Tag Archives: Consumers

Retail stores keep their eyes on the prize…you

im-watching-youretail pic

Retailers are pushing the boundaries of in-store Wi-Fi and camera surveillance to capture data about their shoppers. Wi-Fi signal tracking and facial analysis helps stores monitor their consumer’s behavior and movement to evaluate, and more importantly enhance, the in-store shopping experience. How might they enhance the customer experience? Quite simply. If a customer’s phone is automatically set to search for Wi-Fi networks in the area, a retailer can pick up the phone’s unique ID code. This technology allows the store to track the customer’s journey (within a 10 foot radius). Many stores have begun to capitalize on this technology by creating branded apps. Although the shopper voluntarily enters their personal information, stores are able to track and target them based on location. If the customer is wandering around the shoe department, the app recognizes their location and can then send them coupons for shoes. Retailers rolling out this technology have experienced mixed reviews. Some stores have reported increased efficiency and optimization of their floor plans while others have received customer complaints about violating their privacy.

What sparks our fire: Relying on technology to better understand the customer’s shopping experience.

How do we draw the line between enhancing the in-store experience and invasion of privacy?

Enjoy!

-Canopy Team

Positive you know what’s influencing you? Think Again

Brain

Beautiful-Peacock-Feather

Brand awareness is the ultimate objective for most marketers. However, Douglas Van Praet, a marketing and neuroscience expert, recently discussed why traditional research misses the mark on what actually drives consumers to purchase. Ever heard of the term “gut reaction” ? A consumer knows they like something but they are unaware of what, or how, they were influenced. Simply put, we can’t explain what we don’t know, which has been credited as the, “I like it, but I don’t know why” effect. Praet goes on to discuss another psychological idea that effects consumers, learning without knowing. Our brain’s emotional side has the ability to function independently from our cortex, the epicenter of consciousness. This enables us to attribute a positive and/or negative association to a product without knowledge or reasoning.This concept proves why Coke Clear and Crystal Pepsi were huge flops in the 1990’s. Consumers were unaware of the positive association they subconsciously made with the dark brown color of both soda brands. Eloquently put by Praet, “We see with our brains not just our eyes.”

You must be asking, so what does this mean to the marketing world? Praet has constructed a seven-step process to break through the clutter.

  1. Interrupt the Pattern.
  2. Create Comfort.
  3. Lead the Imagination.
  4. Shift the Feeling.
  5. Satisfy the Critical Mind.
  6. Change the Associations.
  7. Take Action.

What sparks out fire: The unconscious level of thought involved in the consumer’s decision-making process.

How will this change the way companies market to their consumers?

Enjoy!

-Canopy Team