The heated battle for the hearts and minds of Canadian shoppers just got hotter.
TBWA has launched The Integer Group in Canada, with a head office located in Toronto.
Integer is among the world’s largest shopper marketing agencies and certainly among the most influential, with clients including major league brands such as P&G, Johnson & Johnson, Kellogg’s and Visa; and has created programs that have infiltrated some of the world’s most ubiquitous retail chains including Wal-Mart and Target. And yet – a recurring question is “what’s shopper marketing?”
The irony may be, when it’s done well you don’t notice it. Instead you find yourself with great products in your basket that were easy to choose and exactly what you wanted.
And as a secret science, shopper marketing has evolved from starburst signs at the shelf saying Save! to an increasingly sophisticated amalgam of influence and persuasion.
“Shopping doesn’t just happen in the aisles of a store, on a computer or via a smartphone,” said Integer Canada’s managing director Marcus Evans. “It’s a complex dance among shopper, brand and retailer.”
He said the process of turning a Shopper into a buyer is seldom logical or linear, in fact, shopping is a continuum, and starts long before entering a store. Integer has called the consideration phase “Pre-tail” — where a shopper might be doing research into the next major purchase or is simply contemplating what’s for dinner tonight. Retail is what happens in the store itself or as Evans calls it, “the moment of truth”, and Post-tail is the aftermath, another moment of truth where the shopper might become an advocate of the product purchased, a detractor, or remain plain indifferent which sets the continuum in motion again.
Integer is primarily focused on results. “Brand building’ for the sake of it is for other agencies and disciplines; this practice is built on the moment browsers turn into buyers, and then buyers become advocates for your products.
Campaigns are deeply science-based using a mix of surveys and qualitative research and the only win that counts is an increase in sales for the brand, growth in the category, and satisfied consumers. A purchase once is a success, certainly, but the bigger challenge and greater success is generating repeat purchases and loyal followers.
To find out more about Integer please visit www.integer.com.
