Retail is one business that entails a lot of effort to succeed; you can't just wake up one morning, cook up a retail marketing strategy and expect to flourish. Some CPG brands currently find themselves in a fix when it comes to marketing. There are specific strategies involved in making your product stand out from the rest of the pack. Primarily if you sell products that the shoppers can experience, you will need more than just some ads or flyers to impress. In store sampling is one of the most effective tools available for creating an experience that motivates shoppers to become customers and share it with others.
Field Marketing is the art of driving consumer action through campaigns, brand interaction, and experiences. The in-store demo campaign offers the most effective method for promoting products at brick-and-mortar grocery stores. Empirical evidence shows that successful in-store sampling makes for strong brand activation.
Product demonstration allows the shopper to experience every bit of the product, and what better way to know the quality than tasting it? A bit of a statistic to water your taste buds - in-store sampling is known to increase sales by as much as 2,000 percent. Invariably, many shoppers who experience the product go on to make the purchase - the very essence of business. Even those who do not purchase the demo event are being exposed to the brand, and brand exposure has an intrinsic value of its own.
Therefore, it is not a function of how many ads you run - though still a relatively viable marketing strategy. The in-store demos would guarantee a measurable brand activation effect, ultimately yielding a spike in the store's revenue. Consequently, many CPG brands have adopted this form of field marketing, and we will see why "one taste sells better than a 1000 ads".
These offers have a plethora of benefits for the brand and the physical retailer. Not only does it help promote the product, but an in store offer fosters a connection between consumers and the retailer. The in-store demo also offers an opportunity for a brand to connect directly to the customer. Consequently, with the relationship established with the shoppers during the demo event, you can convert casual buyers into loyal customers, hence, the need for experienced brand ambassadors who will help attract the right traffic for your product. In fact, the customers would even go about telling people about your product based on the rapport and experience at the product demonstration. That is known as the word of mouth marketing and should be an essential part of your retail marketing strategy. The closer your connection with consumers, the higher your sales. Also, the in-store demo offers customers the opportunity of trying different varieties of your product. For example, if you promote yogurt, you can bring different flavors some people have not heard of and let them try them.
This survey is another reason to hop on the in-store demo bandwagon. Let's check some facts. According to a data analysis, more than a third of customers who tried samples said they bought the product during the same shopping trip. In other words, more than three out of ten people purchased the product after the product demonstration. Now imagine the numbers at the close of the store. How many many consumers purchased your products after seeing the numerous ad campaigns you ran before? The in-store demos are also known for increasing product sales in adjacent categories by as much as 177 percent on the day of the demonstration, according to a 2009 study, "Report on In-store Sampling Effectiveness."
Running numerous ads for your products can take a lot of time and effort. The cost of in store sampling events is relatively low. Most brands pay $20-$35 per hour to qualified Brand Ambassadors to promote their products in the stores. Furthermore, there could be additional charges if the influencer (brand ambassador) travels from a distance to the store. However, if this is becoming too difficult for you to manage, you can have a fixed-cost demo company as a partner. Outsourcing to a demo company can eliminate the hassles of planning for a successful in-store demo.
Additionally, you can amplify the sampling taste-2-purchase conversion rate by employing field marketing techniques like coupons that go for less than a dollar. You might be thinking of how much you have spent online advertising, but not to worry, there is still time to add another weapon to your retail marketing arsenal. After sufficient data is collected, you may find in-store demos more effective than digitally acquiring customers at a lower cost.
Retail is a volatile business. Without the right techniques to help you through, it may be a disastrous journey. To "swim" confidently and avoid the treacherous riptides of retail marketing, you will need to plan your in-store demo campaigns carefully. No one says that advertising does not work, but in-store demo offers to give you an extra lift above your competitors. This approach is particularly valuable to retailers in the highly competitive grocery business. The options are to do things creatively or watch others dominate the market. The effectiveness, experience, and economics of in-store demo marketing provide the retailers, CPG brands, and shoppers make it easy to see why "one taste is better than 1000 ads" ©.
FAQ
WHAT IS A PRODUCT DEMONSTRATION?
A product demonstration is one of your best sales tools if you have a high-quality product. It is a marketing strategy that allows shoppers to experience what your product is really about. Here, there are no cameras or fancy graphics and clever copywriters, just the product for people to see, feel, hear or taste, depending on the type of product on display. Product demonstrations provide experiential support to enhance the quality of your sales presentation. Prospects who are more visual or hands-on learners often need to see your product in action to grasp its value and potential fully. Product demonstration also supports what the brand ambassadors say or what the shoppers might have heard before they try the product.
WHAT IS THE DEMONSTRATION METHOD?
It is easy to miss the mark when planning an in-store demo program. That is why it would be best to have some rules to guide you. It is important to remember that each store location and its customer demographics are unique. Therefore, selecting the event's location, date, and time should be carefully considered and based on data. One way you can easily understand unique characteristics is by researching and getting information from the employees. The other way is to collect reports of previously conducted demo events and analyze data provided by the brand ambassadors. That is where the use of in-store retail marketing solutions is invaluable.
Tell the customer's story. Let the customer feel attached to the product by providing information that links them to the product.
Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse.
Test everything beforehand.
After the demo, close the deal.
