Engage Consumers From Click to Brick

• Read original article here

Engage Consumers From Click to Brick
Break down the digital divide by connecting online and in-store experiences
By Shock Torem, SVP and GM, Vestcom Media Solutions
Hybrid shopping is the new norm, and consumers expect a seamless experience whether browsing from their couch or strolling an aisle. For marketers, being truly omnichannel means delivering consistent and engaging content across digital and physical touchpoints.
As retail media offerings continue to expand and new innovative tactics emerge, brands can break down the digital divide, connecting online and in-store activations to better engage shoppers wherever they choose to buy.
Satisfy hybrid shopper expectations
On the heels of a global pandemic that transformed the way people buy, marketers have come to accept that shopping behavior is no longer linear, with most consumers using a combination of channels . While many start their journey online, the vast majority end up buying in-store—with over 90% of grocery sales still occurring in physical stores.
Regardless of whether they’re interacting with your brand online or offline, consumers expect a consistent and seamless experience. Long gone are the days of a disparate ecommerce and in-store marketing strategy as these channels continue to converge, evidenced by the 89% of shoppers using mobile phones while in grocery stores to help inform purchase decisions.
Have a true omnichannel approach
Omnichannel is one of the hottest and often misused buzzwords across the industry today. Where many get it wrong is the distinction between multichannel vs. omnichannel. Marketers executing an isolated approach to ecommerce distinct from other channel activation have yet to move from a multichannel to omnichannel strategy, often delivering disjointed messaging to hybrid consumers.
A truly omnichannel strategy applies a more holistic view of cross-channel activation to ensure a consistent and seamless end-to-end experience. Omnichannel done right offers continuity in guiding consumers throughout their buying journey regardless of their choice of channel.
Balance full-funnel activation
Particularly as retail media offerings continue to expand, marketers are charged with balancing full-funnel activation to satisfy both long-term and short-term objectives. Those on the forefront of omnichannel adoption are starting to unlock synergies across digital and physical activation and are seeing the benefits of how a complementary strategy can amplify their overall ROI.
Smart marketers understand the important role that lower-funnel activation plays in driving conversion, engaging consumers in the exact moment they’re ready to buy.
Deliver a connected experience
Most marketers would be ecstatic to extend the reach of the digital content they’ve invested so heavily in, delivering moments of inspiration to wherever consumers are within their buying journeys. And by doing so, enrich the shopper experience, offering seamless points of interaction whether shopping online, in-store or a combination of both.
Through collaborative retail media partnerships that go beyond pure digital or physical execution, this is possible. Here are just a few of the innovative ways brands are connecting rich digital content in-store to inspire shoppers where they’re making their purchase decisions.
Brand equity and new item extensions: Marketers work hard to establish brand equity in the marketplace, and while upper-funnel media is important to drive awareness and intent, there is no better place than the shelf-edge to reinforce what you want to be top of mind for consumers in the moment they’re ready to buy.
And when it comes to supporting successful new product introductions, extending launch campaign messaging to draw visibility at the shelf can make all the difference in driving trial and the critical initial sales you need to stay on shelf.
QR code quick links: A rise in touchless tech driven by the pandemic catapulted QR code adoption, with 65% of consumers reporting they use QR codes daily. Integrating QR codes on in-store marketing messaging offers a seamless connection to expanded content with a quick mobile scan.
In-store digital media displays: As retail media offerings continue -o expand, more opportunities are emerging for brands to interact with shoppers through in-store video displays, offering a highly engaging medium to reinforce digital content and drive purchase intent.
Find a partner in activation
Effective full-funnel execution requires partnerships you can rely on—to provide access to the right media inventory, across the right retailers and the right measurement data to get a true picture of ROI based on incremental impact.
Vestcom’s shelf-edge media solution, shelfAdz overlays branded content and new item messaging onto price-integrated media at the shopper’s point of decision. Through closed-loop sales attribution and rigorous test and control measurement, brands have visibility into the true incremental impact shelfAdz delivers, with average campaigns driving 10-20% incremental sales lift.
Vestcom enables its growing roster of 600-plus CPG partners to extend their messaging to the shelf-edge across a National network of more than 35,000 stores, unlocking access to shoppers at Kroger, Albertsons Companies, Ahold-Delhaize, Dollar General, Walgreens and more.
—
Shock Torem leads Vestcom’s shelf-edge media business, including the development of partnerships across brands, retailers and agencies alike to deliver value accretive solutions for all parties. As a 25-year industry veteran, Torem brings a deep understanding of the challenging and complex dynamics of retail and CPG to lead clients in transforming their shelf-edge. 
Popular Now