News & Insights

Start by un-planning. Go against the grain by disrupting established brand behaviors and make a significant impact on sales—an opportunity to shift demand worth $20 billion. New findings from a Nielsen study, revealed at the Nielsen India Consumer 360 event in New Delhi, highlighted three ways companies can stand out to shoppers by making key strategy changes to better align with an increasingly empowered Indian consumer.

“The share of the Indian wallet is highly influenced by factors in your direct control,” said Adrian Terron, executive director, Nielsen India. “In the fast-moving consumer goods space alone, 80 percent of shoppers will buy a different item than originally planned. Today’s shoppers are empowered by choice, and they refine their decisions based on marketplace disruptions. Knowing which factors motivate shoppers to action will ensure that you stand out.”

1. The Virtual Reality
If you’re looking to disrupt brand behaviors and shift demand to the tune of $14 billion in sales, leverage digital more. More than half of shoppers, on average, across five industries reviewed (fast-moving consumer goods, movie, travel, automotive and loans), accessed the Internet as part of their pre-purchase decision-making process. While the percent of e-tailing as part of total retail sales is still nascent, its opportunity to influence opinions is high.

For the fast-moving consumer goods reviewed, more online interactions equated to more than 50 percent less offline interactions. For online movie planning, TV and newspaper review incidence decreased by more than 40 percent. Conversely, Internet pre-purchase activity incited greater personal and store-visit interactions in the travel, automotive and loan industries. For these high-ticket items, online activity actually extended the decision-making process.

Converting surfing to selling, however, takes more than a strong brand. Now is the time to use Internet strategies alongside traditional ones as part of your brand building process, as shoppers were more inclined to buy online when they were already aware of the brand.

2. Let’s Make a Deal
Promotions have the power to persuade and influence $10 billion in sales. A good deal can prompt consumers to buy more, buy earlier and buy different than otherwise intended. They can also tip the economies of scale and cash-flow management in your favor. For fast-moving consumer goods, promotions influenced 34 percent of shoppers to make a bigger purchase than planned, and four in 10 consumers shopped for groceries earlier than they anticipated. Across a variety of food categories, promotions inspired more than half of shoppers, on average, to purchase a different product than they normally do.

But promotions should be used tactically and strategically. They shouldn’t be disruptive. Consider creating the right deal by promoting it when others are not. Go beyond thinking about promotions as simply a means to drive additional volumes and start using them to align with consumer experiences during their path to purchase. For example, tap into consumers’ natural curiosity to experiment with new products and offer savings incentives that drive unplanned buying opportunities. Think about offering promotions on regular-use, low-differentiated items because consumers love to save to splurge. And time your promotions to create consumption opportunities that make routine and festival purchasing patterns more exciting.

3. Quality Connections Go From Transactions to Trust
Delighting consumers with a good experience can turn a plan into a purchase. In fact, positive staff interactions in the automotive sector, for example, prompted three-quarters (73%) of shoppers to change their initial purchase decision. What’s more, it prompted pleased patrons to tell others about their experience. This kind of brand advocacy prompts positive feelings that extend far beyond the initial sale and often represents the life-blood of strong brands.

You have the power to create offline social networks with satisfied shoppers. Delighted shoppers were two times more likely to advocate for fast-moving consumer goods, movie and travel brands and five times more likely to support automotive brands. Continue the conversation online by creating the same enjoyable experience for your shoppers virally.

Elevate the experience from sales to servicing by being a trusted advisor for customers. Offer comparative advice during the sales process and ease the sometimes difficult product-upgrade process by helping your customers understand the benefits. When it comes to quality connections, it’s about getting down to the basics—be friendly, approachable and never rush to close the deal.