Now Showing...In a Store Near You

Consider this scenario: A man stares intently at a television program featuring a young, attractive couple discussing new painting techniques. Occasionally, the man jots down a few helpful pointers in his small notepad. As the program ends, the man continues to watch as the programming switches to the latest sports scores and weather. Then, of course, the commercials follow.Seems like an ordinary scene, except the man isn't in his living room. He's standing in the aisle of a home center. And as the commercials end, the man loads a few cans of paint and some supplies into his cart.Welcome to in-store media, an in-store marketing category that bridges the gaps between advertising, merchandising, entertainment and retailing. The category encompasses elements of traditional broadcast media and traditional merchandising.In its earlier evolution, in-store media consisted of ancillary display vehicles like floor clings, shelf ads, shopping cart ads, coupon dispensers and lane dividers in checkout lines. Third-party companies negotiated contracts with retailers to place display items in their stores. In return, the stores received a percentage of the revenue generated from the sale of ad space to product manufacturers.Because of these relationships, in-store media boasts one advantage over many traditional P-O-P display programs: retailer compliance. Since retailers make money from the placement of in-store media services, they are obligated to place promotional materials, whether they be floor clings or a broadcast message on a television monitor.Today, advances in wireless networking and video technologies are also opening up new opportunities for targeted broadcasting and programming in store environments. Price reductions in display technologies such as LCD screens are making in-store presentations more feasible than in years past. In addition, compact audio and video technologies have added new capabilities to some of the older in-store media formats, such as floor clings that feature animated graphics or sound clips.Perhaps one of the biggest motivators for manufacturers to explore in-store media and new technologies is a matter of necessity. After all, technology for technology's sake would be a hard sell at any company. But with increased retailer restrictions regarding display placement and the use of traditional P-O-P comes the need to communicate with consumers in new ways."A lot of times, you use this [in-store media] to build brand awareness, just like you would on TV," says Bill Smith, in-store presence manager for The Procter & Gamble Co., Cincinnati. "What is different about this from other P-O-P is that there isn't necessarily a direct tie-in to how many cases of product that you are going to move."Of course, there are exceptions. In-store media campaigns that include sampling programs and giveaways will drive more product in the store.Manufacturers are still trying to determine how to use in-store media programs to their best advantage. And no two manufacturers approach in-store media in the same way. Most manufacturers still view it as a supplement to other advertising and merchandising efforts.Wal-Mart Television NetworkDoug Haase, director of customer marketing at Nabisco, East Hanover, N.J., is working with Wal-Mart stores to promote his products through the Wal-Mart Television Network. The network consists of 10 to 12 television monitors scattered throughout each of the company's 2,397 stores. San Francisco-based Premiere Retail Networks (PRN) operates the system."The stores have a wall of TVs in the electronics department, and then they have 10 to 12 TVs that go out around the perimeter of the store in what you would call general merchandise categories," says Haase. "We're trying to increase our buyer conversion -- shoppers who may be in the health and beauty or electronics departments and get them over to the food side of the store."The Wal-Mart Television Network is a mix of television ads that appear on regular TV and ads that are specifically designed for broadcast on the in-store network.Haase integrates his P-O-P and display items into the broadcast spots and goes to great lengths to make sure that what consumers see on the screen is exactly what they will see in the aisle. The ads often include images of the display as it appears in the store."It's almost like we do a color-coded road map from the TV to drive them to where we are in the aisle or where we are being merchandised," says Haase. "Our ads are focused on what is happening in-store. It is more intimate to the in-store experience versus just showing a stock commercial."For the company's last Super Bowl promotion, Haase produced an ad for the network that promoted a Kraft cookbook. The book included recipe ideas for easy-to-make snacks and foods for Super Bowl parties. "In that ad, we actually showed the display and what the book looked like," he says. "That way, when consumers walked through the food area, they knew exactly what to look for."Steve Shanesy, executive vice president, global brand management for Madison, Wis.-based Rayovac Corp. also uses the Wal-Mart network, although he takes a different approach. He will often use the same ads that appear on TV or segments of ads that appear on TV for a consistent look."We look at this as an opportunity to advertise in a way that is in-line with the way we merchandise our batteries and flashlights on TV," Shanesy says. "It's a nice way to complement what we are doing on that front. With some of our products, this allows us to do more of a demonstration that couldn't be accomplished with traditional kinds of point-of-sale materials."The ability to demonstrate proved especially useful when the company introduced its Tool Light. The product features a multi-tool that folds into the handle of a flashlight. In-store ads featured legendary fisherman Babe Winkelman demonstrating how the tool fits into the flashlight.Shanesy sees the network as an opportunity to reach consumers in an environment that is becoming increasingly less hospitable to traditional forms of P-O-P messaging. "There are fewer and fewer accounts where you can easily utilize point-of-sale," he says. "A lot of accounts are restricting what you can do in terms of P-O-P materials."Sometimes, Shanesy will use the network to promote products that are specific to Wal-Mart stores and don't have distribution outside of the chain. For example, specialized ads were produced to promote a Harley-Davidson flashlight that was exclusive to Wal-Mart stores.In addition to the network, Shanesy also produces five-second highlight ads. These ads are played at music listening stations located in the electronics departments of Wal-Mart stores. When consumers swipe the UPC of a CD across a scanner of a kiosk, the screen will play a video or a few of the songs on the disc."There is a five-second delay from the time you swipe the scanner and the time that the video starts," says Shanesy. "In that five seconds, we do a shortened message to try to get the impulse sale."Selling by ExampleAt Vernon Hills, Ill.-based Rust-Oleum Corp., Marketing Coordinator Sarah Martin has been working with P-O-P TV, Portland, Ore., to place LCD screens with DVD players in a major home center chain. The LCDs are built with motion sensors that trigger the DVD to start playing when consumers are in close proximity to the monitor. This ensures that the DVD isn't played unnecessarily when no one is around to watch it."Right now, we have a bunch of endcaps with sensors. When someone walks by, our video will automatically start playing," says Martin.The DVD promotes the company's new epoxy shield garage floor coating. It includes instructions on how to apply the coating and shows how the coating can protect garage floors.The program ran for three months starting in mid-April. The company is still evaluating its success. Once that process is complete, Martin will decide whether or not to follow with another video.Greg Casey, national merchandising accounts director for Nintendo of America Inc., Redmond, Wash., has implemented similar programs for the company. In KB Toys, Casey has placed small TV/DVD combo units that play during store hours. Information about the company's games as well as its broadcast commercials are played."Those programs get updated every two to three months," says Casey. "We've been running in KB continuously for a few years now."Casey also provides recorded content that is played in the electronics departments of Best Buy stores. "In that situation, it is the retailer that is running the program, so we aren't that actively involved except for providing them with raw content."At Conoco Inc., Houston, Dave Meanor, manager of marketing technology, wanted a system that would play in his stores to ensure that promotional ads were presented to consumers. As a result, his company is one of the founders of Onvance, an in-store network of c-stores that broadcasts ads and programming via satellite. The Onvance network is being offered to all c-stores, even those competing with Conoco."Onvance is a company that is for the industry. We just helped to put it together," explains Meanor. "For the first time, this gives us the ability to do some suggestive selling and promotions right at the point-of-purchase. We always had point-of-sale materials, but the effectiveness of the materials was only as good as the store manager was at keeping them up and in the right place. What the in-store network gives us is 100% compliance."The Onvance system uses a smart television technology that is linked through a satellite hookup. The company can then guarantee that an ad is playing in all designated stores. The channel cannot be changed and employees cannot adjust the volume. The system receives information back from the stores so that if a TV malfunctions, the system is immediately alerted and the monitor can be repaired.Due to the fast-paced nature of c-stores, the network doesn't play long ads. In fact, most are 30 to 45 seconds. "We know how long a person is in our store and it is usually less than three minutes," says Meanor. "If you are going to run a 60-second spot in a three minute timeframe, you're not going to hit the consumers with very many messages."Meanor points out that the nature of the store changes the way ads have to be presented to consumers. "A lot of TV commercials today try to tell stories," he says. "The network is not intended to do that. Customers aren't there long enough. The network is intended to understand how long you are in the store and get as many message across to you as it can."In addition to ads, the network includes sports scores, weather and additional programming.Meanor has witnessed first-hand the effectiveness of the in-store ads and is a strong believer in the potential of the network. The company recently ran a pilot study with Coca-Cola. The results of the study indicated that there was an 8% lift in Coke sales when the ads were played."That is a difficult product to get a lift in because people go in already prepared to buy a soda," Meanor says. "I truly believe that the network has influenced the buyer to switch his sale from another product to Coke. The network has great suggestive value because it is the only thing there that is pushing the product."Road BlocksAlthough in-store media networks are offering manufacturers a new set of tools to entice consumers, the idea of true in-store, national coverage remains elusive. Most companies that offer networked services provide a patchwork of stores that may consist of a few chain retail accounts. In some cases, the simple rivalries among brands and companies prevent true national coverage."None of these folks have agreements with all chains across the board," says P&G's Smith. "In some cases, there have been rivals set up so that one media company has agreements with one set of chains and another company has a different set of chains."Brands often form partnerships with specific media networks. Since most in-store media companies offer category exclusivity, this limits the possibility of completely saturating a market with a particular promotional program.Regardless, in-store media is quickly evolving and maturing. Marketers and retailers are hoping that smart advertising and new technologies can transform Must See TV into Must Buy In-Store.

Now Showing...In a Store Near You

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