlets are locally
owned so they often feature local items, especially cheese, even
if the production output is very small. However, in doing so, Kleiner reminds storeowners to ensure that the local product they
sell meet the same food safety, quality and other standards that
products from other suppliers do.
Despite the heavy use of new social media and mobile apps
today to engage with consumers and pull insights from them,
Anderson believes that these tools may not be changing the
world as much as we think, especially in grocery. The innovations, he suggests, might make things easier for the grocer and
consumer if done properly. But they can never replace the tried
and true methods of engagement, like a friendly welcome when
a customer walks through the front door, a helpful hint from a
knowledgeable sales rep or a clean, well-organized store.
Sincere and useful personal contact in-store still counts in the
minds of today's grocery shopper. It's up to Canadian grocers
to combine the personal touch with the speed and efficiency of
digital. Those who are able to do this will surely get ahead of the
technological curve.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016