Shopper Culture

Wine pairings. Beer pairings. Soft drink pairings?

Have a look at this picture captured at a Burger King soft drink dispenser.

In an age of wine pairings, beer pairings, and even coffee pairings, do we really think this soft-drink pairing chart will persuade many customers which soft drink to pair with their 1200-calorie sandwich? Do we think the King really spent hours trying to figure out which soda fully complemented your paper-lined, vinyl tray dining experience?

Probably not, but this sticker got a reaction from me, and in a world where the consumer has been conditioned to ignore thousands of marketing messages a day, that’s a good thing.

What's more, this pairing chart brought the irrelevant tone and spirit of the advertising into the store in a natural way. A more obvious approach, to instead say Coke® is Refreshing with a Whopper®, would appear corporate and patronizing. We hand it to Burger King for small details that make a difference.

- Contributed by Tony Fuller

 

FNAC Video Wall

Interesting idea. Engaging use of sound and motion. Interesting way to sample music.  Disappointing when it doesn't respond properly.  When you touch the CD in the wall it is supposed to change tracks, and it doesn't do that quickly enough, look what happens. 

- Contributed by Ian Whitney

Shopping with your inner child

Walking through the baking aisle at my local King Sooper's the other day, this jumped out at me.

Was it a stocker's practical joke?

A brand manager's under-the-radar experiment?

Or even an agency's idea?

My guess is it was none of the above (if you know the answer, or have seen something similar, by all means share!).

I'd put my money on the shopper.

A shopper gone wild.

A shopper frustrated with efficiency and straight lines at grocery.

A shopper who has not lost their sense of humor just because they're shopping.

This left me wondering whether we as marketers have lost some of our appreciation for childlike wonder in store.  Sure there are examples around to the contrary.  But you could say that the lion's share of in-store ideas over-rely on the power of rational claims.  On the impact of big signage.  On arresting video.  Or interruptive shelf talkers.

But when is the last time you paused in childlike wonder at something so simple as this?

May we all keep our inner shopping child alive and well.

Who's Hungry?

From a macro point of view we know that we feel good when we purchase a product that helps contribute to a cause.  From Susan G. Komen to (PRODUCT) RED, a lot of marketing support is put behind these efforts to make us aware and encourage us to purchase these products.

From an in-store perspective I think this is one of the best executions I've ever seen.  Leo Burnett Canada and Campbell's soup teamed together in the grocery channel for local foodbanks.  Here is a description of the program from directdaily:

In a grocery store 4,820 can s of Campbell's Soup were used to build an installation piece that spelled HUNGER. Signage beside the piece encouraged shoppers to buy one and donate it to their local food bank. As shoppers bought cans from the display the word HUNGER slowly disappeared. This allowed people to see how their individual effort could help bring an end to the problem of hunger.

This example works on a variety of levels, it 1) increases sales of Campbell's products 2) supports a great cause 3) provides a visual example of the difference one person can make.

- Contributed by Todd Cameron

Vending recycled

We have a fantastic emporium near our offices that is a veritable treasure trove of design goodies.  Called Composition, they are our local source of Moleskin notebooks and retail all sorts of interesting bags, books, jewellery, gadgets, household and office goods.  They also do a lot with products made with recycled materials, and they currently have a recycled vending machine that is carrying products made from recycled materials.  You drop a nickel in the slot to open the door of your choice and look at the product - want to see another one? Drop another nickel in the slot.

It's a great use of an old machine and is a really engaging and interesting way to display unexpected products.  We love the sense of discovery and adventure they present as a brand to their customers, and how that makes us all want to go back in to see what we might discover this time.  There are lessons for big brands here on how to present and engage with their audience in interesting ways.  What could your brand do to reuse a discarded something as part of its story?  Or bring a greater sense of discovery to what it offers to its audience?

Talking Trash

There are a lot of constants in QSR.  The stainless steel counters with registers.  The overhead menus.  The uncomfortable chairs. 

And of course, the bulky rectangular trash cans with the single swinging door that requires a certain finesse to get your cup and wrapper to fall just so.  At their worst you could call them residents of the Design Hall of Shame; at their best they are occasionally annoying.

These cans almost always say THANK YOU.  But when I was in a Miami Airport Burger King recently this one stuck out.  In the least likely of places there was a bit of trashy poetry.  A knowing gesture by some insider (Crispin Porter Bogusky perhaps?) to the tiny tray-and-trash struggle many of us have endured to get our wrapper where it belongs.

What other forgotten corners of the retail environment are a little rough around the edges, in need of a bit of humor or at least acknowledgment of the friction they cause?   At a minimum this trash talk left me walking out the door with a small but significant smile on my face.