How Kraft-Heinz Shapes Tomorrow's Shopping Routines—Today 

Winning future brand loyalty isn’t a job for the timid. Technology turns old habits into stone as shopping becomes automated and algorithms narrow the consideration set. Winning new households tomorrow will be harder—but marketers can influence that future now. 

In their session at the Path to Purchase Institute’s Future Forward Conference, Kroger Precision Marketing’s Jenny Holleran sat down with The Kraft-Heinz Company’s Head of North America eComm Sales Andrew Harrison to reflect on the evolution of shopping behaviors. They discussed how brands identify moments that shape the future, from commerce tactics to future-focused metrics.

Shaping new brand preferences: The time is now

Let’s face it: We’re living through a time of massive disruption in shopping. Consumers are facing inflation challenges today – on the heels of a global pandemic that re-shaped how people work, live, and shop.  

Meanwhile, technology and cultural changes have raised consumer expectations for both brands and retailers. People expect seamless commerce and they have more options than ever. Consumers are in control of where, when, and how they shop.  

“This is a once-in-a-career opportunity for all of us,” Holleran said. “We are still in the early days of eCommerce and the shopping decisions being made today are going to have a long-term impact.”  

Retailers and CPG marketers should seize this moment to work together and shape new brand preferences. Together, they have the power to inspire consumers as they navigate new choices for their homes and families. 

“We created Kroger Precision Marketing for this moment,” Holleran said. “We launched KPM five years ago with a mission to make advertising more effective for our CPG brand partners. Today, the spotlight is on retail media as a powerful new lever to influence shopping decisions.” 

A crystal ball view of shopping behavior

The Kraft-Heinz Company has been an early pioneer in understanding the evolution of shopping behaviors.

“We’ve seen this really interesting acceleration around seeking data and convenience,” Harrison said. “The way people are shopping now has gotten really blurred.”

Shoppers want a more seamless experience—whether it’s on their phone, computer, or in store. The brands who figure out how to deliver that seamless omni shopping experience are the ones that will win, he said.

“When half your shoppers are ordering online and half are going into a store, it makes the whole idea of discovery really difficult,” he said. “We're looking at how data can enable better decision making around the acceleration of convenience. That's what shoppers are going to care about most over the next two years.”

Balancing short-term metrics with long-term brand goals

The balance between business results now vs. innovation later is ongoing.

“CPGs are always going to look at current business analysis and results in the near term,” Harrison said. “At the same time, you need to figure out what the right long-term innovation pipeline is.”

Large established brands can learn a lot from disruptors in their space, such as fast-growing direct-to-consumer products.

“The smaller brands are finding ways to listen to consumers,” Harrison said. “They're finding ways to really look at de-averaged audiences and have more one-to-one personalized conversations, whether from an advertising or research perspective. And that's leading them to come up with more consumer-focused innovation.”

Because those disruptors focus more on the lifetime value of a consumer, they care about consumer-focused metrics such as sentiment, relevance, talkability, organic conversations, and earned media. CPGs can build their future innovation pipeline by taking a page from the disruptor playbook.

If the lifetime value of getting a customer to switch to your brand is worthwhile, then brands may be more willing to invest upfront on winning that customer.

“Certainly, we're still looking at metrics such as traffic, bounce rates, and in-store vs. online purchases,” he said. “But at the end of the day, we're really interested in having more direct conversations with consumers and making consumers feel like we are engaging with them one-to-one—whether it’s through an affiliate strategy, targeted media, or sampling.

Taking this approach, he added, “fundamentally changes your advertising strategy.”

Leveraging retail partnerships for mutual success

Strong retailer relationships can be an advantage in CPG strategic planning. The most successful companies, Harrison said, are the ones who find common ground with the retailers.

“The critical part is finding retailers who truly want to partner and put skin in the game,” he said.

When brands and retailers develop ideas and hold each other accountable, they can establish a real partnership. “That's where you see true growth for both entities—including category growth, which is really what we're after,” he said.

Holleran echoed his assessment of the ideal retailer-brand relationship. “It’s when we take off the ‘retail hat’ or the ‘brand hat,’ and think about what we're trying to accomplish together,” she said. “Collectively those ideas tend to have a better result.”

Harrison also foresees a shift in how retailers and brands approach media intent. “Particularly over the next three years, retail media will grow as it becomes more of an upper-funnel tool,” he said. “For retail media to grow, it has to become extremely cost effective in comparison to traditional media tools.”

What CPG marketers should do now to win future brand loyalty

While consumer habits and advertising technology have changed a lot in recent years, the key to achieving brand loyalty remains the same: Driving relevance with consumers.

“That's how it's always been and how it always will be,” Harrison said. “All that’s changed is how you drive that relevance. Now it’s about direct, personalized, one-to-one conversations—not as much about running Super Bowl ads anymore.”

When talking with Kraft-Heinz’ media partners, Harrison said they focus on how to understand audiences in a lot more detail than in the past. “It's not enough anymore to say you’re going to reach females who are 18 to 49 with 1.5 kids and who make $55,000 a year. You have to go many levels deeper, because consumers are much savvier. They’re looking for authentic interactions with brands.”

Marketers are discovering new ways to make true consumer connections and partner with retailers to achieve long-term brand goals. Companies like Kraft Heinz that prioritize relevance and convenience with shoppers today will attract new loyal households tomorrow.