This short blog post covers Harrison Consulting’s proprietary 6P Framework for Category Management, sometimes called “Shopper Marketing”.
These days, retailers expect suppliers to work with them on the shopper decision frameworks for the category. Even in the absence of hard data, suppliers need to be able to hold their own in “grey areas”, such as path to purchase, points of engagement, point-of-purchase drivers, and demographic profiling. And they need to understand the difference between the consumer and the shopper.
The simplest way to distinguish between “consumer” and “shopper” is this:
The SHOPPER is the CONSUMER as they behave in the shopping environment.
So “consumer” is a broader term, referring to customers wherever they may be touched by external stimuli and messages such as local print advertising, community programs, press coverage/PR, local radio, flyers, web-based contact, on-line purchasing, email and social media.
The term “shopper” is used to refer to a sub-set of this, specifically the in-store behaviour which drives the overall shopping experience. We define and analyse this shopping experience along six key dimensions:
The consumer and the shopper are not always consistent in their behavior, even if they are the same person! How many times have you entered a retail establishment clear in your brand preference and purchase intent, but have walked out with a different product, brand, variant, size or packaging format. The reasons could be various:
The six elements of the model follow the six drivers of the shopping experience, and are shown in the diagram above. We refer to them as “POP Drivers”, or Point-of-Purchase Drivers.
This model has been used through a number of comprehensive training programs we have conducted over the last fifteen years, both with suppliers and retailers.
P1 Product Core ranging and assortment planning
P2 Placement Visual merchandising and space management
P3 Presence Brand visibility and traffic flow
P4 Promotion Internal and external marketing activities
P5 People Service delivery, advice and customer relations
P6 Price Value for money vs price perception
P1 Product (Choice): This means the product assortment or selection offered by the retailer to meet shopper expectations. Clearly there are issues of depth and breadth of range, price point management (eg “good-better-best”). Sophisticated retailers can apply the concept of Efficient Consumer Assortment to optimize inventory investment, across all SKUs in the category, but most retailers probably address this via “gut-feel”; and the advice of the supplier’s rep!
P2 Placement (Ease): This is about visual merchandising and space allocation, all of which should work together to nurse the shopper through their purchase process (or “shopper decision framework”). The driver from a purchase motivations viewpoint is “Ease”, which means that it should be easy for the shopper to find the product they want, and it should be easy for them to make a choice (ideally, even without the advice of a sales person).
P3 Presence (Impact): The word presence comes from pioneering work done in the 80’s by Smiths Snack Foods, who developed a model called “VIPS” – “Visual Impact and Presence In-Store”. As you approach and then enter the retail outlet, what impressions are created by signage and brand visibility? This topic also embraces traffic flow and the use of “Hot Spots” to draw shoppers’ attention and direct them to your display.
P4 Promotion (Excitement): Some retail outlets could hardly be called “exciting”, but what this point-of-purchase driver reflects is that people actually do want to be involved and engaged in the retail environment. In-store promotions can create this store atmosphere and excitement. Retailers are increasingly sophisticated in their use of integrated social media and promotional campaigns, so suppliers need to be across this too.
P5 People (Service): In some ways, this is perhaps the most important of the 6 Ps. If the retailer and their staff do not embrace the brand image and reliability of our product, it is questionable whether they can sell it. What percentage of purchasers are influenced in their brand and/or item choice at point of sale? What proportion of purchasers leave a store empty handed because the sales assistant did not (or could not) convince them? An important advantage for "bricks-and-mortar" retailing.
P6 Price (Value): We know that we should never discuss price in isolation. The thrill of a good deal disappears quickly in the face of a product which is not up to the task. It should be stated that in this model, the value we are talking about is the value to the consumer (shopper), which is generally taken to follow a formula something like the one shown below this post, a sort of value "see-saw"..
As Karl Albrecht explains:
“In terms of marketing, the product or offering will be successful if it delivers value and satisfaction to the target buyer. The buyer chooses between different offerings on the basis of which is perceived to deliver the most value. We define value as a ratio between what the customer gets and what he gives. The customer gets benefits and assumes costs, as shown in the diagram below”
These days, retailers expect suppliers to work with them on the shopper decision frameworks for the category. Even in the absence of hard data, suppliers need to be able to hold their own in “grey areas”, such as path to purchase, points of engagement, point-of-purchase drivers, and demographic profiling. And they need to understand the difference between the consumer and the shopper.
The simplest way to distinguish between “consumer” and “shopper” is this:
The SHOPPER is the CONSUMER as they behave in the shopping environment.
So “consumer” is a broader term, referring to customers wherever they may be touched by external stimuli and messages such as local print advertising, community programs, press coverage/PR, local radio, flyers, web-based contact, on-line purchasing, email and social media.
The term “shopper” is used to refer to a sub-set of this, specifically the in-store behaviour which drives the overall shopping experience. We define and analyse this shopping experience along six key dimensions:
- Choice
- Ease
- Impact
- Excitement
- Service
- Value
The consumer and the shopper are not always consistent in their behavior, even if they are the same person! How many times have you entered a retail establishment clear in your brand preference and purchase intent, but have walked out with a different product, brand, variant, size or packaging format. The reasons could be various:
- Lack of availability of first choice
- Influence of in-store POSM
- Influence of store sales staff
- Promotional activity and special offers
- Etc
The six elements of the model follow the six drivers of the shopping experience, and are shown in the diagram above. We refer to them as “POP Drivers”, or Point-of-Purchase Drivers.
This model has been used through a number of comprehensive training programs we have conducted over the last fifteen years, both with suppliers and retailers.
P1 Product Core ranging and assortment planning
P2 Placement Visual merchandising and space management
P3 Presence Brand visibility and traffic flow
P4 Promotion Internal and external marketing activities
P5 People Service delivery, advice and customer relations
P6 Price Value for money vs price perception
P1 Product (Choice): This means the product assortment or selection offered by the retailer to meet shopper expectations. Clearly there are issues of depth and breadth of range, price point management (eg “good-better-best”). Sophisticated retailers can apply the concept of Efficient Consumer Assortment to optimize inventory investment, across all SKUs in the category, but most retailers probably address this via “gut-feel”; and the advice of the supplier’s rep!
P2 Placement (Ease): This is about visual merchandising and space allocation, all of which should work together to nurse the shopper through their purchase process (or “shopper decision framework”). The driver from a purchase motivations viewpoint is “Ease”, which means that it should be easy for the shopper to find the product they want, and it should be easy for them to make a choice (ideally, even without the advice of a sales person).
P3 Presence (Impact): The word presence comes from pioneering work done in the 80’s by Smiths Snack Foods, who developed a model called “VIPS” – “Visual Impact and Presence In-Store”. As you approach and then enter the retail outlet, what impressions are created by signage and brand visibility? This topic also embraces traffic flow and the use of “Hot Spots” to draw shoppers’ attention and direct them to your display.
P4 Promotion (Excitement): Some retail outlets could hardly be called “exciting”, but what this point-of-purchase driver reflects is that people actually do want to be involved and engaged in the retail environment. In-store promotions can create this store atmosphere and excitement. Retailers are increasingly sophisticated in their use of integrated social media and promotional campaigns, so suppliers need to be across this too.
P5 People (Service): In some ways, this is perhaps the most important of the 6 Ps. If the retailer and their staff do not embrace the brand image and reliability of our product, it is questionable whether they can sell it. What percentage of purchasers are influenced in their brand and/or item choice at point of sale? What proportion of purchasers leave a store empty handed because the sales assistant did not (or could not) convince them? An important advantage for "bricks-and-mortar" retailing.
P6 Price (Value): We know that we should never discuss price in isolation. The thrill of a good deal disappears quickly in the face of a product which is not up to the task. It should be stated that in this model, the value we are talking about is the value to the consumer (shopper), which is generally taken to follow a formula something like the one shown below this post, a sort of value "see-saw"..
As Karl Albrecht explains:
“In terms of marketing, the product or offering will be successful if it delivers value and satisfaction to the target buyer. The buyer chooses between different offerings on the basis of which is perceived to deliver the most value. We define value as a ratio between what the customer gets and what he gives. The customer gets benefits and assumes costs, as shown in the diagram below”
