The highlights and key takeaways from this yr’s occasion.
March 2024: Business leaders, knowledgeable audio system, and panelists from all corners of the Technical Shopper Items market convened in Berlin to share their most vital insights and predictions for 2024 on the tenth annual TCG Summit, the premier worldwide suppose tank for the TCG retail business, showcasing GfK’s worldwide experience.
As the only perception accomplice for greater than six years operating, GfK performed a pivotal function in making certain the success of this occasion by the availability of key business insights and knowledge. Utilizing superior analytics and state-of-the-art platforms, GfK offers a holistic retail learn and complete client insights into the TCG market, facilitating a deep understanding of shoppers’ shopping for conduct and the dynamics impacting markets, manufacturers, and media tendencies.
This yr, GfK’s World Strategic Insights Director, Namrata Gotarne, delivered her extremely anticipated keynote handle: Affect and alternatives amidst worth centric markets.
We requested Namrata for her tackle this yr’s occasion and a better take a look at the important thing factors of her presentation.
Which audio system or displays have been highlights for you from this yr’s summit?
Vincent Gufflet, COO of Fnac Darty introduced how they’ve successfully remodeled their enterprise mannequin. I actually appreciated how they’ve targeted on driving sustainability conduct amongst their shoppers by creating an ecosystem to scale their subscription providers (for repairing units and home equipment). That was a wonderful instance of the right way to meet client expectations and on the similar time create further income streams.
One other spotlight was Olivia Reid’s presentation concerning the impression of Generative AI on companies and types. Olivia, who’s the Lead Strategist at Journey, targeted on the way forward for AI enabling hyper-personalization and enhancing hyper-customization.
The rise of the value-centric buyer was a key level of your speak. How is the notion of worth altering for shoppers within the electronics business right now?
In an unsure financial setting, worth sensitivity amongst shoppers has elevated, resulting in extra conscious purchasing. Regardless of this worth sensitivity, worth continues to rule as shoppers steadiness their cash spent and worth acquired. The notion of worth, nonetheless, goes past worth; shoppers count on retailers and producers to ship value-based innovation in addition to experiences which have a constructive impression on shoppers’ lives. So, services or products which can be handy, sustainable, and even one thing which may assist them save prices in the long run.
How are TCG retailers adapting their methods to regulate to evolving client conduct?
The pursuit of assembly shoppers’ expectations of seamless purchasing experiences continues; Omnichannel technique nonetheless is on the forefront for all retailers. Different paths are being adopted to finally supply the very best of ‘phygital’ purchasing throughout totally different areas. There’s an elevated concentrate on operations to supply comfort to shoppers. This additionally permits them to optimize their prices. From implementing self-checkout kiosks to rethinking retailer codecs and areas to utilizing shops as success facilities. Retailers are additionally investing to both launch or revamp their loyalty packages to interact shoppers to supply unique entry and VIP perks throughout promotions.
You shared knowledge displaying that promotional occasions have gotten more and more vital to shoppers. How can promotions be used to ship worth in 2024?
Promotional occasions have been used as an efficient instrument to drive gross sales and supply an ‘additional push’ to shoppers to make purchases, drive demand and win cost-conscious shoppers. This yr, shoppers are marking their calendars to schedule their purchases. Retailers and producers want to make sure these promotions are tailor-made to client expectations to domesticate recurring client relationships. Thus, creating a chance to interact shoppers and providing worth that goes past worth cuts. This consists of: the best assortment, wealthy purchasing expertise, and a concentrate on high quality of service like cost strategies, installment choices or just quicker supply and a straightforward returns course of.
How a lot of a precedence is sustainability for shoppers within the TCG business?
The significance that buyers world wide place on sustainability has endured, whatever the competing urgency of the pandemic and the present cost-of-living disaster. Almost three-quarters of individuals world wide see “World local weather change / international warming” as a really or extraordinarily severe difficulty. It has risen to be the #5 prime client concern right now. Customers’ expectations listed here are increasing. To be perceived as genuinely eco-friendly, producers and retailers are more and more anticipated to have the ability to level to every thing from the suppliers they work with to their merchandise’ materials, packaging, transportation, sturdiness, and recyclability, to their help of environmental or humanitarian causes.
What have been the important thing takeaways from the panel dialogue following your keynote?
For me, I feel there have been two important takeaways. The primary is that innovation has slowed down significantly within the TCG area. The main incremental innovation is occurring inside small home home equipment, however every thing else has type of slowed down. We’d like the subsequent iPhone second to entice shoppers to purchase new merchandise. The second level is that on the similar time, innovation is occurring — but it surely takes time. As Mehmet Ragip Balcioglu (CCO Arcelik ) talked about there may be loads of money and time being invested into analysis into main home equipment to supply larger efficiencies. To see remaining outcomes, it would simply take time.
In your opinion, what are a number of the important tendencies that may form notions of worth and client conduct sooner or later?
Customers are looking out for excellent or wealthy experiences from the merchandise they buy and the retailers they buy from. They’re in search of services that allow versatile dwelling or value financial savings in the long run or designed particularly for his or her distinctive wants. Clear use instances that ship worth for the additional cash they may spend will probably be essential. High quality of service is a widely known buy driver which is now regaining its prominence whereas making buy selections or selecting a selected retailer to buy from. It’s usually neglected and regarded easy; the fact is, shoppers usually tend to return to buy or buy from a retailer in case such a constructive expertise was delivered to life.
