Building promotional events from scratch can tax the minds of even the most creative marketers, but supermarket retailers already have a head start when it comes to developing consumer events. Promotional calendars provide a no-hassle way to generate a year's worth of ideas that create excitement, boost sales and have a lasting impact.
"Our philosophy is to provide simple solutions for a healthy life," said Janine Faber, healthy living adviser and registered dietitian for Meijer, Grand Rapids, Mich. Faber uses promotional calendars to plan events throughout the year that provide information, services and a way for retailers to simultaneously educate and connect with their customers.
The role of retailer as educator is increasingly important to today's consumers. According to the Food Marketing Institute's Shopping for Health report, while 83% of shoppers said it was important for supermarkets to make health and nutrition information available, only 36% agreed their store was doing a good job in this area. Retailers have an opportunity to bridge this gap and differentiate themselves from the competition.
Bryant Wynes, director of retailer marketing for the Produce for Better Health Foundation, agreed. "As more people become interested in health and nutrition, they will be looking to retailers for this information," he said. "Nutrition marketing is good marketing."
Flexibility is often cited by retailers as one of the primary benefits of using promotional calendars in planning events. Dozens of themes are available for consideration, ranging from health-centric topics like osteoporosis prevention and breast cancer awareness, to celebrations of individual foods. July alone honors blueberries, baked beans, hot dogs and ice cream.
Such events are a good way to involve all departments throughout the organization, according to Marianne Bailey, director of advertising for Kulpsville, Pa.-based Clemens Family Markets. Besides in-store events, themes can be carried through the circular, Web site and product displays. During American Heart Month, for example, Clemens devoted an entire page in the circular to heart health where informational articles appeared alongside heart-healthy products like olive oil, flax seed and salmon.
Buyers were able to obtain reduced pricing and coupons for many of the items, while store teams were responsible for building displays that included recipes and brochures. To provide a more personalized approach, in-store activities were planned including blood pressure screenings and cooking demonstrations conducted by a registered dietitian.
National organizations, industry councils and food manufacturers themselves often sponsor promotional months and make resources available to retailers. PBH, for example, has a wide variety of promotional materials to support 5 A Day Month, including recipes, ad slicks, radio copy, signage and consumer columns.
For companies that want to go a step further, PBH can work to customize materials or serve as a liaison between suppliers and retailers.
"Our goal is to be a partner to the retailers by helping with whatever their specific needs are, whether it's suggesting loyalty programs, creating promotions, or managing promotional programs that involve both retailers and vendors," Wynes said.
For many retailers, utilizing pre-existing materials helps to take some of the work out of planning and allows the focus to be on delivery of the message.
"Since we don't need to allocate resources to developing these materials, we are able to increase the amount of nutrition and health information that we disseminate to customers through our circular, in-store and community promotions," Bailey said.
While all organizations don't have retailer-specific materials, most do have pamphlets, recipe cards and other educational materials available.
"We have utilized materials from a number of sources. There is a cost involved for most of the nonprofits, but promotional councils and manufacturers usually have materials available free of charge," Bailey said.
This past October, Meijer worked with the American Cancer Society and the Dairy Council to promote Women's Health Month by hosting in-store health fairs. Both organizations were able to complement Meijer's own offerings by providing print materials, as well as representatives to speak with customers about the importance of diet and preventive health screenings.
Utilizing established promotional months can provide additional advantages for retailers as well. "During this [5 A Day] month the message is reinforced by the organization itself, health professional activities within the community, and increased media interest," Wynes said.
This multilevel approach creates a synergy that leads to increased consumer awareness of the messaging, and research conducted by PBH shows this increased awareness translates into increased sales, he said. Consumers who are aware of the 5 A Day message will spend $50 more on produce per year per household than those consumers who are not aware of the call to eat five or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day. For those who are very aware, spending jumps $111.
The impact that promotional events have on the bottom line may be difficult for retailers to quantify, leading some to use other gauges of success. For Meijer, customer counts are one such tool. According to Faber, the several hundred customers in attendance during in-store events are testament to their success. Positive feedback, though difficult to measure, is invaluable as well.
Clemens' Bailey agreed. "Although we cannot always directly measure the effect of our educational programs on sales, customers are appreciative of the health information and services that we provide," she said.
No matter how a retailer chooses to measure success, advance preparation and good communication are key when developing promotions, Faber said.
"[Keep] a focused event - planning several months ahead by selecting a single theme, communicating with key people in key departments, and contacting outside agencies help to make an event successful," she said.
Likewise, she also remembers what she calls her guiding principle when planning events: "Don't over-promise and under-deliver. It's better to over-prepare and maintain control."
Calendar Highlights
Themes vary widely, but supermarket retailers can find just about anything, for any department, to support focused health-and-wellness merchandising programs.
January
Fiber Focus Month, Soup Month, Healthy Weight Week (1/22-1/28)
February
American Heart Month, Cancer Prevention Month, Potato and Sweet Potato Month
March
National Nutrition Month, Frozen Food Month, Peanut Month
April
Soyfoods Month, Cancer Control Month, Stress Awareness Month
May
Osteoporosis Prevention Month, Women's Health Month, Skin Cancer Detection/Prevention Month, Healthy Vision & Sight Care Months
June
Dairy Month, Men's Health Week (the week before Father's Day), Iced Tea Month
July
Ice Cream Month, Picnic Month, Blueberry Month
August
Immunization Awareness Month, Peach Month
September
5 A Day Month, Organic Harvest Month, Food Safety Education Month, Chicken Month
October
Seafood Month, Eat Dinner Together Week (10/1-10/7), Breast Cancer Awareness Month
November
American Diabetes Month, Peanut Butter Lovers Month
December
Safe Toys and Gifts Month
For a comprehensive promotional calendar with links to sponsoring organizations, visit www.foodandhealth.com or www.healthfinder.gov/library/nho.
