The Myth of “Average”
There is no such thing as the “average” consumer. So said John Rand, director of retail insights for Management Ventures, during his keynote yesterday at CASCON, CAS Americas’ customer conference. Rand explained that up to now the best data generally has been about the average, but that average is really about no one in particular – and that type of broad focus will no longer be useful in this world of increasing customer expectations of relevancy.
His prediction:
We will stop selling to the average and performance metrics will change as a result.
“The future of retail is a non-standardized marketplace,” Rand told attendees, who hail from some of the largest consumer products goods companies in the United States and globally. “Branding at the product level has to be more sophisticated. There will be something for everyone, but not the same something and not in the same place.”
Rand recommended that companies do less mass marketing and more niche marketing at both the store and brand levels. He explained that many retailers, even those with broad offerings, are becoming increasingly focused on specific consumers – and that CPG companies must follow suit. "Shopper segmentation is becoming mission critical," he said, adding that CPGs need to focus on innovation with products and marketing “to serve the unique preferences of a targeted shopper base.”
Where to get the insights for those innovations? Customer data. CPGs, Rand said, should base product decisions on "shopper insights." They should match products to prospects in new and unique ways, he said.
