Wal-Mart division Sam’s Club has appointed US-based Shopper Events to manage its new Tastes and Tips in-club demonstration and sampling program in the US, which will have implications for many Australian retailers and manufacturers.
Shopper Events is jointly managed by US-based retail marketing services company Crossmark and Advantage Sales and Marketing. As part of the appointment, Crossmark will be filling approximately 5000 positions for its assigned Sam’s Club stores.
Crossmark Australia is in discussions with several large Australian retailers regarding the outsourcing of demonstrations to help improve the shopper experience.
“These shifts to aligning in-store events with a retailer’s own promotional calendar and branding are significantly improving the shopper experience around the world,” said Crossmark Australia and New Zealand CEO Kevin Moore.
“In Australia it has yet to be truly aligned with many retailers’ own annual shopper marketing programs. Much of it is still driven by manufacturers’ specific new product launches or promotions rather than the shoppers’ seasonal needs across a whole category.
“Well presented demonstrations from dedicated branded units by trained and consistently available store staff is improving the presentation of manufacturers’ brands, and supporting the retailers’ desired shopper experience. Within Australia and New Zealand Crossmark is in discussions with several major retailers to adopt the EventTrak technology and learnings from our work with Wal-Mart,” said Moore.
Sam’s Club president and CEO Brian Cornell said its strategy for success at Sam’s Club is built on using member insights to make the best choices for our members.
“We spend a lot of time talking to and listening to today’s consumer and our own Club members. We have found that in-club demos, or product sampling, is one of the things they love most about the club experience,” he said.
“Our demos can be a competitive advantage and we want to take this member experience to the next level. Today we are announcing the appointment of Shopper Events, a third-party marketing company, to run our demo program. Our goal is to enhance the demo experience, giving our members a chance to discover new items, and find fresh ways to serve their customers and families.”
Sam’s Club is a division of Wal-Mart Stores and has more than 47 million US members with locations nationwide, and internationally in Brazil, China, Mexico and Puerto Rico. Sam’s Club memberships provide the opportunity to save on a complete line of products such as jewellery, designer goods, sunglasses, crystal and collectibles, electronics, floral, apparel, organic foods and meats for both small business owners and consumers.