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'DOUBLE STANDARD' NEEDED FOR ETHNIC MARKETING

LOS ANGELES -- Supermarket retailers who add ethnic product lines to attract a a particular group of shoppers need to judge product movement differently than they do on mainstream items, a marketing consultant told a seminar audience here last week."Too often retailers assess movement of ethnic merchandise by the same measure as they assess mainstream products, and then they're disappointed," Teresa

LOS ANGELES -- Supermarket retailers who add ethnic product lines to attract a a particular group of shoppers need to judge product movement differently than they do on mainstream items, a marketing consultant told a seminar audience here last week.

"Too often retailers assess movement of ethnic merchandise by the same measure as they assess mainstream products, and then they're disappointed," Teresa J. Soto, president and chief executive officer of About Marketing Solutions, Burbank, Calif., said. "What they need to do instead is develop different benchmarks for movement of ethnic products based on a less rigorous assessment -- based on movement only as a subset of total movement."

Soto also advised retailers to assign someone with decision-making authority to determine what ethnic products to carry. "Some supermarkets have ethnic buyers who are more like public-relations people, who are there to receive ethnic vendors and hear their pitches but who have no decision-making power."

That approach only discourages vendors and ultimately hurts the retailer's execution, she explained.

Soto spoke at a seminar here during last week's third annual Expo Comida Latina, the Hispanic food and beverage show, fashioning her remarks from a two-year-old case study that compiled best practices in marketing and merchandising to Hispanics, Asian Americans and African Americans -- best practices based on recommendations from a host of top-level retailers and wholesalers from across the industry.

Her comments about measuring movement and assigning buying responsibility were part of the best-practice recommendation that retailers need to define their ethnic merchandising look and organize to execute it.

Retail efforts that have followed that dictum, Soto said, include Minyard's Carnival stores, Brookshire Bros.' Ole, United Supermarkets' Supermercado, Bashas' Food City and Albertsons' Super Saver.

"Avanza [a Hispanic format developed by Nash Finch Co.] failed because it underestimated the Chicago market and overspent on its investment," Soto added.

The case study also urges retailers to segregate ethnic products initially in a specific section to demonstrate their commitment, devoting at least 40 feet or 50 feet to the category to convey a massive presence, "because consumers won't see your store as a viable source of product if all you do is make a weak effort," Soto said.

As the ethnic category matures, some items, including detergents and beverages, can be integrated back into mainstream assortments, she added.

Among other best practices recommended by the study:

Think like the ethnic customers to serve them better. Besides studying published information about a category to develop a baseline of understanding, "talk to your consumers and your employees, look through cookbooks, check out ethnic restaurants, tap the experience of ethnic vendors and look at what ethnic supermarkets are doing," Soto said.

"One of the most important things you can do [at an ethnic store] is observe the interaction between service department personnel and consumers because strong personal relationships are what many consumers are used to having at the grocery store," she said.

She also urged retailers to be authentic. "Avoid cosmetic changes or retrofits," she said.

Tailor the store's ethnic offering to appeal to the targeted customer. "If you treat ethnic items like specialty products, your prices will be too high," Soto said. "The key to understand is you have to be priced competitively with independent stores selling those products, or else your products won't move."

In terms of selection, "it's not always about brands but about merchandising," she said. "How you offer the assortment is as important as what you offer."

Create ethnic criteria that enhance the store experience and connect with the community. That means having the appropriate bilingual signs in place, badges that identify bilingual employees and even some ethnic music playing in the store, Soto said.

When Kroger expanded the assortment of Hispanic products at select stores in Houston, "one store director said there was some backlash from Anglos who didn't like the changes," Soto said, "so he instructed his employees to make it clear the store wasn't sorry or embarrassed [about the changes] when questioned by customers."

Soto also said retailers with ethnic programs need to reach out to the local community, "not simply by observing Cinco de Mayo, Kwanzaa or Chinese New Year but by working with diversity suppliers, as Kroger, A&P and Ahold are doing, and by simplifying the process of getting ethnic products from smaller vendors onto the shelves."

Recruit and retain a diverse staff to help serve the targeted customer segment. "Your staff should be able to think like them, not just about them," Soto explained. "Retailers should assign a customer service manager to identify potential recruits, and the company's human relations people should relax their criteria in terms of experience to look at different sources for employees."

Develop a marketing plan to communicate value at all points of customer contact. "Use the right marketing vehicles to reach the target audience," Soto said, "and leverage partnerships with manufacturers for bilingual point-of-sale materials.

"Ethnic marketing is not event marketing -- it's a 365-days-a-year proposition, and you need to be able to execute in-store before the consumer ever sees what you're doing, or else you'll lose credibility.

"And act locally because what you do out in the parking lot or the neighborhood speaks volumes about your commitment."