How to drive shoppers to the egg case

In a marketplace where consumers are imposing increasingly high standards on the food industry, brands are being asked to be more transparent and create more authentic relationships with shoppers. Consumers are engaged in the food industry more than ever before, and brands and retailers must build greater loyalty with these educated, savvy shoppers.

To respond to changing consumer behaviours, retailers must make strategic decisions that educate consumers and minimize confusion within the egg category. Retailers can serve their shoppers through these educational efforts.

GUIDE SHOPPERS THROUGH THEIR BUYING DECISIONS

Grocers can guide shoppers to a better buying decision and garner their trust by being transparent and clear about the specialty egg claims they're selling. Doing so, however, means understanding the difference between cage-free eggs, pasture-raised eggs, free-range eggs and commodity eggs.

TELL AN ACCURATE AND COMPELLING STORY

With the desire for transparency in food production practices continuing to drive the industry, communication between retailers and brands has reached unprecedented heights. Fortunately, brands and retailers have many tools to help them integrate communications and campaigns across in-store, digital and mobile channels.

Educating consumers in-store should be a dual effort between brand and retailer. Imagery is among the most effective tools that can be enlisted to drive an emotional response from consumers. Retailers can drive more foot traffic to the egg aisle through video and in-store signage that use evocative imagery from producer farms. These simple tactics further promote transparency and clarify in visually impactful ways just what shoppers are purchasing when they pick up their carton of eggs.

CAPITALIZE ON NUTRITION AND EATING TRENDS

Protein and clean ingredient lists are two nutritional trends that can pique consumers' interest.

Eggs, along with dairy and meat items in the refrigerated case, are well positioned to capitalize on the demand for high-quality protein. Featuring a single ingredient or a short list of whole-food ingredients, these items are seen as inherently natural and an easy step to cleaning and simplifying diets while providing protein.

Further changing the way consumers eat, snacking has overtaken meals altogether. Considering both of these trends, items like hard-cooked eggs and other refrigerated items in convenience packaging are a perfect addition to a retailer's mix as an ideal protein-rich snack with simple ingredients.

Retailers and brands must engage consumers who want to have conversations about the food they’re feeding themselves and their families, and they must engage in a way that’s informative and transparent. While it’s the brand’s responsibility to shed light on its processes and systems of operations, retailers can help make education about the egg category more accessible and prominent at the point of purchase. From farm to store aisle, shoppers should be met where they are, all in an effort to promote full transparency.

Brandy Gamoning is the marketing manager of Denver-based NestFresh Eggs, where she oversees consumer campaigns and trade marketing to champion the brand.

A version of this article appeared at ProgressiveGrocer.com.