Recruiting for the Engagement Advantage

A guest column at DSN Retailing Today by executive coach and consultant Jackie Sloane introduces the term, “Engagement Advantage”, to describe the energy and attitude of successful retail employees when it comes to influencing purchase decisions, increasing sales and exhibiting loyalty. Since the members of NARMS also provide at-retail merchandising and marketing service personnel to their manufacturer and retail clients, and since these individuals often interact with the end consumer, some of the points in the column are good practical advice when recruiting retail merchandisers.

Successful retail merchandisers often become brand ambassadors for the products they are working with. Sampling and demonstration personnel are probably the best example of this, but the engagement advantage also extends to shelf merchandisers and professional installation workers. Consumers do not often differentiate between in-store reps and store personnel. Sloane provides a brief roadmap toward finding, managing and retaining people who exhibit the engagement advantage. Here is a summary:

-Be clear and up front about the customer experience you want to convey. Make sure all communication reinforce the message so that it can be repeated.

-Establish the top three drivers of success for each position.

-Challenge and continually improve your own communication processes to ensure expectations are clear.

-Take steps to make the experience that you want the end consumer to have consistent with that of your in-store personnel.

- Include the importance of the customer experience in your orientation and training process.

- Build ownership by always listening to feedback and ideas from your reps. Have regular lines of communication set-up for this purpose and make sure to use the feedback.

-Celebrate successes and reward it.

To find reps well on their way to the engagement advantage, look for those who have gone through the on-line training at NARMScertifyU. Encourage and enable your existing reps to enhance their skills by accessing this convenient resource.

Nov 25, 2011 IRI/Morning NewsBeat

Below is the list of articles you will find for the week ending 11/25/11 edition of Retail Industry News.

- Sansolo Speaks: Boldly Go…Everywhere
- Seattle Considering Ban On Plastic Bags, Fee For Paper Bags
- Texas Supermarket Chain Partners In Cancer Treatment, Prevention Effort
- Survey: Retailers With Best Customer Service
- FastNewsBeat
- The MNB Wal-Mart Watch
- Executive Suite

Click here to read Retail Industry News

Value and Service Driving Grocery Sales

A few days ago, we brought you a Times & Trends Report from SymphonyIRI that stressed taking care of the ultimate consumer. This week, another grocery consumer survey seems to compliment those observations. A story in Progressive Grocer reports on the findings of a Coinstar study that found that 81 percent of consumers are spending the same or more the past three months on groceries, but they are asking for more when it comes to value and service. As the story describes, these consumers are taking a back to the basics approach. Today, we will look at some of the other findings.

Over half of those surveyed said they have used more coupons than in the past. The same amount said they prefer loyalty or value cards that offer instant rewards. The use of debit cards and cash are the primary forms of payment when it comes to groceries. These consumers said they are buying more grocery brands than private label and less non-necessity items. They say they are being careful with their dollars, but will spend providing they see a streamlined and value-oriented approach.

As the story reports, the National Retail Federation predicts an average holiday shopping season expecting a 2.8 percent increase versus the 5.2 they experienced last year.

What does this all mean? The holidays are providing an opportunity to attract and build consumer loyalty and increase market share, but the margin for error is shrinking. The doorway to success is through excellent execution and paying mind to the customer experience. Sixty-two percent said a varied, well-organized inventory was the key. Sixty-one percent cited ease and speed of the shopping trip.

It has never been more important for brand marketers to execute exceptional at-retail merchandising and marketing programs. Being in-stock, having promotional material on display and providing professional sample and demo programs appeal to the more grass roots approach being displayed by grocery shoppers. To not execute means to lose that hard-earned shopper and now thinner dollar to another store or brand.

Prime Retail Services promotes Jonathan Heinze to Director

Prime Retail Services, Inc., a leader in retail installation and construction services, announced the promotion of Jonathan Heinze to Director. Jonathan will be responsible for managing key retail construction projects and expanding the resources that the company provides.

“Jonathan has been a key part of our success, and we are thrilled to promote him to this important position” said Donald Bloom, CEO of Prime. Jonathan, age 37, joined Prime in 2010 as a construction lead and quickly rose to Project Manager. “We plan to grow within the retail construction industry significantly over the next two years and Jonathan will be an important asset to help our organization reach its goals” said Mr. Bloom.

Jonathan brings over 20 years history in the construction industry with the hands-on knowledge of the retail environment. “My experience in completing many remodels within an open store environment provides me with the understanding of managing each project to the needs of our clients” Mr. Heinze said. “I am excited about the opportunity to continue to manage the projects with Prime’s 3P management system. “

Prime Retail Services, Inc. is a leading provider of dedicated retail services to regional and national retailers. These services include full-scope capabilities of merchandising, fixture installation, construction, roll-outs and project management services. Our strength is the ability to design and execute programs to each specific and different scope of work. For more information about Prime please visit our website at www.primeretailservices.com

Nov 18, 2011 IRI/Morning NewsBeat

Below is the list of articles you will find for the week ending 11/18/11 edition of Retail Industry News.

- The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year? Really?
- First Global Food Safety Fund Is Created
- Sansolo Speaks: Management On The Fly
- Family Dollar Expanding In California As Part Of Broader Genre Push
- Black Friday? Gray Friday? Will It All Add Up To A Green Christmas?
- San Francisco Considers Shopping Bag Fee
- FastNewsBeat
- The MNB Wal-Mart Watch
- Executive Suite

Click here to read Retail Industry News

A Message from Tom Caddell

Esteemed NARMS members,

I am happy and excited to again be part of the NARMS family. The staff and I look forward to providing a new and strategic direction to build and brand the association name of NARMS in new and ever exciting ways.

With a long and heartfelt history with this association, and being extremely humbled with the opportunity, I remember the early days with fondness how the early visionaries (Gary Ebben and founding members) of NARMS built a place where all in-store services could educate, network, and gain cutting edge intelligence in providing our customers and clients professional and ethical measurable value.

Going forth, NARMS will uncover new and exciting means to “Brand” the NARMS name and what we offer, expand our “Band Width” within the retailer channels, provide cutting edge technology, present value in trade event exposure all while growing our brand recognition in the best interests of all membership current and future. By providing a strategic plan we can bring new and exciting opportunities to every member by working together as our visionaries hoped.

Networking provides a different meaning in today’s B2B conversations than it did 16 years ago. “Networking” was the way to find compatible sister firms to execute our project deliverables to our clients/customers outside our boundaries of expertise or capacity. Today we still “Network” but under a different meaning - in seeking out new business, clients, staff or new jobs…or as we all hope that hidden customer who just landed from Mars and NO one knows about them or the needs they have.

As a retail guy with a history of being around retail in general, I bring an experienced ear for your pain and “What keeps us all up at night”; a simple word SALES! Paulette said it best recently, “We’re all looking for the same thing as do our customers and clients; provide sales and continued growth.” Rest assured the NARMS staff, and our current/future board members and committee members are 100% committed to the task in right sizing all our efforts in providing a real measurable value for all members now and in the future.

We must ALL work together to provide ideas and cutting edge value, continued support of the industry standards and practices, and a valued ongoing partnership in helping us all retain SALES. We are the life blood of the retail industry, and with our support and services we can provide a small piece in helping rebuild our US economy.

As our valued friends north say, when the US sneezes the rest of the world gets a cold!

Let’s limit our exposure and be proactive.

Thank you all for your kind words recently and I am really excited to be a part of NARMS in a leadership role again.

Kind regards,

Tom

Tom Caddell
Executive Director

QR More Than Symbol

As documented by Supermarket News, Kantar Retail has recently released the 15th Annual PowerRanking Report. The report annually lists the best manufacturer and retailers. An important aspect of this report is that these rankings represent how trading partners see each other. In doing so, trends of the most successful brands in retailing are identified. Kantar Retail uses the QR Code as a theme for the report, but quickly points out that Quick Response is more than just a scanned link to more information. It is a metaphorical link to successful alignment and integration between the very best trading partners.

As a clever marketing tie-in, the cover of the PowerRanking Executive Summary features a QR Code that when scanned by a smart phone or mobile device brings you to a narrative welcome video. The report itself is on sale once you arrive, although the Executive Summary is complimentary.

The Supermarket News story does a good job of summarizing and top lining the report for those who want a quick glance at the information. P&G, Kraft, General Mills, PepsiCo and Unilever rank near the top of the list among CPG manufacturers. Wal-Mart, Target, Kroger, Costco, Publix, Wegmens, H-E-B, CVS, Walgreens and Safeway make up the top ten among retailers.

We now see QR Codes all over the retail environment as well as other aspects of our daily living, and are likely to see more in the near future. It is predictable that their use will become a necessity. But the concept of Quick Response is perhaps more important than the technology behind it. It is evident in the Kantar Retail PowerRanking Report that responsiveness and collaboration among trading partners is vital to success at retail and is the common denominator connecting those at the top of the list.

Add one more trading partner to the mix. The members of NARMS are important in delivering on the promise of Quick Response. Professional at-retail merchandising and marketing companies can be the conduit in which responsiveness between retailers and suppliers is delivered.

Nov 11, 2011 IRI/Morning NewsBeat

Below is the list of articles you will find for the week ending 11/11/11 edition of Retail Industry News.

- Walmart Pops Up In Two Locations With New Concept
- Burkle’s Yucaipa Hopes to Have Its Own Tea Party
- Meijer Gets Aggressive In Diabetes Battle
- Sansolo Speaks: No Joking Matter
- Walmart Looks To Beef Up Its Meat Departments
- Sears And Kmart Go To The (Virtual) Wall
- Walmart Health Care Plans Feel Some Arrhythmia
- Where’s The Beef? In A Vending Machine.
- Ahold Brings The Latest In Mobile Self-Checkout To New England
- Starbucks Buys Juice Maker, Plans To Launch New Retail Chain
- Shoppers Pushing Back Against Thanksgiving Openings
- FastNewsBeat
- The MNB Wal-Mart Watch
- Executive Suite

Click here to read the Industry News

Times & Trends - Shopper is King

The shopper is king and everybody involved in retail serves at the pleasure of the king. That is the key message delivered in the latest issue of Times & Trends by SymphonyIRI. Unemployment and inflation have created an extreme barrier to achieving the stability necessary to smooth out troubled economic waters. But nobody is in the exact same boat. As Times & Trends reports, the needs of individual shoppers vary as greatly as day-to-day economic circumstances. Not surprisingly, there is a strong at-retail tie-in to be employed by successful brand marketers.

Here are some of the observations recorded by SymphonyIRI: Almost half of all shoppers surveyed feel that they have experienced a financial setback last year and do not expect that situation to change in the near future. Consumers have made adjustments to their shopping patterns and habits to account for the economy with about 25 percent saying they have trouble affording weekly grocery needs. Simplification and conservation are now driving shoppers as they learn to cope with the conditions. A self-service attitude has emerged particularly in health and beauty care. List-making has made a comeback with shoppers putting items on their list based on cost savings and promotions. Many of these cost saving opportunities are being derived from the Internet. The issue of cost and the ever-changing cash flow position of consumers are causing trial of new brands and products that they would not have considered before.

Times & Trends offers some remedies for manufacturers and retails. Some of those suggestions are of particular interest to members of the at-retail merchandising and marketing services industry. In-store efforts should follow closely with externally-targeted promotional campaigns to ensure that pre-planned purchase decisions can be carried out in the store. Trading partners should work together to develop in-store programs, such as displays and demos, that show the consumer how to save and get maximum value. These efforts should be constantly measured to allow for mid-stream corrections and adjustments.

The shopper is king and NARMS members are ready to provide in-store support services to supplement programs designed by trading partners that speak directly to their needs. Download and digest this issue of Times & Trends to help better understand those needs.

NARMScertifyU Launches Facebook Fan Page

As a logical extension to the at-retail merchandising and marketing services online learning center, NARMScertifyU has created a new Facebook fan page. This will be the go-to place to get updates on courses, events, promotions and even get tips from industry experts.

One of the first wall posts ties together the importance of becoming an industry expert through online learning and the importance and power of networking through Facebook and other social media channels. At-retail reps can start to build their professional network on NARMScertifyU and can find jobs on the NARMS-Jobs fan page. In other Facebook related news, NARMS is transitioning to a new association fan page.

Another interesting early post on the NARMScertifyU fan page introduces an Ask the Experts series. To kick-off the new page, Thushan Rajapaksa, VP of Business Development at Staf Pro, discussed the importance of hiring an individual who already has training. Among his observations, Rajapaska calls training the lifeline of a company and the key to success and survival.

NARMScertifyU is an online learning center offering career-building courses. Developed by industry experts for marketing service representatives, NARMScertifyU provides a valuable learning experience. Online courses can be accessed anywhere and anytime, so the reps can learn at their own pace. It is an opportunity to become an industry expert by earning course certificates. Each certificate earned leads to more exposure and credibility. The increased retail knowledge improves job satisfaction and overall success for all stakeholders.

Currently, NARMScertifyU offers eight courses for $15 each: Mystery Shopping, Retail Visit Excellence, Merchandising Standards, Demonstrations, Event Marketing, Fixture Installation, Train the Trainer and Team Lead Skills. Block pricing is available for member companies to purchase on-line courses for their field reps at a great savings.