ACADEMY IN ACTION
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jack.courtez@newtrade.co.uk
Service to the Community In November, the IAA and Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I visited Abdul Ramzan in his Millerfield Store in Kennoway to help him drive long-term customer loyalty. We find out what’s changed
IAA ADVICE 2
Post consistently on your Facebook page about your community involvement.
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Uncover costeffective ways, like competitions, to engage with the community.
THE RESULTS We started posting more frequently on Facebook about supporting local causes, such as Christmas jumper day, and promoted local businesses, too. We hosted a Remembrance Day tea service outside the store, linking up with a local bakery
to offer pies for those who attended. We also promoted the event on Facebook and received positive feedback. Next, we plan to run a colouring competition for Easter. As a result of these changes, new customers are visiting the store and our page likes have grown by 52.
PARTNER ADVICE It’s great Abdul’s community engagement and support for local initiatives have increased footfall. Helping local causes and using social media to promote what you’re doing are great ways to show you are a community store. Carolyn Thomson Regional Account Manager SBF GB&I
DRIVE AWARENESS AND LOYALTY Visit betterRetailing.com/academy-in-action or scan the QR code to find ways to contribute to your local area and find out how you can improve
Next week: Merchandising & Display
p8 News and Mags.indd 6
NEWS by Jack Courtez
Three-month follow-up
Link up with local events and run a promotion to drive footfall to your store.
betterRetailing.com // 4 March 2022 RN
HND and grocery combined
The increase in Facebook page likes by posting about community involvement
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Marketing and flexibility are key to converting newspaper delivery customers into wider grocery orders, according to a London home news delivery company that has branched out. Nazim Zerouala, co-owner of Z News in Cricklewood, north-west London, began introducing a premium grocery range in late 2019 and is now looking to continue the service’s growth. The roundsman told RN: “We wanted to do it for some time – it was just the logistics. Home news deliverers are one of the only businesses to operate seven days. Milk delivery is six days, for instance, which gives us an advantage.” Asked how he converted paper-and-magazine customers to purchase a wider basket of items, Zerouala said: “We’ve got good customer service, so the trust is there. The key is to keep advertising it, through newsletters, e-mails and the website. Your service has to be at the forefront of customers’ minds, so we make sure they have the terms, our range and our prices to hand.” The service is also part of Z News’ strategy to win back office customers. “We were hoping by the end of February we’d see things start returning to normal. We’re telling business customers we can do their milk and extras. If, by the end of the month, things work out, we’ll tell them we’re still here. The combination of milk, bread, paper and juice is important, and if it does pick up, it will pick up slowly – it’ll take a few more months.”
Multiples look to bypass wholesale Publishers and supermarkets are in talks to bypass wholesalers and deliver direct to stores. Under the plans, newspapers would go direct from printer to store to arrive early enough to be included in online grocery orders, which are typically picked before papers arrive. A wholesaler source said: “A number of retailers, and I think Tesco is one of them, are talking to publishers about going direct from print sites into their dark stores to get newspapers in time for their early picks. As a wholesaler, we’re saying ‘I’m not sure we want you to be doing that’, but if it [can] get more consumers engaged in newspapers, perhaps that’s something we could get on board with.”
01/03/2022 14:49
