Brand Loyalty: The Key to Surviving Inflation, Price Wars, and Cost of Living Increases
It’s no secret–making ends meet has not been easy for the average Canadian in recent years. Beyond so many being without work throughout the pandemic, post-pandemic inflation has sent the cost of living through the roof.
In urban areas like the GTA the cost to rent a one-bedroom apartment is well over $2,000 per month. Meanwhile, the price tag to buy is upwards of one million dollars. Even outside the city the cost of housing is obscene. We are facing a new carbon tax that will substantially increase the cost of gas and heat. While the cost of products and services are higher than ever, even the ability to eat healthy food has taken a toll. Everything costs more.
Did you read that? You just entered the mind of many consumers who are shopping for your products.
People are looking for ways to save so, beyond dropping your pre-verbal pants by slashing prices, brand loyalty will be the silver bullet that preserves your sales at retail. You may even have a more expensive product but be benefiting from the dearth of cheaper options, with consumers choosing your product before leaving the store empty handed.
Preserving brand loyalty at the retail level should not be left to the retailer. AI technology and auto checkouts, never mind labor shortages, have left retailers out of touch with what product is in inventory. The easiest way to lose brand loyalty is to create a situation where your customer cannot buy your product and subsequently chooses the next best item. If they love the next best item better, you may have lost a lifelong client.
Other common ways to lose brand loyalty include your product not being located where your customer would expect it to be and missing or inaccurate pricing.
When you take more control over what is happening with your brands at retail, you can make a substantial increase to your sales.
Here is a basic calculation:
- Product X is listed in 500 retail stores and has 50 units in each store.
- Each unit has a profit margin of $10.
- You are unaware that your product goes out of stock on the shelf 20% of the month.
- What does that mean for your sales that month and what does that mean for your sales long-term?
This can be managed by ensuring you have your eyes on what is happening at the retailers where your product is listed and that you are harnessing the ability to independently manage issues at retail. That is where we come in.
Depending on the size of your brand, are you going to maintain a national workforce of merchandisers for this purpose? That probably does not make the most sense. Our national team visits key retailers weekly for all our clients, ensuring that product is properly placed, priced, represented, and is in stock. We correct any issues right at the retailer. We have seen our clients experience a three-fold uptake in sales just by paying attention to this very important aspect of maintaining brand loyalty.
Interested in more information about ramping up your brand loyalty? Connect to MarketSupport today: www.marketsupport.ca.
« Back to Blog