Kroger aims to put digital offers into the hands of in-store shoppers

Kroger customers are leveraging a solution from digital marketing and media firm Catalina that will extend online deals to in-store shoppers as print offers at checkout.

Under the program, personalized digital promotions from The Kroger Co.’s 84.51° data and analytics arm are being funneled to store customers using the new Catalina Reach Extender tool. The goal is to cast a wider net for promotional offers by aligning them with the way customers shop, whether it’s in-store, online or both, St. Petersburg, Florida-based Catalina said Thursday.

“We look forward to using this breakthrough technology to bring meaningful savings to even more customers,” Cara Pratt, senior vice president for Kroger Precision Marketing at 84.51°, said in a statement.

Currently, 84.51° delivers personalized deals to digitally engaged Kroger shoppers through its website, mobile app and, more widely, via its Loyal Customer Mailer, Catalina reported. Via Catalina Reach Extender, 84.51° is assembling a base of loyal, exclusively in-store Kroger shoppers and providing them with printed offers that complement its online offers. The data science specialist, using the cloud-based Catalina Media Platform, then delivers relevant offers to shoppers at checkout through in-lane printers in each store.

“The ultimate aim of using Catalina Reach Extender is to engage 100% of our shoppers with the best possible access to value,” Pratt added. “This expansion will enable CPG brands to engage even more shoppers with inspiring products for their homes and families.”

Source: Infographic provided by 84.51°

Catalina noted that 84.51° is an early collaborator on Catalina Reach Extender. A December survey from 84.51° found that 59% of consumers are more likely to buy a certain brand or shop at a certain store if they receive personalized content.

“Catalina Reach Extender has been designed with this in mind so that loyal in-store shoppers receive offers in a way that is relevant to them while they’re shopping, ultimately increasing satisfaction, trip frequency and basket size,” Catalina U.S. Chief Retail Officer Wesley Bean said, emphasizing the value of personalization. “With inflation continuing to concern shoppers across the country, offering shoppers greater value on their favorite brands and products in a relevant way is not only appreciated, but also it engenders even greater loyalty.”

Through Reach Extender—billed as a first-of-its-kind solution—the 84.51° personalized content could go a long way if Kroger ends up doing a broader rollout of the technology. The Cincinnati-based grocer now operates nearly 2,800 stores under about 20 banners in 35 states. Potentially, that number could jump to 4,996 stores in 48 states and the District of Columbia if Kroger’s planned mega-merger with Albertsons Cos. earns regulatory approval.

With 85 million households served annually (up from 64 million for Kroger alone), Kroger-Albertsons would have one of the broadest and deepest first-party data repositories in the food and retail sectors, able to leverage 84.51° to provide more relevant recommendations and personalized promotions plus drive growth in burgeoning businesses such as retail media.

“We’ve talked about, in recent years, changing the way that Kroger creates value for customers and shareholders by using the data we have to deliver more value back to our customers, but also to generate alternative revenue streams like media,” Kroger Chief Financial Officer Gary Millerchip said in a recent interview. “So as we combine the data and the customer households that Kroger has with Albertsons, we see that as a tremendous opportunity to improve the personalization of the experience we give to customers. Also, it gives us an even stronger platform to be able to provide better services to our CPG partners, where we can offer them even more targeted, more relevant media opportunities. Now, of course, we can do that across the U.S. as well as in the markets that Kroger operates in today.”