Rise of the retailer influencer: What fmcg brands need to know
Move over, celebrities. There’s a new breed of influencer rising up in fmcg – and they are fast rewriting the rules of how brands activate launches in the convenience channel, build relationships with independent retailers and ultimately reach shoppers.
When we recently relaunched our Clarion Retailer Collective with a special roundtable of prominent convenience retailers, the rise of retailer influencers was on everyone’s lips.
“I think what retailers want now is to be inspired by other retailers,” Costcutter retailer and co-founder of C-Talk, Paul Cheema, told us. “Every retailer is an influencer now.”
Part of what makes retailers so effective as influencers is their authenticity and relatability, says Sophie Williams of Broadway Convenience Store in Edinburgh. “We are the ones that sell the products at the end of the day. It makes it far more relatable – people can just watch a video and realise they can go down to their local store to get that. It makes it much more accessible and it’s a win for both retailers and brands.”
The implications for brands and the relationships they have with retailers are significant. As convenience retailers become more active on social channels and develop significant followings of their own, the dynamic between retailers and brands is changing.
“There’s a whole new generation of retailers now,” says Ricky Sharma of the Thrifty’s chain in the North West. “It’s a completely different breed and they want to work with brands in different ways. Some reps still have that stereotype where they think you just want a free case of drinks off them and that’s it. But for many retailers now it’s much more about sharing knowledge and working together to grow the business. Retailers like us want to work with brands at a higher level.”
So, how should brands go about creating partnerships with this new breed of retailers? And what do they need to keep in mind?
Here are five top tips from the Clarion Retailer Collective for creating winning collaborations with retailer influencers.
1. Think convenience-first for new and trending products
In the age of TikTok, trends are changing rapidly and products can go viral in a flash. Keeping up with the latest product news can be tricky, so retailers say they value brands that make the effort to keep them abreast of NPD and give them a heads-up on social media trends. ‘Firsts’ or exclusives on new products are especially appreciated and can be a great way to build deeper relationships with influential retailers.
Sophie tells us: “Being first to know makes us feel really valued. There is nothing more embarrassing than when I’ve got little kids come into the store and they’re like: ‘I’ve seen this, do you have this?’ and I have no idea what they’re talking about. I think we sometimes get lost among all the supermarkets, so if a brand makes a point of letting an independent retailer know first or giving us that exclusivity, that’s something very special. In return, we’ll work our butts off to promote that product.”
It's a point echoed by Sue Nithyanandan of Costcutter in Epsom. “As retailers, we should get first-hand knowledge of what’s coming to market and when. Because the worst thing is when a customer comes in and asks us for something and we don’t know.”
To make the most of viral moments, close collaboration between brands and retailers is also essential, adds Amrit Singh Pahal of H & Jodie’s Nisa in Walsall, who is known in the industry for his focus on stocking on-trend NPD.
“All it takes nowadays is for the right influencer to make a product go viral, but it often takes brands too long to cotton on and then there’s a shortfall in supply and customers get frustrated,” says Amrit. “If brands don’t manage the situation correctly with retailers, they risk damaging their reputation. I would love to work more closely with brands to forecast demand.”
2. Show that you truly understand the channel
Viral products can be a lot of fun, but retailers tell us what they really want is long-term relationships with brands that are serious about convenience and understand the specific needs and requirements of the channel. Brands that are superficial, transactional or only using retailers for their own gain are a big turn-off.
“You’ve got to understand the culture of convenience,” says Avtar ‘Sid’ Sidhu of St John’s Budgens in Kenilworth. “We’re not supermarkets; we need a completely separate strategy. Whenever we’ve worked with brands, the most successful relationships are those where the brand really gets the channel and our customers.”
The best brands make retailers feel they’re part of the team, Sid adds. “I can think of a few examples where you just feel you’re part of the culture of that organisation at every single level, whether it’s bringing products to life or doing activations in store. There’s a certain level of professional trust there as well, with us being privy to a lot more information and signing NDAs. It really engages you with the brand and makes you want to do your bit to help their products to succeed.”
3. Avoid ‘one size fits all’
To run a successful campaign with retailer influencers, alignment and personalisation are key, the Clarion Retailer Collective experts say. This means engaging with retailers as early as possible and co-creating campaigns tailored to their store and customer profile. A cookie-cutter approach is unlikely to yield great results.
“That’s probably the biggest thing for us,” says Amrit. “If you can get alignment with a brand early on an initiative that you care about and have them create initiatives with you on the ground, you’re on to a winner."
Instead of sending out generic promotional materials, sending free stock to key retailers and encouraging them to create content for their social channels is often a better way to go, Sophie believes.
“Nobody is going to say no to being sent free stock and making a video,” she says. “I actually think it’s a much better way for brands to use their budget, especially now that everybody is concerned about the environment,” she says. “So many times brands will send you masses of POS and it doesn’t necessarily fit your store and ends up being a waste of money. I think they should funnel that money into sending out stock instead.”
4. Make it easy to create great content about your products
Some retailers are already very savvy about digital and social media, while others are only at the beginning of their journey. To maximise engagement and reach through retailer influencers, brands should look to remove barriers to content creation by providing easy-to-use assets that are ready for retailers to put on their own digital and social channels.
It can be as simple as making sure retailers can easily screengrab digital assets, suggests Paul. “Because not every retailer is as good at this as other retailers, so how can those smaller retailers still be inspired and access what we’re doing?”
Retailers say they are also keen to hear from brands that can provide opportunities for them to feature on branded social channels. “Often brands have millions of followers, but you don’t generally see retailers on their channels,” says Amrit.
“That’s a massive thing we should tap into: using brands’ social media pages to increase engagement and show how the brand is working with retailers on the ground.”
5. Ensure social is part of the product strategy
Digital and social media are key routes for engaging with today’s retailer influencers, and retailers expect brands to have a well-thought out social strategy as part of any product launch or campaign.
While preferences vary, most retailers in the Clarion Retailer Collective tell us LinkedIn has become an essential channel for them and is typically the first port of call for connecting with other retailers.
“LinkedIn is very, very important,” says Sue. “I think almost everyone should be on LinkedIn because that's the best platform now to share what's going on in the industry.”
Paul strikes a similar note. “I think LinkedIn is a big feed now for any communication,” he says. “And that's for a lot of retailers.”
Retailers are also increasingly active in various WhatsApp groups run by brands and retailers. “Those groups are really dynamic, which is great,” says Sid. “If you’re brainstorming an idea or something comes to mind, you can get instant feedback from everyone. It’s a really dynamic platform for brands and retailers to cooperate.”
“We’re all willing to share, learn and inspire each other through different groups,” adds Paul. “When a brand shares something important with us, we then share that with other WhatsApp groups and other groups we’re involved with. Convenience retailers do think of themselves as a collective, so it’s all about sharing that knowledge.”