© The Hub Magazine

1. WHI T E PAPER
Pictures
of Truth
B y toM c o n t i information and data before we even step into a retail
outlet (that is, if we choose to shop at a bricks-and-
g2 Us a
I
mortar establishment at all).
’m taking my family on a two-week-long trip Much has changed in the five years or so since
to Italy this summer, and since it’ll be one of Procter & Gamble coined the term “First Moment of
those once-in-a-lifetime vacations, I’m hoping Truth.” (There’s Moore’s Law in action once again.)
to capture as many of the experiences as For many consumers these days, our “first moment”
possible in photographs. That means I’m in the neither occurs exclusively at the retail shelf display
market for a new digital camera. nor is it even captured as a single moment in time.
Like all technologies, digital cameras are subject Within a relatively short period, consumers have
to Moore’s Law, which posits that advancements in transformed from passive recipients of marketing
technology double approximately every two years. messages and information into active, in-control
In the digital age, however, that window of time seekers of our own moments of truth.
has quickly been reduced to something like 18 days Adding to the empowerment that digital
instead of 18 months. The exponential speed at which technologies have provided to consumers is a looming
things change and improve can turn the process of economic uncertainty that drives more thoughtful
finding and buying a product like the right vacation- purchase decisions. More than ever, consumers are
ready camera into a frustrating pursuit. actively participating in and calling the shots on what,
where, when and how we make purchases — pulling
the trigger only when we are fully satisfied with a
Capturing consumers product or service’s value proposition.
while shopping is a But the evolution of the highly informed, in-
control and engaged consumer isn’t simply limited
moving experience. to shoppers of expensive goods like tech gadgets or
cars. Increasingly, consumers know a whole lot more
about even the most basic consumer packaged goods,
Thankfully, shoppers — especially those like me and we are exerting our new-found power by making
who are looking to purchase a potentially pricey item educated decisions that precede any visits to a store.
like a digital camera — are increasingly empowered to To wit: Until recently, the conventional wisdom
find the perfect product through just a few clicks of a was that 70 percent of brand purchase decisions were
mouse or taps on a mobile smartphone. made in the store. Some research has indicated that
Today — thanks to a plethora of online and nowadays as much as 76 percent of purchase decisions
mobile-enabled resources — digitally empowered, are made in the home (or on the road or wherever
on-demand consumers want what we want, when web-connected consumers have access to information,
we want it, and often at the price we want to pay which today is practically anywhere and everywhere).
and through the channel we want to shop. We What does this all mean for retailers and
filter through online peer reviews, backed by packaged-goods companies? In a recent survey
expert opinions, and we’re armed with a wealth of conducted by comScore, 59 percent of consumers
48 THE HUB MAY/JUNE 2011

2. said gathering information online is important in
helping to make purchase decisions. And yet there
is a seeming disconnect between how consumers Mythbusters
are shopping for packaged-goods products (as well
as researching them online and offline) and how Conventional wisdom has told marketers that
retailers — especially local retailers — are presenting consumers only research big-ticket items online.
(or not presenting) packaged-goods information on The reality, however, paints a different picture.
their websites.
Meanwhile, so-called big-box retailers like Target
and Walmart seem to be doing a more effective job
76% of consumers research packaged-
goods products online
at representing their in-store, packaged-goods items
on their comparably more robust websites. Clearly, 50% of packaged-goods shoppers visit
a retailer website one or two days
before visiting the store
there is a tremendous opportunity for retailers and
packaged-goods companies alike to better leverage
and bridge what’s happening in the digital space and
what’s happening at retail.
57% growth in digital coupons in 2010
multiPle momentS of tru t h
s o U r c e s : Google/OTX, June 2010; Digital Shopper Marketing Study,
With the rise of the digitally empowered shopper, Catapult Marketing, 2010; Coupons.com, November 2010
the notion of a single and uniform “first moment of
truth” has changed — if it hasn’t already been completely
upended. Rather than a singular first moment that be additional or different forces in the future that will
occurs at retail (or at reflection when the product is shape and reshape the retail experience, it’s useful to
used), consumers today can experience multiple consider these factors for now — at least until Moore’s
moments throughout their journey. Some of these Law kicks in once again.
moments are small, while others are big, but in total,
these points of influence culminate not only in a th e g o o gl e m i n d S e t
consumer’s decision to purchase, but also to repurchase, What’s the first task that most consumers
and ultimately to become loyal to a brand over time. undertake when they’re shopping? If they are like 93
So, while the at-retail first moments have given percent of all shoppers today, they begin with product
way to what Google has coined as the “zero moments research online. Some consumers start their research
of truth” that happen online or during search, I on search engines, while others start with friends and
propose that we’re living in a time of multiple moments expert opinions to narrow their choices, and then they
of truth, which can be online or offline. Because these go online. Invariably, however, search has become a
moments can (and do) happen anywhere for consumers powerful, indispensable tool for consumers, effectively
— at their computer screens, on the street, on their shifting control from marketers to consumers.
mobile devices and yes, even at the store — creating Consumers aren’t just going to retailer websites
tight offline and online connections has become for information, either. Google has reported a 288
critical for retailers and marketers. percent increase in coupon searches over the past two
Today, the effective shopper-marketing toolkit years. Meanwhile, comScore found in a 2010 study
requires that special attention be paid to digitally that 40 million users visited coupon sites (including
enabled communications disciplines. This isn’t simply retailer online circulars), while retailer websites
a matter of shoehorning a digital solution into a client attracted only 1.5 million visitors in the same period.
Emerging
problem just for the sake of being digital. Building Additionally, Google’s recent push to expand
markets
a Facebook page for a packaged-goods product in its local online advertising services, coupled with
order to check it off a chief marketing officer’s list its investments in geographic and location-based
isn’t always the right decision. In fact, a solution we services, as well as the rapid adoption of Google’s
think is right today will quickly be replaced by a new, Android operating system for mobile devices, may
different solution tomorrow. place this 800-pound gorilla of search even more
Still, a triumvirate of forces has forever altered firmly in the hands of on-the-go consumers.
the retail landscape: online search, social media, and Moreover, empowered search isn’t limited to
24/7 portable connectivity. Although there likely will search engines or time spent on a computer screen. A
MAY/JUNE 2011 THE HUB 49

3. growing crop of mobile apps has allowed consumers status through the act of checking in. Other apps, like
to gain access to, and control of, a wide range of StickyBits and SCVNGR take things one step further
information and data that was previously unheard by integrating offline products and mobile into a
of. Apps like RedLaser allow consumers to scan shopping-as-gaming experience.
product barcodes to check on availability — and Cyriac Roeding, co-founder and CEO of shopkick,
importantly — pricing at competing retail outlets. a new mobile app that bridges the physical retail
For retailers and marketers, the implications of and interactive worlds, recently said, “The future of
search extend far beyond computer screens. Indeed, online is offline,” and “mobile is the key to cross-
search today means more than a high ranking within channel integration at retail.” Provocative words, but
search results. Couponing, price and inventory as the adoption of mobile platforms continues at an
comparison capabilities and mobile-enabled websites exponential pace, it’s becoming increasingly true.
are just the tip of what is certain to be massive Shopkick turns the notion of shopper rewards
growth in the so-called “informational retailing” on its ear by rewarding consumers (with special
sector of search. offers and currency called “kickbucks”) via their
mobile phones once they enter a store. So, instead
Social ShoPPing SPree of receiving coupons after purchase, consumers
Regardless of which social platforms consumers are incentivized to purchase just for showing
participate in — whether it’s Facebook, Foursquare, up, effectively addressing the problem of getting
Twitter, Gowalla or others — consumers’ desire for consumers through the “final three feet” of the
discounts, offers and information are fairly consistent. storefront. Smart stuff.
According to a 2011 survey from Advertising Age Geo-fencing, contextual and textual ads served
and Ipsos Observer, 65 percent of respondents want via mobile, and increasingly the “game-ification”
coupons from marketers, while 42 percent are of the shopping experience will only build as
seeking improved customer service via social media shoppers marry their mobile smartphones with
platforms. Little wonder, then, that a socially enabled their at-retail lives.
initiative like Best Buy’s Twelpforce has garnered the So, as I embarked on my search for the perfect
kind of praise that it has. travel camera, I took some of my own advice. As
And while Facebook remains a dominant platform expected, my search started with, well, search, which
for many consumers, what’s the value of a Facebook yielded way too many choices. I narrowed my search
“Like?” It’s fair to say there’s some fuzzy math by reading the reviews of trusted influencers and
around this. In fact, it’s worthwhile for marketers relying on the opinions of friends and family. I took
to look beyond Facebook as the end-all-be-all. A my search to the social sphere, and read Tweets and
tremendous number of social networks have smaller posts by others looking for similar products.
populations, and yet offer the power of more engaged, I ended up at my local Best Buy, where the
more influential participants in a given category. shopkick app alerted me to a special deal on a digital
Simply put: Thinking social media (often) means camera that fit what I was looking for. Throughout
thinking beyond Facebook. my journey, there were numerous “moments of truth”
More important than platform is the ability to for me, as I discovered what I needed, what I wanted,
glean data from consumers’ social profiles. With the and what I could live without. Digital technologies
rise (and continuing rise) of social couponing sites helped to shape my ultimate purchase, a Panasonic
such as Groupon and LivingSocial, consumers’ ability GF2, which balanced portability, price and quality. I’ll
to collectively influence shopping behavior should share photos from our trip to the Amalfi Coast with
give retailers and marketers special pause to rethink friends and family on my Flickr site, natch. n
and reconsider the power of the (shopping) masses.
moBile iS the c on n e c t i V e ti S S u e TOM CONTI is president of G2 USA,
Location-based services have transformed the overseeing the agency’s interactive and
relationship marketing practices. Tom
web from a solitary experience to a ubiquitous
has more than 25 years of experience
connector in the real world. Check-in apps like
across a range of marketing services
Foursquare and Gowalla have captured users’ interest disciplines, and may be reached at
by bridging mobile online experiences with the real tconti@g2.com.
world, providing special offers, badges and social
50 THE HUB MAY/JUNE 2011