By Vinnie Vendor and Rhonda Retailer
RetailWire presents for discussion Face 2 Face, a feature of Refrigerated & Frozen Foods Retailer magazine that presents frank opinions from a group of anonymous retailers and vendors on key industry issues.
Part 1: Vinnie Vendor has a problem with Rhonda Retailer. He thinks the two parties could accomplish much more together if Rhonda would make her customer data more "freely" available to his company.
Thank you, Rhonda, for your recent "opportunity" to spend $250,000 with you for a microscopic blurb in your direct mail piece. We decided to pass.
You see, we'd like to work with you on programs where we both get benefits for the money we spend.
We both have a huge opportunity to leverage your shopper data to grow each other's business. But if we have to spend $1.5 million with each retailer to access their data, plus another $20 million on syndicated data, we'll simply go bankrupt. I don't mean to be forward with you, Rhonda, but some of us think you're starting to make data a new profit center.
Now don't get me wrong. Many of us are willing to put the people resources against interpreting the data and gaining insights we can both use. The trouble is that every retailer has its own way of keeping data, so we have to assign people to each account just to get it into a readable format. So why doesn't the industry get together and develop some standards on data? Maybe some honchos at FMI or GMA will read this and convene a special joint session.
Meantime, let's at least do a better job of sharing category-level demographics and trends. Maybe we could identify groups of shoppers common to both of us, and come up with customized programs that move cases -- without involving some middleman who eats up the profits. Let's solve meal occasion-based problems for shoppers, and use strong post-analysis tools to create trust and accountability. We're way past $250,000 blurbs in direct mail, Rhonda.
Part 2: Rhonda Retailer has a problem with Vinnie Vendor. She thinks he should spend more time listening and getting a handle on taking care of business basics before going on to more complex efforts.
You know, Vinnie, you make me laugh. You want to do all this Star Wars promotion stuff, and you still can't get an advance ship notice right. Sorry you didn't take us up on our latest opportunity. Because you see, Vinnie, the old stuff still works.
What ever happened to the "build it high and watch it fly" saying we had about displays? We had a hot price from the local rep and we rolled up our sleeves together where the rubber met the road. Oh! I forgot! There isn't any retail coverage anymore! Everyone's back at corporate, looking at the numbers!
As for sharing data, let me tell you something. My shoppers are really freaked out about retailers sharing their information with anyone. That is why some retailers have bombed with loyalty cards -- they broke the "loyalty pact" with their shoppers.
Most marketing plans are just that -- plans that are drawn up by marketing department people who don't spend much time visiting and listening to retailers. They have a preconceived notion of what our shoppers need and don't really want our feedback.
We work with suppliers to do direct mails and local marketing through the consumer database, but no way are we going to share consumer specifics with suppliers. We'll share some generalizations and work up some programs tailored to your needs, and then execute the program. All that costs us money, and we'll pass along to you what it costs us. The mailing comes from us, not the manufacturer, so we aren't breaking our pact with our shoppers.
I'll grant you one thing -- it may be worthwhile to consider a common way for retailers to format their consumer data, depending on what's being done and what the needs are. But I'll have to think about that one.
You know what really works? Listening to us, and not just pretending. You know... partnership. You don't need Star Wars for that.
Discussion Questions: Who has it right, Vinnie Vendor or Rhonda Retailer? Do you see a middle ground compromise for the two? Does the grocery industry need to create a single standard on how consumer data is formatted?