The BV Blog

The following piece is by Kenneth Hein. It’s called “Study: Brands Sold on Shopper Marketing Programs” and it appeared in the September 22, 2008 online issue of BrandWeek.

In-store marketing tactics have not only become actively embraced by marketers of consumer packaged goods, many rank it as one of their most effective tools, per a study released September 22. Deloitte and the Grocery Manufacturers Association polled more than 100 companies for the “Delivering the Promise of Shopper Marketing: Mastering Execution for Competitive” report.

Companies no longer look at shopper marketing as an also-ran idea. In fact, 60% of the manufacturers and retailers polled said they have “significant” shopper marketing organizations. This was up from only 6% last year.

Respondents expect to continue to enhance their shopper marketing budgets for at least the next three years. Why? “Retailers and manufacturers who are embracing shopper marketing and executing against a core set of principles are growing 50% faster than the categories in which they participate,” said Rob Holston, Deloitte’s shopper marketing practice leader. “This speaks to the promise shopper marketing holds for those who do it well.”

Nineteen percent of consumer packaged goods manufacturers and half of retailers rank shopper marketing as the most effective activity for generating strong return-on-investment. Overall, 75% of manufacturers and 86% of retailers studied ranked in-store marketing among the top four activities in terms of gaining strong ROI.

Still, only 5-10% of companies are considered advanced at the tactic. One of the main impediments for accelerating the practice is the cost of data collection and analysis, according to 70% of respondents.

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Try to imagine the world without music.

Life would not be nearly as rich or enjoyable. And, of course, you’d have no need for your favorite dancin’ pants.

Music is tremendously important to human beings (including your customers) for many reasons, but among its greatest values is its ability to affect our mood in a positive way. You can see evidence of this at concerts and high school dances, and in the faces of people listening to their favorite songs. (Learn more about the marketing benefits of music.)

You can also witness the power of music at nursing homes and rehabilitation centers where music is used to lift the spirits of residents and patients. In the summer 2008 issue of The Director, a magazine for administrators at long-term care facilities, Ed Newman wrote:

Activity directors and nursing professionals at hospitals and nursing homes have long recognized the role music plays in their patients’ care. According to Brian Rife, Activity Director at the Rehab and Nursing Center in Monroe, N.C., music can play an important role in healing. “Often residents in nursing home settings become depressed and withdrawn. An activity department has such a huge responsibility to help these individuals through different types of pleasant and meaningful activities. One element that we use here is music,” Rife explained. “You can go into a resident’s room and play some type of uplifting song and they become alive with joy. It’s amazing how music impacts our lives on a daily basis. Music just makes you feel good when nothing else will.”

Music is essential for creating the right mood within your business too, whether it’s a small town retirement facility or a major hospital; a local clothing shop or a regional chain of grocery stores. Not only does music put your customers and staff in a better frame of mind - a state they may subconsciously associate with being in your office or store - it can be used to connect with your target audience and solidify your brand image. Click here to look through some facts and figures.

Read Music: Food for the Soul and Good for Business.

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One of our clients is very happy with the results of a recent Point-Of-Purchase Audio Marketing test we conducted. Read the mini-case study here. While the number of units sold is smaller, the increase in sales during our measured P-O-P campaign is dramatic.

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A few weeks ago, A&E launched an unusual marketing campaign for their new “Paranormal” program.

See the article detailing the techniques here– Hear Voices? It May Be an Ad.

One technique that struck me is the use of Audio Spotlight technology. The name implies just that–an audio track is narrowly transmitted to a location, and only the individuals occupying the space within that “beam” can hear the message.

There’s been a lot of response to this particular method, and reviews have been entirely mixed. According to a poll conducted by AdAge, respondents were split 50/50 as to whether or not the technique was a good idea.

Personally, I think it is a GREAT idea.

It’s a genius way to use the Audio Spotlight technology in an interesting fashion. It’s not an effort at mind control or a some other dark purpose. It’s just a clever way to use clever technology to generate awareness. Marketing at its finest.

A&E found a terrific application for something that grocery stores and gas stations have been using for years. This type of audio technology, sometimes referred to and applied as point-of-purchase audio, has been cutting through the visual clutter of print and television ads, and reaching out to remind people that the detergent is on sale, or when they’re done filling up, to come inside and grab a beverage for the road.

Although, I must admit, had I experienced the A&E application, I would have felt slightly schizophrenic.

But most applications won’t have that effect. They will, however, produce results.

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Is it just me or does the audio from a typical TV commercial pod sound more like what’s on my iPod? Armed recently with an old school pad of paper and pen, I was able to jot down - from memory - 10 current TV spots that rely heavily on a famous tune, but hardly at all on the spoken word.

I’ll need another 10 or 12 years before I can separate the sound of Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll” from my mind’s eye image of a Cadillac kicking up desert dust. But that’s the point. You may not ordinarily think of Cadillac on any given day, but now, if you hear “Rock and Roll” on the local classic rock station during the drive home, I’ll bet you a cheese danish that an image of an Escalade pops into your head. That connection can be so strong that Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll” isn’t just “Rock and Roll” anymore–it’s “that Cadillac song.”

More proof. What products do you think of when you think of these songs? “Like A Rock” by Bob Seger; “I’m Free” by the Rolling Stones; “Don’t You Want Me” by Human League. All of these tunes have a positive connection with Chevy Trucks, Chase Visa, and those chunky Chips Ahoy, respectively. Some companies have even elected to use lesser-known music to form an almost mutually exclusive relationship between the piece and the product. Most folks wouldn’t know Aaron Copeland’s “Rodeo: Hoe-Down” by name, but when it’s set to the sweeping images of families enjoying hunks of meat and paired with the tagline “Beef: It’s What’s for Dinner!” it becomes instantly recognizable.

Tapping into the powerful alignment of music and a famous spokesperson, American Express rolled several slices of sounds into one commerical. During the famous “Ellen’s Dance” spot, dog-dealer Ellen DeGeneres dances her way through the day to such tunes as “Car Wash,” “Respect,” and “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now).” Clever, American Express, clever - conveying energy by capitalizing on just seconds of famous songs.

Aligning your business with music, whether through advertisements or in your environment, affects how your customers and prospects perceive your company. Do it right, and you can achieve top-of-mind awareness every time “your” song hits the airwaves.

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If you run a retail business, you should consider the soundscape that your customers experience. Retail psychologist Tim Denison of the British Retail Think Tank tells Time Magazine that noisy environments can turn the volume down on sales. In addition to minimizing the typical noise pollution, (like a loud food blender at the counter or a staff that’s always using their “outside” voices) try to focus on the smart use of sound with the right background music. People’s biorhythms often mirror the sounds around them. A gentle mix of classical music or soothing ambient sounds encourages relaxation and shoppers will slow down. Denison says, “If customers are moving less quickly, they’re more likely to engage with a product and make a purchase.”

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