Pack Your Party

What if you threw a party, but nobody came? You'd certainly be greatly disappointed — and left wondering what to do with the substantial investment you likely made in food, drink and décor.

And what if the absence of party guests was your fault — you simply neglected to get the word out? Chances are, you'd feel even worse.

Retailers, too, risk hosting a guestless party when they allow store brand products simply to sit inconspicuously on the shelf. But good things begin to happen when they invest in smart in-store messaging aimed at own brands: The party guests not only show up, but also stick around long enough to at least consider a purchase.

Speak at the shelf

Because retailers do not have large-enough marketing budgets to launch the fancy media campaigns associated with the national brands, they tend to rely more heavily on the shelf edge. But that's actually a good thing, contends Jeff Weidauer, vice president of marketing for Little Rock, Ark.-based Vestcom.

When it comes to store brand party invites, the store shelf itself makes a great communication vehicle, Weidauer says. He points to recent data from The Nielsen Co., New York, which show that more people learn about new products at the shelf edge than via television.

"The question is how to make t he best use of this space," Weidauer says, "and that is really to point out the attributes of the product at the shelf edge, where the decision is made. The best place for that information is on the shelf under the product, where the shopper will see it and read it."

Weidauer notes that the most successful retailers have a few things in common: They use shelf-edge media such as strips, talkers and signs; they make sure to include a compelling point of difference or a strong call to action; and they integrate the communications with other forms of media both inside and outside the store.

"While shelf-edge communication is very effective," he says, "the content is a critical component, and it must clearly convey the product's value proposition."

Speaking of content, although the "block and tackle" piece certainly should address the price, the most important aspect to communicate really is quality, contends Jim Wisner, president of the Libertyville, Ill.-based Wisner Marketing Group Inc.

"The customer knows, for the most part, that private label — at least conventional private label — costs less," he says. "That expectation is pretty well-cemented."

Craig Espelien, vice president, retailer brands for Plano, Texas-based Crossmark, counts "quality guarantee" shelf wobblers among the three in-store marketing efforts that wield the greatest influence on mid-price (national-brand-equivalent) store brand products. (The other two are "compare and save" shelf signs and secondary displays — either at shelf or accompanying traffic-driving branded items.)

But Dorothy Allan, Crossmark's vice president of business intelligence, says retailers need to remember it's still a game of relevance in the marketplace.

"If you have shelf talkers and the competition doesn't, it may seem like a win, but if the message isn't working hard for your brand, the investment won't return," she says. "Store brands, like all brands, need to know their Retail Brand Health."*

Looks count, too, in relation to at-shelf messaging. Tony Kadysewski, marketing communications manager for Trion Industries Ltd. of Wilkes-Barre, Pa., notes that branding support here ranges from simple shelf-edge strips and holders in corporate colors to preprinted flags and talkers and much more.

"The range of fixturing tools is only limited by the imagination and the degree to which the chain wishes to build the brand," he says. "Is it a generic price-only competitor or a top-quality contender and alternative to the nationals?"

Color, visual impact and change all are critical aspects to the appearance of at-shelf — or any other — store brand communications, adds Terry Elton, a retail consultant and author of the "Impact Merchandising" tutorial.

"Color draws the eye," he explains. "Visual impact screams, 'Hey, look at me,' and change disrupts the shopper's subconscious memory of a given area of a store and slows them down."

That said, Elton believes signage that goes beyond what a product is, where it is located and how much it costs is redundant — and a waste of time and money. And he is not a big fan of shelf talkers, either.

"Shelf talkers are largely ignored by customers because they don't have the time or inclination to read them," he argues.

Packaging also can go a long way in drawing folks to the shelf. Elizabeth Scott, national account executive for Kendal King Group, Kansas City, Mo., singles out the Archer Farms brand from Minneapolis-based Target Corp. and the DR Delish line from Duane Reade of New York as great examples of packaging that catches the eye.

"A successful program includes quality items, great packaging and effective promotion at shelf," she adds. "Both Archer Farms and DR Delish have successfully achieved brand loyalty from their customers."

Bentonville, Ark.-based Walmart, too, packages its Great Value brand in a way that works the shelf well, Allan notes.

"Large letters allow shoppers to read the brand from farther away and are easy to read whether you're young or older," she says.

Speaking of reading the brand, retailers with stores that boast a good-sized Hispanic consumer base should provide store brand shelf communications in Spanish, too, Espelien says.

"Hispanics are much more brand-conscious due to the multiple levels of messaging, and store brands are not always in the purchase set, as Hispanics are often not 'embraced' by store brand programs," he says. "Also, remember that packaging is the single largest communicator, and too many programs short-change the category-specific design."

*Crossmark defines Retail Brand Health as "a systematic measure of the retail environment and the effect it has on a brand's share. The process involves identifying the latent drivers of a brand's performance at retail, from door to shelf, in relation to all the factors that drive success for your brand and the competition."

Too often, Espelien adds, packaging is created to satisfy the retailer and does not address how the consumer shops and makes purchase decisions.

Think outside the shelf

At-shelf messaging has no chance to work its magic, of course, when prospective buyers opt to bypass the aisle or department in which the shelf sits. But retailers have oodles of other opportunities to draw shoppers to the store brand party with off-shelf messaging throughout the store.

Espelien says Cincinnati-based Kroger does a great job here with its own-brand spice program.

"Their spice program is ubiquitous throughout the store, and they use a variety of signs to call attention to the product."

Allan also points to Kroger's 10 for $10 temporary displays as a good messaging strategy.

"This program is part of their overall equity around 'Right Store, Right Price,'" she notes. "Kroger uses bins that are placed at the end aisle for a variety of different categories and brands. It's what a Kroger shopper would expect to see in store."

Any communication that encourages trial and/or pantry stocking of store brands is a winner in Wisner's eyes. He believes a number of retailers have done particularly well here in the HBC and OTC areas, at least from a signage standpoint. And he's also seen some great messaging for store brand cereal and other food products.

"It's usually the better regionals that do the best jobs," he says, noting that Rochester, N.Y.-based Wegmans really knows how to "romance" its products and the story behind them. "But I'd throw Kroger into that pot as well. And Food City [run by Abingdon, Va.-based K-VA-T Food Stores] — if you want to see people who block and tackle and have signage everywhere, they are the best."

Moreover, Wisner believes Meijer really got its "mojo" back a couple of years ago in terms of own brand communications. For starters, the Grand Rapids, Mich.-based retailer put on display a life-size cutout of an employee holding a tray of Meijer brand pancake syrup.

"The sign on the cutout said something along the lines of, 'The national brands don't put any real maple syrup in theirs, but we do — taste the difference,'" he notes. "Wonderful promotion."

Scott says a 360-degree marketing approach — one that begins with packaging and incorporates in-store merchandising and circular (and other media) support — is a powerful way for retailers to get their store brands noticed.

"We suggest that retailers incorporate strategies such as cross-merchandising, cause marketing, social media, digital media and licensing, and implement these at the shelf to engage the shopper and build loyalty," she says."This gives exposure to multiple categories and tiers and allows for a depth of product offerings. It provides a strong presence through branding, while showcasing quality and value."

Avoid missteps

Whether communicating at or off the shelf, retailers would be wise to avoid some common mistakes that could put a damper on store brand festivities. For starters, don't forget to adjust either the "compare and save" message or the store brand price when the national brand item goes on sale, Weidauer says. Failing to do so "undermines credibility with the shopper and makes her question the entire program," he stresses.

Also ensure all messaging ties together and presents a consistent look and feel.

"We often see different messages in the printed circular than at the shelf," Weidauer notes.

And don't place out-of-stock labels on the pushers of empty facings during a promotion, Kadysewski advises. Give shoppers an alternative instead.

"Take pride in your on-shelf conversation with customers," he says, "and instead innovatively suggest, 'Try our rich chocolate flavor,' rather than lose the sale. This hands-on interest should extend to all aspects of store brand support — and you should enlist the support of your fixture partners in furthering your brand with ideas of their own."

As far as signage is concerned, Allan is no fan of blade signs. She believes they too often are designed without local knowledge of the retail environment in which they sit.

"They too closely resemble the brand's packaging, which becomes more of a camouflage than a high-contrast signage that delivers value," Allan says. "Additionally, blade signs are meant to interrupt — they are useful to shoppers, but often they try to say too much, reducing the font size, which ultimately reduces the opportunity to engage from beyond 2 feet."

Scott notes that Kendal King sees some retailers complete the internal work of strategy and design exploration, then fail to execute the program effectively because of cost concerns.

"Likewise, their ideas fall short at the store level due to poor-quality displays that have not been engineered accurately," she says, "resulting in a failed promotion that has a detrimental effect with the shopper, on the store brand image and, of course, return on investment."

But the biggest mistake a retailer could make is doing nothing at all, Espelien contends.

"Too many retailers take an attitude of, 'I built it, so they will come.' There is a large need for a coordinated messaging approach that communicates to the consumer the brand's value proposition beyond price," he says.

Espelien says Kroger did a great job here using a full POP package to offer a national brand replacement item for any consumers disappointed with its private brands. And Shop 'n Save in St. Louis ran a noteworthy "I Switched" campaign several years ago that provided a major sales and profit lift over control stores.

Although store brands experienced very strong sales gains during the recent Great Recession, their future outlook really is in retailers' hands. Retailers that want to ensure a packed house for their upcoming store brand parties will need to get the word out by supporting and promoting own-brand products, Weidauer stresses.

"If price is the sole benefit, then expect to see shoppers flocking back to national brands as soon as they can afford to do so," he says. "The opportunity is to build a foundation for store brands that transcends price to gain long-term loyalty."

Although the 'block and tackle' piece certainly should address the price, the most important aspect to communicate really is quality.

Color, visual impact and change all are critical aspects to the appearance of at-shelf — or any other — store brand communications.

Your Best Customers

If you think loyal national brand shoppers are among your best shoppers, think again. According to "Center Store Renewal: Leveraging Private Label To Drive Growth" — a study the Libertyville, Ill.-based Wisner Marketing Group performed for the New York-based Private Label Manufacturers Association a couple of years back — these folks are much more likely to be store-hopping cherry-pickers than loyal store brand shoppers.

In fact, a full 20 percent of them are what Jim Wisner, president of Wisner Marketing Group, calls "hard-core" cherry-pickers. And they definitely should not be the focus for store brand — or any other — marketing-related efforts.

"You have customers you're investing an enormous amount of advertising dollars against, and you're not really capturing their full basket," Wisner says. "Private label shoppers account for a much bigger basket."

And when it comes to those very desirable loyal store brand shoppers, 40 percent of them say it's "very important" that a store have a premium private label, Wisner adds. Moreover, such premium store brands — along with perishables and prepared products — are becoming increasingly important tools in retailers' quest for differentiation.

Retailers that want to ensure a packed house for their upcoming store brand parties will need to get the word out by supporting and promoting own-brand products.