Recently, there has been much speculation about what shoppers are doing to cope during today’s bleak economic situation: Where are shoppers cutting back? Are they using coupons more? Are they finding deals online or with smartphone apps? To succeed in today’s market manufacturer and retailer decision makers don’t have the luxury of trial and error.
That said, we at SymphonyIRI are excited to offer a new segmentation solution to CPG and retailer marketers. EconoLink™, which we announced this week, profiles shoppers into six unique segments based on their outlook, behavior and personal financial attitudes.
With EconoLink, marketers gain the ability to develop highly-refined product, packaging, pricing, merchandising and promotion, and assortment and layout strategies, targeted specifically at one or more of these profiles.
To provide deep color and understanding around the dynamics of each of these segments, we classified more than 40,000 households on our panel. This gives our clients a very focused lens into the behavioral actions of U.S. shoppers and consumers and how they can be nimble and appeal to the needs of these unique populations.
The resulting data revealed some surprises. Did you know that wealthier shoppers are among the most aggressive at “clipping” online coupons? Each EconoLink profile outlines the segment’s habits and strategies about:
- Information Search: Which shoppers find out about new products or promotions online, in-store, or from friends? Which research products before shopping?
- Trip Planning: Are more shoppers likely to make lists to avoid impulse buys? Where do they get information to develop these lists? Do they bring coupons with them to stores?
- Store Selection: Which shoppers are channel shifting to secure the lowest price? Do higher gas prices make store proximity a priority?
- In-Store Influences: How does store layout affect purchase decisions? Will shoppers even venture down tempting aisles? How do they respond to signs, displays and kiosks?
- Brand Choice: What role do merchandising and promotion play? Are shoppers maintaining brand loyalties because of trust and comfort with a brand? Are they willing to shop a different channel to find favorite brands? Are they more price sensitive? Are they likely to switch to private label?
- Product Usage: Are shoppers purchasing more multi-purpose products? Do they try to extend the life of products? Do they share more products across family members?
Clearly, shoppers are thinking more about their purchase decisions, and marketers, in turn, must ensure that every facet of how the product is presented meets with a given shopper profile’s needs. With EconoLink, retailers and manufacturers will be able to tap into the shoppers’ mindset and cater to his or her needs. Improving each profile’s shopping experience with new marketing programs will make them feel more at home in your store, and maybe even change some of their shopping habits in your favor.
