Shopper Culture

What a Tease!

With the increasing importance of viral and word-of-mouth marketing, marketers have upped their game with teaser campaigns. I have noticed more and more teasers every day. This year, more brands than ever used digital media to tease their upcoming Super Bowl spots. Everyone from VW to Newcastle got in on the teasing action. Just last week, promoters of the film Fifty Shades of Grey released an Instagram video in partnership with Beyoncé as a way to tease the upcoming release of the full trailer. When you think about it, that’s a teaser to announce what is essentially another teaser for the full film! Polaris recently spent a month... Read more →

What Does Facebook’s In-Test ‘Buy’ Feature Mean to Retailers?

It looks like we have another social channel turning into a commerce channel. Facebook announced last week that they will soon help people discover and purchase products directly from them with a ‘buy’ button that will sit neatly next to the ‘like’ button. It’s geared to make impulse purchases simple for people while boosting commerce conversion for brands. Sure, they’ll be taking a cut for the commerce they drive. But this new feature is also meant to support the value of their advertising. If people can get their interest piqued and purchase, isn’t it worth more than just an ad? Facebook has taken some serious beatings regarding privacy... Read more →

Visa Helps Remove the Barrier to Wearing Sweatpants in the Office

I came across these "bedroom comfort, boardroom style" pants while recently surfing on my mobile phone. I was even thinking about purchasing them, but the reality of tediously typing all my credit card and billing information into my smartphone, caused me to abandon ship. If only I'd known about Visa's new service. Visa Checkout is a brand new system that removes the payment process barrier on your smartphone. Visa Checkout stores customers' credit card numbers and billing addresses once without having to re-enter the information ever again. Retailers that sell in the digital space — from big-box retailers to mom and pop startups — have all struggled with... Read more →

Think Beyond Product Innovation; Think UXI

Product innovation was once the strategy used to increase revenues, market share and loyalty, and it was how businesses thrived. But in today’s world, product innovation often only yields incremental growth. Given today's marketplace dynamics, you may be looking for a new path to success. It’s time to look at User Experience Innovation (UXI). Click here to read more about UXI in this month's edition of the Integer Pulse. And don't forget that all past issues are available here to browse as well. Read more →

Is Experience Based Marketing The Future?

Millennials represent a large pool of shoppers. But marketers continue to find that many of the tactics that work on their Baby Boomer parents (or even their Gen X siblings) are not as effective on Millennials. This is because Millennials live in a social economy where experiences are their currency. In addition, many value experiences over possessions. This has lead to a new breed of marketing—experience based marketing. While product campaigns can inspire experiences and social media is a means to share experiences, neither is truely geared toward offering an experience. Perhaps brands need to rethink how they entice and engage with this rising shopper group. Companies like... Read more →

Explore the Latest Urban Retail Happenings

It's the middle of the summer, but shopper trends are just heating up. Sit back and soak up the latest in urban retail. In this month's issue of The Urbanist: A New Twist on Dining Payment–Right in the Palm of your Hand Minibar Delivers Install Ads In Twitters' Future Click here to explore past issues. Read more →

New Study: Checkout China–Uncovering Complexities of Shoppers in China

Chinese consumer confidence has decreased over the years yet prices continue to increase, because of this reality, marketers have to work harder to get a share of an increasingly smaller basket size. Gaining a better knowledge about the way people shop is more crucial than ever if brands and retailers want to exceed. This new study uncovers the complexities of Chinese shoppers by using a range of variables including spending habits, shopping attitudes and the key drivers behind purchases. With this, four different shopper archetypes were identified: the ‘Experience Lover’ who loves shopping and looks for unique experience; the ‘Precision Planner’, who is detail-oriented and willing to spend... Read more →

How Heightened Health & Wellness Is Impacting Shopper Culture

In the U.S., healthy living is top of mind and changing not only how people live but also how they shop. Interested in learning more about how healthy living trend is affecting shoppers as well as how manufacturers and retailers are tackling this issue? Tune into the upcoming BAA webinar, Shopping Perspectives on Health and Wellness on July 8th at 2pm EST. The webinar will be hosted by Integer's own Jess Garretson, who will share share a number of different perspectives including: What are shoppers increasingly looking for out of brands and retailers when it comes to Health and Wellness? From working with brands looking to address this... Read more →

The Checkout: Private Label Edition

Private label is the great equalizer. Nearly every consumer purchases it in at least some categories. In our latest study, we dug into some of the surprising similarities and differences across age and demographic groups. High-income and low-income shoppers were remarkably consistent in their use of private label. In fact, every income bracket had the same three categories at the top of their private label switch list – OTCs, Paper and Milk. Millennials tend to crowdsource their private label choices a bit more. They are more likely than other age groups to seek out information from friends, family and sales associates before making a purchase. To read more... Read more →

Cancel That Meeting: USA plays Germany in World Cup 2014

This morning, I walked into the office to a voicemail asking me why my employee declined a co-worker's meeting for tomorrow. After looking at the calendar, I realized the meeting was scheduled smack dab in the middle of the USA versus Germany World Cup match. Well, the answer is obvious. Many companies have tried to predict the lost productivity during major sporting events. Earlier this year, Challenger, Gray & Christian calculated that the March Madness tournament cost more than $1.2 billion to American businesses and Captivate Network found that the 2012 Olympics cost U.S. companies $1.38 billion. More specifically, during the 2010 World Cup, InsideView uncovered that $121... Read more →

Shoptimization

There’s more socializing going on in retail stores, and it’s not because shoppers are suddenly up for a good chat at the checkout line. Retailers are weaving social media and other technologies into their bricks-and-mortar experience to help heighten the level of in-store engagement. SHOPTIMIZATION is maximizing the shopping experience in real time, with the help of technology, leading to greater brand exposure and an increased likelihood to buy. Screens, projections, RFID integration — the building blocks of any good in-store social experience — aren’t as expensive as they used to be. “All of that stuff is coming down in cost and, as a result, you can start... Read more →

Beauty Education (*Hint: We’re not learning from mom anymore)

Gone are the days of learning our beauty regimens strictly from mom. We may still check out what she uses as a trusted source, but women are finding other ways to learn about the products available to them and which ones they should buy. Top resources for beauty shoppers include friends, experts, social media and trying things for themselves. In a recent Integer Checkout, we discussed growing experiential trends in the beauty category. Shoppers want to be able to test-drive beauty products before they buy them, and they want somebody there to help them find the right products. Many retailers are rethinking their beauty aisles to cater to... Read more →

Point-and-Shoot Shopping

Amazon continues to innovate at the convergence of consumer devices and shopping. The online megastore made big news this week when it threw its hat into the smartphone race. While Amazon is a late entry into the category, the new device plays into its biggest strength: shopping. The phone’s special feature is an app called Firefly. Firefly is a simple way to scan anything around you in the world—physical objects, shows on your TV screen, music playing at the coffee shop, etc.—and Amazon will tell you what you just saw or heard. This will provide users with everything from IMDB.com data for TV shows to album titles for... Read more →

Headline of the Future: The Stock Up Trip is Dead

The death of stock up trips is just one of several predictions made in the latest publication from the white paper series, Untangling the Social Web. Future predictions as well as the key findings about how shoppers today use the social web to grocer shop were recently presented at the annual FMI conference by Integer and CCRRC Council Members. Click here to download the entire presentation from FMI or download the entire study by clicking here. Read more →

Streamline Your Next Beauty Purchase

More and more, we’re beginning to see online retailers use targeted advertising as a way to anticipate, rather than react to, shoppers’ behaviors. This in turn, provides faster service for their customers. Take Google Shopping Express, for example, which provides same-day delivery (in select markets) and, therefore, drastically cuts down on the time it takes to ship its products. This is especially beneficial in the beauty and grooming space, where impulse purchases and instant gratification reign king. Imagine a scenario where you’re getting ready for work, only to realize that you’ve run out of your favorite foundation. You don’t necessarily have the time to go to Target and... Read more →