Though online grocery shopping has been an option for well over a decade, we saw a huge rise in click-and-collect and home delivery grocery orders for FMCG brands throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. Stay-at-home mandates made online grocery shopping not just convenient, but life-saving.
Since then, competition has been steadily heating up for FMCG brands – especially with the prevalence of digital personal shopping apps, showing us that you don’t even need to own grocery store products to reap the benefits of a surge in demand.
With more and more consumers shopping online for their FMCG products, grocery stores have to get strategic if they want to stay relevant, competitive, and agile in today’s market.
To help you get set for a new wave of digital grocery shopping consumers, we’re discussing what consumers expect from online grocery brands, what FMCG trends to prepare for, and how you can stand out online with key FMCG marketing tactics.
What consumers expect from online FMCG retailers
The new generation is overwhelmingly digital-forward, with people spending an average of 6 hours online every day. Additionally, around 50% of today’s internet traffic comes from mobile devices. This means FMCG consumers expect grocery stores to accommodate their shift to the online world with seamless online experiences.
Consumers generally stay loyal to grocery stores based on convenience. It’s no different when they’re shopping online. They’re looking for FMCG retailers that make the online shopping experience as easy, fast, and straightforward as possible. That means an easy-to-navigate FMCG website, high levels of personalisation, and quality customer service.
Now really isn’t the time to underestimate today’s digital native generation. They’re the driving force behind what FMCG brands will make it through the next leg of this information age and come out on top.
Online grocery shopping & FMCG trends to watch out for
We’ve compiled a list of some of the top FMCG eCommerce trends below to help you prepare for evolving customer demands and a fast-changing online grocery marketplace.
a. Automation solutions
FMCG retailers have famously low profit margins, making efficiency paramount to curb the costs of mistakes (like late deliveries, incorrect products, etc.)
That’s why many retailers are increasingly implementing automation technology to speed up their click-and-collect and delivery processes and streamline their collaboration with brands.
By automating data sharing and product content management with a platform like Convert Group, FMCG brands can spend less time on repetitive data analytics tasks and manual product checking across several retailer websites.
Learn more about how automation can improve productivity in the FMCG industry in our previous blog, “How automation boosts FMCG eCommerce productivity.”
b. Data collaboration
Data sharing has become increasingly important in recent years, as the data landscape has become more complex and data-driven decision making has become the norm. However, the real value of data sharing becomes apparent when FMCG retailers and FMCG brands collaborate on their data.
Data monetisation is also the key part of this collaboration, as it allows retailers and brands to generate revenue from their data while also ensuring that the data is used in a way that benefits both parties
Gartner predicts that by 2023, organizations that promote data sharing will outperform their peers on most business value metrics. With this in mind, it appears that a team effort between retailers and brands might be the best game plan.
c. Faster tech adoption
Considering the pandemic has accelerated the rate of digital transformation across all industries, more and more online FMCG stores are starting to pick up the pace regarding tech innovations, as they now understand it’s their only way to compete and offer a complete online offering.
d. Platform integration
It’s an increasingly common FMCG trend for traditional retailers like Walmart to partner with personal shopper platforms like Instacart to execute their grocery store deliveries. Furthermore, online FMCG retailers are significantly expanding their market reach by partnering with digital platforms that allow customers to buy from multiple stores.
e. Contract staff hires
A rising trend for FMCG retailers is to outsource delivery hand pickers and drivers to support their internal teams on a contractual basis. This recruitment model is beneficial for busy periods, like Christmas, Easter, and Halloween or even for their most active periods throughout each day.
f. More personalisation
Unlike in-store shopping, online FMCG stores are taking advantage of the wealth of customer data available to them through online delivery services. Using data to improve online experiences isn’t just an FMCG trend but an essential part of any FMCG marketing strategy, as personalised offers, rewards, and campaigns enhance customer loyalty.
g. Exclusive FMCG brands
Another FMCG trend is to create more exclusivity contracts with popular FMCG brands. By selling exclusive brands, online grocery retailers can attract more customers to their online and in-store stores, as many consumers are willing to switch stores or buy from multiple retailers at once to get the exact brands they want.
FMCG marketing tactics to help you stand out online
Though it’s a highly competitive landscape, there are ways FMCG marketing tactics that online grocery retailers can employ to help differentiate themselves from competitors. Here are some examples, plus our top FMCG marketing tips.
a. Social media engagement
Many online FMCG brands don’t use social media as an effective tool to increase customer loyalty. Instead, they use it mainly to shout about offers, new products in stock, etc. But brands that create engaging content, interact with consumers, and express their brand identity online create stronger connections with their customers and keep their business.
b. Mobile marketing ads
Online grocery brands that craft compelling, targeted mobile advertising campaigns can attract new customers to their business and stay top of mind with their current ones – reminding them of your FMCG special offers and online shopping services.
c. Enhanced product content
Adding recipes or even video tutorials to some of the products on your website, like cake recipes or kids’ craft videos, can offer consumers a more helpful experience, keeping them returning to your online FMCG store over others.
d. Personalised promotions
Harnessing customer data to deliver more personalised FMCG marketing promotions to your customers can help keep them engaged with your online grocery store, encourage repeat purchases, and give them more incentive to continue shopping on your website over others.
e. Online loyalty schemes
Leveraging the power of giving back to your FMCG consumers through online loyalty points systems, rewards schemes, and competitions can give your FMCG brand the marketing boost it needs to stand out and hold onto your customers.
Convert Group: Your secret to a stand-out, successful online grocery brand
Our innovative data-sharing eCommerce platform significantly improves FMCG brand-retailer collaboration and ensures consistent messaging across all product lines.
From one dashboard, Convert Group allows FMCG brands to view all online retailers at once, track product competition, assess and update product content, and spot product inconsistencies – helping you stay agile and competitive in an ever-evolving market.
Convert Group reduces the need for FMCG teams to trawl through countless retailer websites to assess product content and delivers data-based consumer insights that help inform your business decisions and improve product performance.
If you’re interested in developing a more data-driven FMCG eCommerce marketing strategy, get in touch with us today, and our friendly team will help you understand the benefits of Convert Group for your business.
