Hygiene as a marketing strategy

We all notice the transformations in retail caused by the pandemic, especially with regard to hygiene and social distancing controls. What we barely realize is how stores are gradually starting to guide their marketing strategies in this direction, including long-term strategies.
At first, measures such as special times for people in the risk group or body temperature control for access to the store seemed to be temporary actions, of an emergency nature only. Now, executives and store designers realize the changing public as to the perception of what really matters at the time of the purchase decision.
In a survey conducted in early July, 29% of U.S. consumers said they would stop going to a store if they knew there were no health safety and hygiene measures there. What was once a basic obligation has become a key item of differentiation and even loyalty. Earn customer trust by offering a conspicuously secure environment and get in return a level of loyalty that perhaps no other action has achieved before. What seemed like a nightmare to the retailer becomes an opportunity.
Around the 1990s, food retail was taken over by a layout trend that valued cool colors in an attempt to demonstrate hygiene and modernity. Blue and light greens dominated the scene with a clean, sterile feel. This changed when research showed that consumers felt better in more humanized environments and that they remembered more where the food came from, and soon the cold colors were replaced by a warmer and more welcoming environment. Wood tones and darker greens brought airs of nature to the environment.
"Now, with the fear of COVID-19, stores are returning to their previous thinking," says Kevin Kelley, founder of Shook Kelley design who works directly with layouts for retail.
Kelley also affirms the willingness that the consumer demonstrates in witnessing some actions of hygiene and safety. Jobs that were once done away from the public eye, such as the sterilization of shopping carts, now become actions of narrowing and trust.
"Much of the consumer behavior is intuitive. We judge things by packaging, we look for visual triggers", adds Kelley, who has designed for companies such as Whole Foods, Save Mart, Kraft and Coca-Cola. "The store in essence is like a great package, and we are inside this package."
In order to trigger the desired consumer triggers, Kelley tells us about the right odors. "We want hygiene odors to hit buyers' senses. Everything we can do to activate these intuitive senses, even before the customer's rational perception, will make a huge difference."
For this, shopkeepers seek to place hygiene and sterilization actions at the center of the focus. Allowing customers to see some of these practices, such as the case for cart sterilization, sends the clear message that things are now safer around here. It is not enough to take the health of the customer seriously – it is necessary that this is transparent and in plain sight, all the time.
In Brazil, solutions such as totems specialized in body temperature readings and automatic dispensers of alcohol gel are at the forefront of this battle for the attention of this new consumer. As this is no longer a short-term measure, companies feel more comfortable making longer-term investments in this direction. The customer who is now loyal to the company's commitment to hygiene and safety will demand that this pact be maintained, under penalty of the loss of trust acquired.
By installing totems and systems of this type, the store starts to use the strategy as the main communication front, even directing its media efforts to this audience. Advertising campaigns around the totems show a company not only committed to health, but also tuned and updated with the demands of its audience. Who doesn't want to be seen as someone who sees ahead? Surprising the consumer with solutions that go beyond the trivial is the key at this time. Technology is the most powerful tool when the goal is to surprise.
You retailer, who found himself facing this new challenge, change your focus and look at it as the opportunity that it really is. A store in 2020 that become recognized for its technology environment for health safety will be screaming, more than any ad: this is your place to shop.
Luciana Cabrini