Legal  No)ce:  All  images,  product  names,  logos  and  brands  are  property,  trademarks™  or  registered®  trademarks  of  their  respec)ve  holders.  Use  of  them  is  solely  for  educa)onal  purposes  and  does  not  imply  any  affilia)on  with  or  endorsement  by  them.    

THE RISE OF SHELF DEMOCRACY

WINNING THE DIGITAL SHELF:

RELEVANCE:  Your  product  offering  or  pack  size  must  be  relevant  for  today’s  eCommerce.  For  example,  impulse  or  immediate-­‐need  categories  must  be  approached  differently  online  due  to  the  shipping  delay  barrier.  

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QUALITY:  While  it  goes  without  saying,  your  product  offering  must  be  of  minimum  adverCsed  quality  (and  value)  and  deliver  on  your  brand  and/or  product  promise.  

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CONTENT:  Engaging,  brand-­‐website-­‐worthy  product  content  should  be  designed  and  added  to  help  educate  and  convert  the  shopper  at  the  retail  point  of  purchase  online  and  in-­‐store.  

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SEO:  This  content  must  be  opCmized  tacJully  with  top  retail  search  keywords  to  maximize  shopper  visibility  and  consideraCon.    Also  ensure  that  your  product  is  correctly  categorized  and  tagged  in  the  Retailer’s  site  catalog.  

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REVIEWS:  Shoppers  increasingly  rely  on  eCommerce  consumer  reviews  to  vet  their  consideraCon  set.  Encourage  your  shoppers  to  leave  reviews  and  tap  into  your  retailers’  review  generaCon  programs  if  available..  

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TRAFFIC:  A  new  product  “doesn’t  exist”  unCl  it  gains  search    rank  visibility  from  significant  and  consistent  traffic.  Leverage  external  media  and  markeCng,  retailer  merchandising  and  paid  search  and  trial  promoCon  to  accelerate  its  launch  online.  

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Launching your products in eCommerce subjects them to an entirely different set of shelf dynamics vs. Brick & Mortar and similarly requires a different approach in strategy and activation for winning at shelf with your shoppers.

DIGITAL SHELF “ELECTED BY THE PEOPLE”

PHYSICAL SHELF “RULED BY THE FEW”

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•  Retailer-­‐driven  with  Brand  and  Consumer  influence.  •  Due  to  finite  store  space,  both  Retailer  and  Brand  have  vested  interest  in  

product  success  and  shared  responsibility  for  store  traffic,  store  and  shelf  placement,  markeCng,  promoCon  and  sales  growth.  

•  Despite  benefits  of  store  placement,  eye-­‐level  shelf  placement,  brand-­‐blocking,  mulCple  facings  and  dual  placement,  most  products  selected  by  the  Retailer  for  sale  in-­‐store  have  “equitable”  potenCal  to  succeed.  

•  Consumer-­‐driven  with  Brand  and  Retailer  influence.  •  Due  to  “infinite”  virtual  shelf  space,  Brand  has  unique  responsibility  for  

product  success,  including  site  traffic,  product  page  views,  search  rankings,  markeCng,  promoCon  and  sales  growth.  

•  63.8%  of  clicks  go  to  top  three  search  results  and  80.3%  stay  on  first  page  (Compete  2014).  Top  search  rankings  for  key  terms  is  CRITICAL  to  succeed.  

APPROACH:  It’s  important  that  new  product  launches  are  approached  by  Brands  with  the  omni-­‐channel  halo  effect  as  first  priority  and  KPI.    Online  sales  and  ROI  will  ocen  lag  in-­‐store.  This  is  normal,  so  Brands  should  forecast  accordingly.  

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