In the Southeast, lots of people like Publix Super Markets. As of July 1, people all over the world can “like” the Lakeland, Fla.-based chain virtually as well, thanks to the long-awaited launch of the company's Facebook page.
“Our goal is to build on the relationship we've had for 81 years in our stores, and then modernize it for today, and connect on a whole different level,” Maria Brous, a spokeswoman for the chain, told SN about the company's Facebook launch.
It's a strategy that has been rapidly rolling out across the supermarket landscape, as more and more chains see value in being able to engage with their customers in a personal way that is different from the ways they are accustomed to communicating.
The emergence of Facebook as a two-way communication tool for retailers — along with such other vehicles as Twitter and consumer blogs — earned the “like” button a spot on SN's Power 50 list as a metaphor for a new arsenal of relationship-building technology tools at the disposal of food retailers.
“What these allow us to do is to express personal preferences in terms of building a shopping list, or opting into a personal program like [Safeway's] Just For U,” said Bill Bishop, chief architect of Brick Meets Click, which studies the transformations brought on by new technologies. “When it's working well, it helps the shopper be sure they are buying everything they need.”
For retailers, these new technologies create an opportunity to increase loyalty with customers, he noted.
The new dimensions of personalized communication between retailers and consumers also will also enhance retailer databases, Bishop explained, by helping marry individuals with the specific products they buy.
“Until we get down to the flavor, the size, the product, and get them in close association with buyers, it will be a major drag on progress,” he said, noting that many competitors — such as club stores and dollar stores — have a leg up on supermarkets in this regard because of their smaller assortments.
“The data is one thing; the other thing that intrigues me is that senior management is going to have to think differently about the way they organize and structure the business to be truly oriented to the shopper,” Bishop continued. “We have silos today that have grown up naturally because of the way we do business, but in order to get closer to being customer-oriented, we are going to have to break through those silos.”
Those silos are increasingly evident with such retailer dilemmas as whether or not to allow customers to return online purchases at physical store locations.
“At most retailers, that is still not an acceptable practice — there is the silo between online and the physical store,” Bishop said.
Another example is in marketing to consumers in a way that helps them plan their shopping trip.
“How do you participate in that planning? I don't think the marketing we push out, which is through the marketing silo, really helps the individual customer make that determination,” he said.
Social media, Bishop said, might hold particular promise in the effort to make shopping more enjoyable.
“I think some of the leaders of the pack will be able to shift consumers' attitudes toward grocery shopping to make it more of a pastime, that has entertainment value, and that has other values, like education,” he said.
