Digital Natives Gen Z & Millennials Drive Complexity Free Foodservice

Digital natives Gen Z and Millennial consumers expect frictionless checkout as a standard not as something special.  Complexity free food retail today must include an ‘auto’ –‘digital’ payment option according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®. 

Regular readers of this blog know we have been touting the success of Starbucks digital payment system and the rapid customer adoption since 2015.  So, we ask what have you been doing to speed service and integrate digital payments?

As restaurant year over year customer counts continue to fall “c-store chains including Cruizers in North Carolina, Ricker's and Family Express in Indiana, and Parker's and Enmarket in Georgia, as well as convenience giant 7-Eleven Inc. are testing some type of frictionless checkout in their stores. That said they are also adding new fresh prepared meals and meal components to drive incremental business according to Johnson.

Kimberly Otocki, convenience store marketing specialist for Paytronix Systems, noted that mobile is a huge component of a consumers' day-to-day lives. On average, Americans spend 2.8 hours a day on their mobile devices, which accounts for 51 percent of their total digital media time.

 "They are spending a lot of time on their mobile devices and we see it day to day because we know when we walk down the street or our customers come into our stores, they most likely have their mobile phones out and are using them," she said.

 Mobile has become so big that the average person checks their phone 157 times a day. In addition, 90 percent of consumers use their phones inside stores while shopping.

Smartphones have changed the way we interact, the way we experience life and, because mobile devices enable consumers to get what they want in an instant, convenience views have shifted as well, Otocki said, calling it "the now factor." The numbers speak to that. For example:

·         86 percent of shoppers avoid going into stores with long lines;

·         74 percent of shoppers will shop at a competitor rather than a store with a long checkout line; and

·         41 percent of shoppers will change their minds about a purchase if there is a long checkout line. 

 "That's a lot of customers who will gladly avoid going to your store if they know they are going to be greeted with a long line or if they go in and see a long line, they will purposely avoid it," she said. "We want to make sure our line speeds are down to make sure they continue shopping with us."

This ongoing shift in consumer expectations and their definition of convenience is driving frictionless engagement.  Are you looking a customer ahead?

Looking for success clues of your own? Foodservice Solutions® specializes in outsourced food marketing and business development ideations. We can help you identify, quantify and qualify additional food retail segment opportunities, technology, or a new menu product segment.  Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma WA is the global leader in the Grocerant niche visit Facebook.com/Steven Johnson, Linkedin.com/in/grocerant/ or twitter.com/grocerant

At 7-Eleven Convenience Means Skip the Checkout Line

Fresh food fast is important at 7-Eleven according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®. Technology is playing an increasing role in delivering fresh food fast according to Johnson as 7-Eleven is piloting mobile scan & pay self-checkout at 14 convenience stores in the Dallas area.

This new Scan & Pay platform allows customers to skip the checkout line and pay for items using the 7-Eleven app. The frictionless shopping experience is integrated into the 7Rewards loyalty program, allowing customers to automatically earn 7Rewards points upon purchase, redeem points to purchase applicable products, as well as receive all in-store promotions.

Here is how it works. Scan & Pay, customers need to update the latest version of the retailer's mobile app and register with the 7Rewards loyalty program. Once inside the store, customers open the app and tap "Start Scannin" at the bottom of the home page.

From there:

·         Customers must be within the geo-fenced area in or around one of the 14 pilot stores for the shopping feature to appear.

·         As they shop, customers scan items with a bar code using the guides on their phone screen. Items are added to their basket, along with any discounts or promotional pricing.

·         Customers pay for purchases using Apple Pay, Google Pay or a traditional debit or credit card. Scan & Pay stations with clear shopping bags are in the store.

·         Once they pay for their purchases, customers scan the QR code on the final confirmation screen at the Scan & Pay confirmation station. 

"We want every interaction with 7-Eleven to be valuable and delightful and fast," Singh said. "Customers can now take control of their shopping experience and earn loyalty points at the same time. Customers are given a variety of options when they walk into a 7-Eleven store, from product assortment and customization all the way to payment methods. We are taking the in-store retail experience to the next level with a series of innovations. Scan & Pay is one of them."

Scan & Pay works with Android and iOS devices and is available for all merchandise except items that require cashier assistance, including hot foods, financial services and age-verified products.

Foodservice Solutions® specializes in outsourced food marketing and business development ideations. We can help you identify, quantify and qualify additional food retail segment opportunities, technology, or a new menu product segment.  Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma WA is the global leader in the Grocerant niche visit Facebook.com/Steven Johnson, Linkedin.com/in/grocerant/ or twitter.com/grocerant