IoT Connected Experience In Stores

The in-store shopping experience is going to continue to be more interactive.  Digital relationships are a must for the store of the future, happening today.

I first really jumped at this with BLE, bluetooth, interactions with smart phones and then smart watches.  That is still ongoing but there is a real opportunity to do it a different way and it appears Kroger is teaming up with Microsoft to do just that.

Read the story here:

https://www.mobilepaymentstoday.com/news/microsoft-kroger-to-test-connected-experience-grocery-stores-in-pilot/

Here is the blurb that should catch your eye:

Store associates will also be able to use the technology to speed up curbside pickup and Kroger will use the Edge technology to sell digital advertising space to consumer packaged goods brands, according to the release.

Thank to a few of the folks previously from MCX who pointed this piece out on LinkedIn.  You know who you are.  :-)

What we absolutely know is the impact the great recession, combined with ever-improving store brand generics is having on traditional consumer packaged goods. During a recession shoppers cut back.  They try out the store brand version of whatever CPG widget or food stuff they think suits them.  The quality of these has increased dramatically over the decades and the average consumer likes it, then never goes back to the more expensive "name brand" version.  CPGs are desperate to get customers back and they have huge advertising dollars to work with.  Enter the Edge technology system.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

BRotD - Entry 0259 Regulating Technology

Best Reading of the Day

"Robber Barons"

That's what they were called.

In the late 1800s they industrialists who used questionable methods to get rich came to be known as robbers. 

Here is a bit more on that subject:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robber_baron_(industrialist)

That is the language now in use to describe Google, Facebook, Amazon and more who have convinced the masses of the population to hand over their valuable personal data for free.  Time for regulations of these giants in technology?  There is an argument to be made.

Read more here:

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/611425/its-time-to-rein-in-the-data-barons/

Here is a snippet from the piece:

When Mark Zuckerberg appeared before Congress earlier this year to discuss how the now-defunct political-data company Cambridge Analytica acquired data of up to 87 million Facebook users without their knowledge or consent, one of the few pointed questions came from Lindsey Graham, a Republican senator from South Carolina. “Who’s your biggest competitor?” Graham demanded. After Zuckerberg replied that Google, Apple, Amazon, and Microsoft all had some overlap with various Facebook products, Graham chafed at the answer.

“If I buy a Ford and it doesn’t work well and I don’t like it,” pressed the senator, “I can buy a Chevy. If I’m upset with Facebook, what’s the equivalent product I can go sign up for?”

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Kroger Dominating

If you don't live near a Kroger supermarket you are an increasingly small audience.  This behemoth is still growing and is already enormous, 2nd only to Walmart.

Here is the full story over on Bloomberg:

http://www.bloomberg.com/gadfly/articles/2015-12-03/kroger-earnings-the-chain-quietly-gains-on-walmart-whole-foods

Here is a snippet from the piece:

Retail is in the doldrums. Grocery chains are filing for bankruptcy. Former industry darlings like Whole Foods are struggling to boost sales. Amazon is making a big bet on online grocery delivery. Drugstore chains are selling boatloads of food. And for the first time ever, more people are eating out at restaurants than making food at home.

Sound like a recipe for disaster? Not for Kroger, the grocery chain that has been quietly growing its empire to become the second-largest U.S. retailer by sales after almighty Walmart, which derives 56 percent of its sales from groceries.

I only found this piece thanks to the efforts over on MorningNewsBeat so be sure to check there daily:

http://www.morningnewsbeat.com/

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Digital Retail Strategy

The world is changing so rapidly we can often find ourselves lost.  However, as with most things when we look closely we find that what was old is new again.  If we take a moment to evaluate where we have been, where we are now, and what we can see coming we can begin to plan for the future with some sense of certainty.

That is the purpose of the new white paper I've recently finished.

Here is the title:

Digital Retail Strategy

And the Impact of Phase IV Product Marketing

The Story of Mass Marketing in America Continues

Here is a link to the full 50 page white paper, with roughly 2.5 pages of executive summary followed by a few dozen pages of appendices:

Digital Retail Strategy White Paper

Here is the opening paragraph:

     The modern era of the mobile internet combined with an explosion of social media has created a new paradigm for retailers and manufacturer brands in the United States that present risks and opportunities for both. Manufacturer brands are now rushing to embrace the opportunities presented in the new era and retailers must respond or risk disruption and irrelevance. The 1990s launched the Information Age and a new form of product marketing. This was named the 4th phase of product marketing by Richard S. Tedlow of Harvard Business School. At the time of the 1996 update to his book ‘The Story of Mass Marketing in America’ the strategic characteristics and implications of the 4th phase were unclear, while the defining infrastructure was determined to revolve around the information revolution. In 2015 we can see the call to action that is the new phase of product marketing and it is loud and clear: digital and mobile is king, customers have much more power, and both retailers and brand manufacturers are faced with new risks and new opportunities.

I hope you enjoy the read. This was a fun one to research.  It took me to many places I was uncertain of when the journey began.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Kroger Increases Omnichannel Presence

Pretty significant news in grocery retail.  Kroger has acquired a strong eCommerce player.  This move seems obvious to allow Kroger to acquire a skill-set it was missing.

Here is one article on the news:

http://www.pymnts.com/news/2014/krogers-ecommerce-buy-puts-them-into-the-grocery-delivery-fray/#.U7rAxZRdX9Y

Here is a snippet from that piece:

With the purchase of online Vitamin seller Vitacost.com, supermarket chain Kroger is ready to enter the big leagues of grocery-delivery competition with such marquee players as Google and Amazon.

“(Kroger) now has companies like Google competing against them because I can order the same stuff,” Forrester Research Inc. analyst Adam Silverman told CIO Journal.

Here is another article:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/kroger-augments-mobile-expertise-with-vitacost-buy

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

**UPDATE** Excellent write-up on the implications of this move:
http://www.progressivegrocer.com/viewpoints-blogs/guest-viewpoints/expert-column-kroger%E2%80%99s-vitacostcom-acquisition-%E2%80%93-what-does-it-mean

Misc. News - Tablets Going Mobile, Mobile Payments, and Kroger

I'm writing about three pieces of news and analysis that I found interesting today.

First up is the increasing demand for and supply of truly mobile tablets.  Carriers such as AT&T and Verizon are finding mobile hotspots through smart phones are greatly increasing in use.  So why not monetize that by adding carrier coverage for the tablets being enabled through those hotspots?  Who wouldn't want one more contract right?

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/223943/tablets-the-next-connectivity-battleground.html

Next is a great bit of infographics on mobile payments:

http://www.mobilepaymentsinsider.com/2014/04/15/mobile-payments-to-replace-plastic-all-together-infographic/

Most surprising to me was the statement by consumers about when and how they are most likely to use a smart phone for payment:

"Likely Situations Consumers Say They Would Use Mobile Payments Is In:"

1. Groceries at a supermarket
2. Clothes at a retailer
3. Phone bill at a local wireless store
4. Coffee at a local coffee shop
5. Sofa at a furniture store
6. Taxi ride

Next and last is the big bet Kroger is making in the U.S. emulating Tesco and Walmart.  Bigger is better.  They are increasing the number of large stores, and stores with 'extra aisle' merchandise not traditionally found in a supermarket.  Kroger calls these 'Marketplace' stores and these will provide:

"...everything from apples to appliances, lettuce to lawn chairs and cantaloupe to clothing."

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/money/2014/04/16/kroger-bets-bigger-stores/7805015/

I found this to be an interesting approach.  What we've seen the last 20 years in the U.S. is an increase in supply of groceries with only the minor increase in demand expected from modest population growth.  The result is excess capacity for supply so all of those neighborhood supermarkets are left with too much floor space.  It seems to me they will need to re-purpose this space and diversity as some have done by increasing fresh supply including options such as an in-store restaurant.  Kroger is taking a very different approach to diversity.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant