CPG has long been thought of as a proving ground for Marketers because the supermarket aisle stages a ruthless battle where things like “Product, Place, Promotion, and Price” compete for an unfair share of consumers’ wallets every week-- and both Brand and Retail “Profits” hang in the margin. CPG brands also face the unique challenge of having their products sold across the shelves and online sites of many different retailers, creating a difficult task of piecing together the jour ney of a customer that purchases a product from the brand. But there is much success to be had for those b rands that can capitalize on the challenges.
Projected to be a $770 billion US industry in 2016, CPG sales a re estimated to surpass 2015 numbers by $13 billion.
One driving factor in the quest for increasing CPG sales is a sound omni-channel strategy, with an emphasis on mobile. The consumer’s smartphone is often the place where many of the brand interac tions take place.
Even if the product is not being purchased online, a savvy consumer can research product info, search for specific deals, and find nearby locations at the touch of a fi ngertip. According to Retail Dive: Mobile Commerce, 60 percent of consumers use mobile devices to find information on nearby products and services and 40 percent of those are on the go when searching. For brand s to capitalize on this it is essential to follow, understand, and act upon each important step in the purchase path. To maximize success in the CPG industry, brands must identify key customer behaviors and target them with personalized experie nces.
In this guide for CPG marketers, we’ll take a closer look at the main challenges facing CPG brands, strategies to solve these challenges and some real-life examples of CPG br ands that are leveraging them to achieve brand loyalty.