What if brands could gauge customer reactions and willingness to buy their products in real life, without using a focus group? That isn’t a question any more as video analytic software is being installed into more stores to do just that. Creepy or smart?
If you’re a brand marketer, it’s smart. Viewing shopping habits of someone that doesn’t know they’re being viewed is beneficial because the shoppers will not act any differently, as they might in a situation where they know research is taking place.
One company is currently providing video analytics in stores to test brands’ packaging, location and anything else that might contribute to more sales in a retail environment.
While the focus of these video tests mostly benefit the brands paying for the service, the stores participate because they too, can gain access to results that may eventually lead to more robust sales.
The video analytics that are proving so beneficial to retailers and brands are merely the latest development in research technology, and if the method continues to prove its worth, will only spur more advances in the field and a more personalized shopping experience for the customer.
Source: Supermarket News, April 2011
