Using Location Analytics and In-Store Mobile Surveys to Understand How America Shopped for Valentine's Day

Locately conducted a custom next-generation intercepts study around Valentine’s Day 2013. We invited shoppers to opt in and share their GPS data via the Locately app on their smartphone.

Executive Summary

Valentine’s Day is a seasonal highlight for many Americans – and an important date on the shopping calendar for both retailers and manufacturers. Some shoppers choose a more traditional approach, with a focus on chocolates and greeting cards for a spouse or partner. Other shoppers purchase candy and toys for children, or maybe a thoughtful gift card for a favorite teacher or relative.

For Valentine’s Day 2013, Locately decided to go one level deeper and explore some key questions around shopper behaviors: How do males shop differently from females as Valentine’s Day approaches? And what are the true impacts of retailer and manufacturer efforts to drive activation through innovative shopper marketing campaigns?

To answer these questions and understand the “whys” behind shopper choices, Locately conducted a custom next-generation intercepts study around Valentine’s Day 2013. We invited shoppers to opt in and share their GPS data via the Locately app on their smartphone. In-store mobile surveys were triggered automatically when shoppers visited mass merchandisers, grocery stores, drugstores, and warehouse club outlets. The outcome: real-time, in-context visibility into what actually happened on the shopper’s path to purchase and inside the store.

Key Findings

Valentine’s purchases became top of mind for shoppers starting February 11th (the Sunday before Valentine’s Day). Shoppers focused primarily on chocolates, candy, or other non-chocolate confectionery, and often added a special trip into their shopping routine. Key opportunity areas:

• Last-minute is critical for the Valentine’s shopper. Consider 1-day or 2-day promotions on the 13th and 14th. Leverage the store circular/flyer to build awareness. Once the shopper is in the store, special deals and displays will generate maximum visibility.
• The Valentine’s event is a great opportunity for non-preferred retailers to enter the consideration set. Most shoppers find that one trip is not enough to fully meet their Valentine’s Day needs. Pre-store activation via flyers and circulars can prompt shoppers to explore beyond their favorite retailer.
• Brands have an opportunity to combine a strong core message with shopper-centric adjacencies to achieve optimal cut-through. Multi-brand activations from manufacturers like Hershey and Nestlé drove both awareness and impact.

 

View the rest of this whitepaper in pdf format here.

 

This content was provided by Locately. Visit their website at www.locately.com.