Walk into Wal-Mart and chances are you will come across a TV showing how Listerine Agent Cool Blue pre-brushing rinse turns plaque blue. This is not a regular commercial that you would see on TV. Rather it’s an “infomercial” that is custom-made for retail stores and chances are after seeing it you might just pick up a bottle of Listerine – just to give it a shot.Reebok stores around the country recently carried out a fitness test for people who walked into their stores. The customers were asked some questions and based on that the retail attendants mapped their fitness levels and even gave the customers suggestions to improve their level of fitness. This Diwali, Planet M placed kiosks in its music stores from where customers could download songs.A 34-feet long Heritage Wall greets you in Bangalore. Its touch-sensor links make it a virtual scrapbook that depicts decades of history of Levis. Marketing has a new baby and it’s being touted as the hottest new medium. You may see it dangling from the ceiling or pasted on the floor or being flashed on TV screens inside shops or maybe even on the trolley carts. Its importance is in fact growing almost at the same pace as that of the internet. It’s called “mall marketing” or “shopper marketing.” “In-store marketing” is the latest way in which marketers are trying to reach the wallets of consumers.
The world’s largest advertiser Procter & Gamble has cut down part of its ad-spend on TV and 
increased its spending on in-store marketing/advertising. P&G spends at least $500 million annually on shopper marketing today.Krrish movie merchandise was sold exclusively through Pantaloon stores with the assistance of in-store advertising.Today, thanks to retail chains and retail becoming more and more organised, the complete endeavour of shopping is changing. Most of our purchases today are unplanned and impulsive. Shopping is no more a chore but an experience and retailers are going all out to make it as pleasurable for the shoppers and as profitable for them! This is the “last mile”. It’s the last chance marketers have to make a sale and it’s proving to be the most fruitful “last mile”. After all, a shopper inside a retail store is most prone to buy. Research, too, has proved that more than 70% of purchase decisions are made inside the store. So chances of an advertisement being seen in-store and causing a sale is more than an ad seen “in-home” or elsewhere. Not surprising, then, that “In-Store-TV” is becoming so popular now-a-days, where content is made specifically to suit the needs of the retail-chains and the customers. Wal-Mart TV today is probably more influential than regular TV. According to a T. N. S. survey done in 2005, after seeing ads on Wal-Mart TV (inside Wal-Mart stores), 15% people purchased the product the same day, proving that Wal-Mart TV drives significantly higher motivation levels than advertising for similar brands on in-home TV. Traditional media like TV and press have got too cluttered and customers have learnt how to avoid the ads here. In-store advertising seems to work wonders for marketers.
increased its spending on in-store marketing/advertising. P&G spends at least $500 million annually on shopper marketing today.Krrish movie merchandise was sold exclusively through Pantaloon stores with the assistance of in-store advertising.Today, thanks to retail chains and retail becoming more and more organised, the complete endeavour of shopping is changing. Most of our purchases today are unplanned and impulsive. Shopping is no more a chore but an experience and retailers are going all out to make it as pleasurable for the shoppers and as profitable for them! This is the “last mile”. It’s the last chance marketers have to make a sale and it’s proving to be the most fruitful “last mile”. After all, a shopper inside a retail store is most prone to buy. Research, too, has proved that more than 70% of purchase decisions are made inside the store. So chances of an advertisement being seen in-store and causing a sale is more than an ad seen “in-home” or elsewhere. Not surprising, then, that “In-Store-TV” is becoming so popular now-a-days, where content is made specifically to suit the needs of the retail-chains and the customers. Wal-Mart TV today is probably more influential than regular TV. According to a T. N. S. survey done in 2005, after seeing ads on Wal-Mart TV (inside Wal-Mart stores), 15% people purchased the product the same day, proving that Wal-Mart TV drives significantly higher motivation levels than advertising for similar brands on in-home TV. Traditional media like TV and press have got too cluttered and customers have learnt how to avoid the ads here. In-store advertising seems to work wonders for marketers. It’s a whole new world in-store for youGone are the days when cardboard danglers were the most novel way to promote your products in-store. Retail store design is a whole new medium. Intelligent retail store designs are actually improving sales. Titan discovered that after trying
seven or eight watches, the customers were a little hesitant to ask the salesboy for the 9th one. So they designed a card reader which was given to every customer who entered the store. He could record the codes of these watches and once he was done, he would be presented his collection on a tray – to see, try out and select at leisure without any salesperson being involved! In-Store-TVs are the latest entrants and have contributed to a 20% lift in sales. Not just do they show ads specifically designed for the retail outlet, but also entertain shoppers. Hypercity has introduced digital signage in its consumer electronics section to help customers understand the various features of products. In its kitchen section, chefs demonstrate the use of the latest kitchen appliance and customers can even taste the dish – before deciding to buy the appliance which helped cook it.Shopping is being made more enjoyable. H&M, the Swedish clothing giant, has put flat screens behind the cash registers where people waiting to pay (often in very long queues) at the cash counter are kept entertained. Macy’s has flat screens, which show the football games each Saturday. While the wives shop, the husbands watch football. With 74% of buying decisions and 37% of brand switching decisions happening in-store, “In-Store-TV” has become a very powerful marketing tool today. Think of it… with more then 50 brands of toothpaste, 175 types of teabags, 285 types of cookies, 360 types of shampoos to choose from, which one will you pick? Probably the one whose ad you saw a few seconds back on the In-Store-TV, which not only entertained but informed too. Almost every retail chain is coming out with its TV. Future TV from Kishore Biyani group is going the Wal-Mart TV way in India. League One is another big player in this area. Decades ago, what started as signs on shopping carts has today grown to unrecognisable promotions. In-Store-Marketing is reaching new heights. The “Mall” is the medium for advertisers. Marketers are queuing up in front of them for this is their chance, rather their last (but not the least!) chance of getting to interact with customers.
seven or eight watches, the customers were a little hesitant to ask the salesboy for the 9th one. So they designed a card reader which was given to every customer who entered the store. He could record the codes of these watches and once he was done, he would be presented his collection on a tray – to see, try out and select at leisure without any salesperson being involved! In-Store-TVs are the latest entrants and have contributed to a 20% lift in sales. Not just do they show ads specifically designed for the retail outlet, but also entertain shoppers. Hypercity has introduced digital signage in its consumer electronics section to help customers understand the various features of products. In its kitchen section, chefs demonstrate the use of the latest kitchen appliance and customers can even taste the dish – before deciding to buy the appliance which helped cook it.Shopping is being made more enjoyable. H&M, the Swedish clothing giant, has put flat screens behind the cash registers where people waiting to pay (often in very long queues) at the cash counter are kept entertained. Macy’s has flat screens, which show the football games each Saturday. While the wives shop, the husbands watch football. With 74% of buying decisions and 37% of brand switching decisions happening in-store, “In-Store-TV” has become a very powerful marketing tool today. Think of it… with more then 50 brands of toothpaste, 175 types of teabags, 285 types of cookies, 360 types of shampoos to choose from, which one will you pick? Probably the one whose ad you saw a few seconds back on the In-Store-TV, which not only entertained but informed too. Almost every retail chain is coming out with its TV. Future TV from Kishore Biyani group is going the Wal-Mart TV way in India. League One is another big player in this area. Decades ago, what started as signs on shopping carts has today grown to unrecognisable promotions. In-Store-Marketing is reaching new heights. The “Mall” is the medium for advertisers. Marketers are queuing up in front of them for this is their chance, rather their last (but not the least!) chance of getting to interact with customers. Copyright ©:-Rajita chaudhuri and Planman Media
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist)
relations on-line than face to face. Most of the time, families aren’t ‘together’ even though they may be living under the same roof. Everyone is in their own world enjoying virtual company more than each other’s company. Small wonder that today people are increasingly realising the importance of family, even as they fight the 24X7 busy lifestyle.
discovered a new trend, a new way of attracting consumers. It’s the ‘family mantra’. With even children bemoaning the lack of family time, this is one theme which today is attracting consumers like never before. Everyone is frantically looking for some way in which they may squeeze in quality ‘family’ time into their busy schedules. And those who can show them how to, are assured of rich benefits.The original Xbox was targeted at hard core gamers. The brand endorser was the stereotypical young male dressed in black and living independently. That was six years ago, in 2001. Today Microsoft wants to position Xbox as a connector that brings people together. The positioning seems to attract more buyers and hence is more profitable to the company. They have realised that family games like ‘Uno’ and ‘Pac-man’; and less violent games like ‘Scene It? Lights, Camera, Action,’ have a bigger market than the hard-core violent games.Santro shot to popularity when Shah Rukh claimed “Hum Santro Wale Hai”, meaning the hatchback from Hyundai’s stable was the car of intelligent and smart families. Chrysler is now marketing its mini-vans with a new tagline – “Family room on wheels.” Toyota’s Innova was launched in India as a car with enough space for the whole family. After all, as Indians we prefer to do everything with the family in tow. Our trips and holidays are incomplete without pappa, mammi, daddu, mini, guddi & company, right? Surprisingly ‘family time’ is catching on in the rest of the world, too. After 9/11, people became far more introspective and family travel increased. Similarly, overburdened and guilty parents find it imperative to take kids along on vacations. All travel agents with vacation plans that include and entertain children, find their businesses booming now. Even an outdoor adventure oriented tour operator like Austin-Lehman, realised that families accounted for 50-55% of their business. Small wonder that most travel agents are now modifying and customising their packages (beach and lake vacations, theme parks, cruises) to accommodate kids. Panasonic decided to spend sometime, researching and finding inventive ideas to furnish fun and quality time for families. Its new punchline is “Bring back family time.” High definition flat TVs, which till now were marketed as symbols of success to young professionals, are today being marketed as a means of getting the family being together.Toys were either bought as gifts or to appease a yelling child. Well, not anymore. Today, toys that have been certified and approved by “Parenting Center Seal of Approval” sell more because – yes, you guessed it right - they help families spend more “family time.” Mattel introduced a game named “Chatter Matters” to encourage families to talk (chatter) and share their feelings about various topics (matter). The game would help parents communicate with their teenage children and help Mattel fight competitors.
for hours outside the store, indulged in catfights once inside. The reason – a pair of skinny jeans designed by supermodel Kate Moss. Moss, who in the past had often attracted disapproving headlines in the British press, does not seem to have lost her charm. Inspite of being nicknamed “Cocaine Kate” by the tabloid media after photographs of her taking the drug emerged, she has not lost her appeal. Rather, the “wild rebel image” seems to have increased her appeal as was evident on the day her clothing range was launched at Topshop on Oxford Street.The public seems to have a voracious interest in celebrities. Not surprising then that everyone is using star power to sell their wares.
between each other is through innovative advertising. The easiest way to attract the attention of the audience is with the help of a familiar face. A celebrity does help one break through the clutter. However, it’s critical to have a good match between the product and the celebrity. Sarah Jessica Parker and her alliance with fashion retail chain Gap was short lived, since the image of two clashed. Parker is famous & liked for great looks, expensive – sometimes-not-practical-clothing. She is about high fashion while Gap is a no-fuss-non-descript clothing line. The endorsements failed. On the other hand a touched up old footage of Andrey Hepburn dancing to the tune of 1980’s AC/DC hit song “Back in Black” was a super success. The ad helped Gap launch its skinny black pants once again while keeping in time with the theme ‘Keep it simple’. Karan Johar and Kareena (a bad combination) failed to create any hype for Delux paints. Vijay Mallya and his Kingfisher Airlines is soon going international. Mallya has quickly roped in Deepika Padukone, who, after the success of Om Shanti Om is a very popular and loved face internationally.
lifestyles changing, ways of marketing & advertising are changing too. Advertisements featuring celebrities have higher recall – you need to handle it properly though.For actresses, it’s advertisements that provide more visibility than starring in movies, which are forgotten every Friday. After all, Yana Gupta is more known for the luscious lips she displayed for the Lakme campaign than any of her films. Esha Deol is more memorable in the Garnier advertisement than her movie Cash! Aishwarya is a beauty forever with the lovely Nakshatra advertisements! The advertising world is changing. Models are turning into heroines and heroines into models. Today, you need to have charisma, style, personality & a famous face to endorse a product, not just a pretty face! 
ommerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath has been selected as “Global fDi Personality of the Year” by the London based Financial Times’s niche magazine, fDi, (the premier bi-monthly publication that deals with business of globalisation). And why is that? Well! Because Kamal Nath has been a “tireless ambassador” in making India an attractive foreign direct investment (FDI) destination. Of course, he wasn’t alone in receiving this honour. Others who were part of this August League were Vincent Gadou Kragbe, CEO, VITIB, Cote d’’Ivoire (formerly known as Ivory Coast); Andrus Ansip, Prime Minister, Estonia; Sergio Fajardo Valderrama, Mayor of Medellin, Columbia; Khater Massad, CEO, Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority; and Henry M. Paulson, US Treasury Secretary. The award was presented to Nath and the five other leaders at a function in New Delhi recently. Here is what fDi, the magazine, has to say about our honourableminister: Nath’s ministry“streamlined the process of investment, doing away with multiple approvals fromthe government and regulatory agencies... (under his leadership) new sectors, even politically sensitive ones, such as real estate and retail trade, which has in the past remained firmly shut to foreign investors, are being progressively opened up”. Direct foreign kudos for the Commerce Minister!
