FINDLAY, Ohio -- A new electronic share group based here is using e-mail technology to link advertising, marketing and promotions executives in the supermarket industry for the purpose of advancing their knowledge.
Jason Bock, advertising director for Fresh Encounter here and administrator of the list, said the service will be free of charge for the immediate future, and he said he hopes to keep it free or virtually free in the spirit of education.
Topics of discussion will include printing rates, marketing programs and any other concept that participants want to discuss. Generally, participants in an e-mail list send their messages to a central computer, which collects all the messages and transmits them back to the entire list on a daily basis.
To join the list, grocery-industry marketing professionals can send a request to [email protected].
Although he said the retail food industry is notoriously "tight-lipped," Bock is anticipating about "30 or 40" active participants, primarily from independent supermarket companies.
Bock said the discussions will be specific enough to be helpful, but not so specific that they give away industry secrets. He said participants can stay anonymous if they choose.
"There's no reason to disseminate specific sales information," he said. "This will be a forum for open-ended questions and informal discussion."
The Internet Grocery Share Group is based here at Fresh Encounter, the management company that operates 16 Great Scot Supermarkets, Community Markets and Sack 'N Save stores throughout western Ohio.
