A recent survey by Vertis Communications revealed that Hispanic consumers are not only more tech-savvy than often considered, but also more likely to spend money on big ticket electronics. For those of us in the industry, this is really not earth shattering news. Hispanics have long been considered early adopters when it comes to electronics, wireless technologies and even some internet technologies.
The report also shed light on which media most influences buying decisions among these consumers. TV of course ranked number 1, followed by advertising inserts/circulars and then the Internet. The Vertis study goes on to report that 42% of Hispanics are researching products online prior to buying. So this got me thinking….which computer companies are asking for this order??
A quick check of the Dell, Apple, Gateway, and HP websites revealed that virtually none of them are!?! None of these companies provide a quick, easy to find link to the Spanish versions of their websites. On most, the visitor must scroll down and select a Spanish speaking country from their “global” offerings in order to view the content in Spanish. HP is nice enough to put the country selection right on top of the page, but sadly offers up “United States - English” as the first and only United States option.
Fortunately for Hispanic computer shoppers, Best Buy and Office Depot get it. Both websites provided a quick click to their Spanish language content. With Christmas just around the corner, I’m just saying, if I were Dell or Apple or HP……..
Buying milk at gas stations lately? Well, at least some customers are doing so.
Recent fluctuations in the economy have caused customers to rethink where they eat, drink, and have fun. With food prices rising nearly 5% in 2007, people are becoming increasingly price-sensitive to goods and services.
Consequently, retailers are looking for incentives to keep their customers in their stores.
Enters the opportunity: In-store marketing!
Brands must cater to customers who are price-sensitive to their products in ways that will be contextually pertinent (entertainment, buy/get offers, etc.) for its customers.
As Becky says,
in-store marketing has the power to persuade, the power to motivate, and the power to create brand experiences on a very personal level day in and day out.”
Let that power work for you!
Sometimes I feel like in-store merchandising and POS are like Cinderella at the Marketing Ball. Overshadowed by their broadcast brothers, ignored by glamor-craving creatives and often an afterthought by budget wielding brand managers. Interestingly enough, last week’s Ad Age, called “shopper marketing” or in-store merchandising, “the hottest medium around” and quoted a study by Deloitte proclaiming that it’s growing faster than Internet advertising! Are CMOs and megalamedia agencies finally realizing what those of us in the trenches, or should I say grocery aisles, have known all along??
In-store marketing works!
POPAI The Global Association for Marketing at-Retail, has done extensive studies across multiple channels, all supporting this fact. POP has the power to persuade, the power to motivate, the power to create brand experiences on a very personal level day in and day out. I’ll take that over a Super Bowl spot any day.
