Metro boosts digital personalization

Shoppers using Metro Inc.’s mobile and web platforms can now get personalized sales flyers under a new feature launched this week known as “Just for Me,” the Montreal-based retailer said.

The feature builds on Metro’s 2013 launch of what it called the food industry’s first “personalized digital ecosystem.” It allows shoppers to get a personalized flyer showing them weekly specials organized according to their purchasing preferences, as well as their weekly “usuals,” allowing them to build their weekly grocery list faster. Customers will continue to have access to their weekly coupons and personalized weekly menus, officials said.

In an interview with SN Tuesday, Marc Giroux, VP and chief marketing and communications officer for Metro, called the new technology a first for the industry, and particularly relevant in value-conscious Canada, where the weekly flyer plays a major role in purchase decisions.

Metro has approximately 6 million active members of its loyalty programs, “Metro & Moi” in Quebec and Air Miles in Ontario, who were delivered 80 million targeted contacts last year. Giroux said Metro expected 100 million this year.

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“This is a fantastic opportunity for Metro to have a weekly conversation with consumers and provide them content that elevates our brand and provides them more ways to save and improves our price perception, and their perception of value they can get at Metro.”

This strategy is answering existing customer needs, as according to Nielsen, 63% of Canadians who are active on the Internet look for recipes, 62% check online flyers, 52% research products, 49% look for promotions and sales, 48% look for coupons and 48% compare prices between brands. Shoppers are buying more on promotion, with such items now accounting for 37% of dollar sales, up from around 28% in 2006, according to Nielsen.