“When it comes to success in-store, it’s all about execution,” says George Wishart in this month’s issue of DDI Magazine. “You could have the best marketing plan, the best TV creative, the best themed consumer promotion or the best new product in the world — but if the program or the product never get the space or focus in-store, everything else is irrelevant.”
Integrated marketing supposes that the sum of the whole is greater than the parts. In order to achieve the greatest marketing impact, all forms of media should communicate the same brand message to the consumer at as many touch points as possible. The store is an important part of that mix. The store is the last place where marketers still have a captive audience. TIVO and DVR have significantly diminished the impact of TV commercials. Internet advertising was all the rage but consumers have begun to resent commercial intrusions on their Internet pass times requiring marketers to be very careful not to use websites as billboards. Consumers are increasingly picky about how and when they want to hear about what you’re selling. This makes every opportunity to communicate that much more important and elevates the store as a valuable media.
However, because shoppers are more sensitive to marketing communication, when using the store as a media, marketers must understand the value of quality execution as well as continuous improvement.
Wishart goes on to describe the challenges of measuring the impact of in-store marketing, the first of which being execution. The bottom line is if your shopper doesn’t see your message or if they don’t see the message the way it was intended, it will not create lift. Not only that but you must ensure that your program is installed properly and on time. “Execution that is late can be irrelevant or destructive to the brand and the retailer,” said Jim Hanek, vice president, product leadership at Nielsen.
Nielsen attempted to launch an in-store media ratings system. They are a long ways off from that technology however, in anticipation retailers and marketers can begin developing systems for raising the quality of execution through monitoring and continuous improvement. Those that do will be ready for the next shift in brand communications strategy.
