April 10, 2006
Education Drives Loyalty
By John Hennessy, Vice President, Concept Shopping, Inc.
(www.conceptshopping.com)
WineMiner LLC, a provider of internet-based kiosks for researching wine and complementary food recipes, has deployed kiosks in two Fausto’s Food Palace locations in Key West, FL.
The kiosks contain information on wine, cheeses and complementary recipes. The content is customized for each retail customer to reflect the store’s inventory. There are also plans to add a store locator feature to support the purchase of food and wine pairings.
Moderator’s Comment: What other areas can be well-served by information kiosks?
It’s a brief technology-driven piece on an information kiosk. But if you read between the lines, there’s a lot more that should appeal to marketers.
New technologies, complex products, emerging segments like organics, categories needing some revitalizing like produce, new products or new product classifications
all require education to be successful. If you don’t know which natural remedy will cure your headache, how to convert your CDs to mp3s or which produce items are teeming with
calcium, you will be less likely to make a purchase.
Store staff cannot be everywhere and cannot know everything. A well-executed kiosk program can get pretty close. When you need to know which wine to serve,
you can confidently discover the answer and make the purchase with equal confidence. When you want to know what a “nano” is as you seek a camera for your graduating nephew, you
can find out.
Educational kiosks like the WineMiner’s play to shopper’s familiarity with technology and their quest for information. Their use is also consistent with
the widespread practice of Googling to find out more about a new topic.
Often it’s more convenient for a shopper to seek information on their own time. There is also reluctance on the part of some shoppers to demonstrate ignorance
of a topic by seeking guidance from a human. “Directions sir?” –
John Hennessy – Moderator
BrainTrust
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Discussion Questions
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Any store that has high labor turnover might be better served with kiosks. Often the customers have more knowledge about the stores and products than the employees. Kiosks just might be a more efficient tool to service the customers.
Bernice’s comments are right on target. The kiosk program needs to value the customers’ time. All too often, what’s most prominently shown isn’t the priority info customers want; it’s an image position the marketer wants. And how effective are recipe delivery systems? Out of the last 100 meals you prepared, how many involved following a new recipe? Be suspicious of any marketing vehicle that uses recipe delivery as a fundamental selling point.
Two things: 1.) Retailers rarely if ever pay for third-party devices (like kiosks) and, 2.) installation approval averages more than two years if those devices must connect to the store’s communication backbone (for customer purchase history, for instance). By the time most kiosks are finally paid for by suppliers and installed in stores, the technology has either grown significantly or been eclipsed by newer technology offered by other suppliers.
Two more things: To fast-track cutting edge kiosk implementation and use, retailers must, 1.) have their own internal kiosk evaluation department sharing management duties over a flexible in-store communication network and, 2.) have designated areas for kiosk “cluster” installations that can accommodate frequent kiosk installation changes.
Here I go again, worrying about the dilemma between keeping people in stores and spending more by entertaining/educating them and helping them to get what they want as quickly as they want so they can get out of the place and on with the rest of their day. Kiosks need to provide quick answers; they should not require work or thought. Many people will do their research before they shop but may need a quick reminder or have an extra question when they see what is or isn’t actually available. They are not looking for encyclopedic knowledge. Beware taking up too much of their time. And, worse, beware of blocking aisles when other shoppers just want to keep going and the kiosk browsers are in the way.
From what I’ve seen, the best uses of kiosks are for deli ordering and for the meat and wine departments. The pharmacy also sounds like a good location.
Regardless of what it is for, the biggest issue with kiosks is “sustained” customer usage. It’s easy to get initial usage because kiosks are cool and fun for customers to use. However, that novelty declines over time. If the content doesn’t change regularly or the information need that the kiosk serves doesn’t occur frequently, you’ll end up with a box without much traffic.
I think the other question besides what other areas can be well-served by information kiosks, is to ask who else besides the customer can benefit from this kiosk. The obvious answer is the employees.
These kiosks can be a great resource for the employee to answer the customers’s questions. When the staff is well trained on how to use the kiosk as a tool on the floor the customer goes from hearing, “I don’t know,” or “I’m not sure,” to “I don’t know but let’s find out.”
The real issue is – who uses the kiosks in a supermarket? In a complex or emerging product area, like organics or imported cheeses, it makes sense, given the right clientele frequent the outlet.
Basic products and coupon distribution has questionable. Again, it depends on the shopper and the supermarket’s point-of-difference or niche.
Isn’t word of mouth from friends and family the most valuable source for shoppers? Next would be the use of on-line research, but only 65% of households have access; and older adults, usually don’t use it. Hmmmmmmmm
Consumer education is the key; the question is – the best way to get the job done. Kiosks are certainly one way but not necessarily affordable to every brand and manufacturer that require an informed consumer to make the preferred choice of product. Brands and manufacturers need to do a better job of directing traffic to their informative websites where consumers can take their time researching product and service information.
Providing “take-one” coupons or brochures can educate the shopper during the store visit, or after, setting the stage for increased sales now and in the future. Why invest the considerable time and money in your website and not promote its existence?
Likely implementation of kiosks in some areas can be helpful, yet they fall suspect to a couple of issues. Both have been mentioned so far. The first is consumer education on their use; not to mention their ease of use to begin with, in some cases. The other is keeping them working. Both are major drawbacks. The areas mentioned are indeed prime areas: Pharmacy, HBC, Wine and Meat. These are all good, yet are suspect to the mentioned difficulties. The most successful use I have seen to date is Pharmacy. This is likely due to the opportunity for use during wait time and the likelihood of questions on the product in percentages higher than the other areas.
Another area that has been successful is employment kiosks in the stores. In some cases, their non-intimidating nature has found associates that might not otherwise consider you for employment.
All in all, there is no replacement for well trained, polite and helpful associates in these key areas. Taking advantage of technology in other areas should relieve the otherwise normal budgetary restraints that reduce resources and limit service in these key places in your store.
I’m with David; Kiosks CAN work anywhere in a store. It all depends on how they’re presented and what they are being used for. Oh…and don’t forget those little problems like educating the customer to use them and making sure the kiosks themselves work.
I was involved in a kiosk experiment in the home center industry (an information-intensive environment, if ever there was one) in 1985-86 — a long, long time ago! We proved, in just a few weeks, and with a then-strange technology, that people bought more of the products advertised on the kiosk in the stores that had them vs. the control stores that didn’t. There was actually a blip in the profit margin for the chain involved. But, kiosks never caught on. And then the Internet came along, which tended to obviate the need for kiosks. It’s interesting to see the concept being revived. I believe kiosks offer a cost-effective alternative in the marketing mix for manufacturers and, these days, they can deploy the same information on both web and kiosk, making the whole process more affordable. Also, today’s kiosk’s are much less prone to damage and computer failure. The hardware is much less expensive, too. I’m all for it!
Stores would be well served by placing information kiosks in two areas – the health and beauty care area…lots of great opportunities there!…and the meat department. In both of those departments, people have questions and may desire advice, and in many cases there is no one to ask.
HBA sections in Club and Mass would assist greatly in delivering much needed information to consumers via kiosks. Often within HBA, discretion is a concern for shoppers – particularly true within Adult Incontinence, and Feminine Care segments. The tendency for both groups of consumers is to over-protect themselves as they may not understand their needs and the products geared to meet them. Packaging on these products, although improving, does not help communicate in-store properly which products match shoppers’ needs.
As we watch the segment of consumers aged 55+ double over the next 30 years, greater demand for this information and these products will require manufacturers as well as retailers to meet the needs. These are the consumers with the most available time to shop, and they tend to take the most time to shop. This consumer segment is also fairly computer literate, and internet savvy, so kiosks should not pose a threat to them. AARP indicates only 10% of advertisements are geared to this age group. Considering this age group has the most discretionary income, manufacturers might be wise to pay attention to the opportunity.
Caregivers not using the products themselves, but rather purchasing for a loved one, will also need assistance that may not always be available at the pharmacy – if the store has one, and most certainly is not available from the average store associate.
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Any store that has high labor turnover might be better served with kiosks. Often the customers have more knowledge about the stores and products than the employees. Kiosks just might be a more efficient tool to service the customers.
Bernice’s comments are right on target. The kiosk program needs to value the customers’ time. All too often, what’s most prominently shown isn’t the priority info customers want; it’s an image position the marketer wants. And how effective are recipe delivery systems? Out of the last 100 meals you prepared, how many involved following a new recipe? Be suspicious of any marketing vehicle that uses recipe delivery as a fundamental selling point.
Two things: 1.) Retailers rarely if ever pay for third-party devices (like kiosks) and, 2.) installation approval averages more than two years if those devices must connect to the store’s communication backbone (for customer purchase history, for instance). By the time most kiosks are finally paid for by suppliers and installed in stores, the technology has either grown significantly or been eclipsed by newer technology offered by other suppliers.
Two more things: To fast-track cutting edge kiosk implementation and use, retailers must, 1.) have their own internal kiosk evaluation department sharing management duties over a flexible in-store communication network and, 2.) have designated areas for kiosk “cluster” installations that can accommodate frequent kiosk installation changes.
Here I go again, worrying about the dilemma between keeping people in stores and spending more by entertaining/educating them and helping them to get what they want as quickly as they want so they can get out of the place and on with the rest of their day. Kiosks need to provide quick answers; they should not require work or thought. Many people will do their research before they shop but may need a quick reminder or have an extra question when they see what is or isn’t actually available. They are not looking for encyclopedic knowledge. Beware taking up too much of their time. And, worse, beware of blocking aisles when other shoppers just want to keep going and the kiosk browsers are in the way.
From what I’ve seen, the best uses of kiosks are for deli ordering and for the meat and wine departments. The pharmacy also sounds like a good location.
Regardless of what it is for, the biggest issue with kiosks is “sustained” customer usage. It’s easy to get initial usage because kiosks are cool and fun for customers to use. However, that novelty declines over time. If the content doesn’t change regularly or the information need that the kiosk serves doesn’t occur frequently, you’ll end up with a box without much traffic.
I think the other question besides what other areas can be well-served by information kiosks, is to ask who else besides the customer can benefit from this kiosk. The obvious answer is the employees.
These kiosks can be a great resource for the employee to answer the customers’s questions. When the staff is well trained on how to use the kiosk as a tool on the floor the customer goes from hearing, “I don’t know,” or “I’m not sure,” to “I don’t know but let’s find out.”
The real issue is – who uses the kiosks in a supermarket? In a complex or emerging product area, like organics or imported cheeses, it makes sense, given the right clientele frequent the outlet.
Basic products and coupon distribution has questionable. Again, it depends on the shopper and the supermarket’s point-of-difference or niche.
Isn’t word of mouth from friends and family the most valuable source for shoppers? Next would be the use of on-line research, but only 65% of households have access; and older adults, usually don’t use it. Hmmmmmmmm
Consumer education is the key; the question is – the best way to get the job done. Kiosks are certainly one way but not necessarily affordable to every brand and manufacturer that require an informed consumer to make the preferred choice of product. Brands and manufacturers need to do a better job of directing traffic to their informative websites where consumers can take their time researching product and service information.
Providing “take-one” coupons or brochures can educate the shopper during the store visit, or after, setting the stage for increased sales now and in the future. Why invest the considerable time and money in your website and not promote its existence?
Likely implementation of kiosks in some areas can be helpful, yet they fall suspect to a couple of issues. Both have been mentioned so far. The first is consumer education on their use; not to mention their ease of use to begin with, in some cases. The other is keeping them working. Both are major drawbacks. The areas mentioned are indeed prime areas: Pharmacy, HBC, Wine and Meat. These are all good, yet are suspect to the mentioned difficulties. The most successful use I have seen to date is Pharmacy. This is likely due to the opportunity for use during wait time and the likelihood of questions on the product in percentages higher than the other areas.
Another area that has been successful is employment kiosks in the stores. In some cases, their non-intimidating nature has found associates that might not otherwise consider you for employment.
All in all, there is no replacement for well trained, polite and helpful associates in these key areas. Taking advantage of technology in other areas should relieve the otherwise normal budgetary restraints that reduce resources and limit service in these key places in your store.
I’m with David; Kiosks CAN work anywhere in a store. It all depends on how they’re presented and what they are being used for. Oh…and don’t forget those little problems like educating the customer to use them and making sure the kiosks themselves work.
I was involved in a kiosk experiment in the home center industry (an information-intensive environment, if ever there was one) in 1985-86 — a long, long time ago! We proved, in just a few weeks, and with a then-strange technology, that people bought more of the products advertised on the kiosk in the stores that had them vs. the control stores that didn’t. There was actually a blip in the profit margin for the chain involved. But, kiosks never caught on. And then the Internet came along, which tended to obviate the need for kiosks. It’s interesting to see the concept being revived. I believe kiosks offer a cost-effective alternative in the marketing mix for manufacturers and, these days, they can deploy the same information on both web and kiosk, making the whole process more affordable. Also, today’s kiosk’s are much less prone to damage and computer failure. The hardware is much less expensive, too. I’m all for it!
Stores would be well served by placing information kiosks in two areas – the health and beauty care area…lots of great opportunities there!…and the meat department. In both of those departments, people have questions and may desire advice, and in many cases there is no one to ask.
HBA sections in Club and Mass would assist greatly in delivering much needed information to consumers via kiosks. Often within HBA, discretion is a concern for shoppers – particularly true within Adult Incontinence, and Feminine Care segments. The tendency for both groups of consumers is to over-protect themselves as they may not understand their needs and the products geared to meet them. Packaging on these products, although improving, does not help communicate in-store properly which products match shoppers’ needs.
As we watch the segment of consumers aged 55+ double over the next 30 years, greater demand for this information and these products will require manufacturers as well as retailers to meet the needs. These are the consumers with the most available time to shop, and they tend to take the most time to shop. This consumer segment is also fairly computer literate, and internet savvy, so kiosks should not pose a threat to them. AARP indicates only 10% of advertisements are geared to this age group. Considering this age group has the most discretionary income, manufacturers might be wise to pay attention to the opportunity.
Caregivers not using the products themselves, but rather purchasing for a loved one, will also need assistance that may not always be available at the pharmacy – if the store has one, and most certainly is not available from the average store associate.