I drove by Sobey’s today and a large magnetic sign out front said “Chicken legs, $1.19 /lb”. It struck me as odd because I would assume that sign should entice me to come in. I know what you’re thinking, that some people did go to Sobey’s because the sale on chicken legs, you’re probably right. But couldn’t they come up with something better than chicken legs?
This got me thinking and led me to look up the four big grocer’s in Regina, those being Sobey’s, Safeway, Superstore, and Co-op. Click on any of these stores and it will take you to their flyer page. All four have a sound online presence except Co-op, their flyer is in PDF form and is 5.8 Mb in size, but I guess if you’re looking up the Co-op flyer you have ten minutes to wait for it to download. Safeway is the only one on Twitter and all they tweet is feel good sayings and nothing that’s going to convince me to shop there*.
In the past people were loyal to a grocer, my Mom was a devout Superstore customer, she’d never set foot in a Safeway. Our generation is different, we like convenience and a good deal. I prefer Superstore over the rest because I think it is cheaper but the fact of the matter is I will go to where is most convenient.
A useful site would be a real time comparison of the deals offered by the big four, break it down, give me a reason to shop at your store. Get on Twitter and tweet your unbelievable sale items (by unbelievable I mean the ones that will entice me to come in because you know I’m not only buying Chicken legs when I shop). I would love to check UberTwitter on my phone for deals at Sobey’s if I’m near by.
I feel this industry is behind technology wise because they have to cater to the baby-boomers who do the majority of shopping. When the purchasing power shifts from baby-boomer to generation Y prepare for a change. We will not only expect change to occur, we will demand it.
Have you recently thought about how your customer is/will be changing? Or are you just putting up magnetic signs telling everyone about your chicken legs on sale?
*-Looking at Safeway’s Twitter feed I found a online promotion for a free box of Tangerines for their Twitter followers with purchase of $25 or more. Limit 25,000 Followers 305 including myself. Hey it’s a start!
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About the Author
Hi, I'm Jeph. I love helping people make smarter business decisions. I help companies stand out. I consult, speak, facilitate and do project work on new marketing strategies (word-of-mouth, customer service, and social media). My consulting company is JephMaystruck.com Research & Consulting. The marketing industry is changing very rapidly and the only way to stay on top of it is by a philosophy of continuous learning. Do you have an information strategy? Are you learning faster than the world is changing? If not, we should talk. Learn more here: http://jephmaystruck.com/marketing-strategy/ Follow me @JephMaystruck
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It’s funny, you’d think grocery stores would notice all the people walking through their stores looking at their grocery lists on their iPhone or Blackberry and think about their mobile strategy a bit more.
.-= Sean Stefan´s last blog ..Give a Day Get a Disney Day =-.
Interesting read. I work in the industry, and I agree that it is stuck in the past in many ways.
One small thing – your link for the Co-op flyer takes you to Calgary Co-op, not Sherwood Co-op (our local Regina Co-op).
http://www.sherwoodco-op.com/flyers.php