What Does IT Promotion Have to Do With a Grocery Store?

In April this year, I had the pleasure to speak at the East-Media conference in Bialystok. The event is devoted to trends in marketing, especially the use of new technologies in reaching potential customers. At this point, I congratulate the Organizers for preparing an interesting and well-planned conference.

During my speech, I talked about what IT promotion has to do with a grocery store. Companies use this type of service primarily to stand out, to show their uniqueness. Public relations is communicating about the activity of the company and implementing projects, and this in turn contributes to inspiring greater trust in our work among business partners or investors.

Effectively implemented promotional activities make others more willing to use our services, believing in our experience and know-how. Below I will present the most important issues that I raised during the whole speech.

The Grocery Store Is Usually Close to People

The difference between a grocery store and a supermarket is big. Namely, when deciding to shop in a grocery store, we know that we will get fresh and good quality products there because we often know the seller personally. In addition, these small shops are usually close to our house, and we go there wearing sweatpants when, for example, we lack the ingredients to finish cooking. This is not the case for purchases in large retail chains. For those, we organize an expedition, we prepare by making a list of things that we need to buy for the next month.

The situation is similar in the case of technology. It is supposed to serve us, help us solve everyday problems, to make life easier. It should be prepared and communicated in such a way that its use is not a challenge.

Simple, interesting messages, showing that their creators understand the needs of customers, will do more to promote your solution than even the most ambitious manuals that explain all functionalities. The fact that your app, portal, or device is based on state-of-the-art technology is very important, but it will interest very few people.

Want to reach more customers? Show clearly why your product is the one we should buy, and leave all technological facts to those who will be able to understand them.

The Seller Understands Your Needs

Due to the smaller distance between the seller and the buyer, face-to-face shopping in a grocery store means that you can tell what you are making for dinner and what you are having trouble with, and the other person will advise you and give you tips because he knows his products well.

You are this salesman. Therefore, when, for example, you promote a sports application, you need to know which customer’s need is to be met and in which situations it will be used. Why? To properly select the communication channels. For example, are you a startup dealing with the topic of health? Perfect. Remember that articles on technology fan portals will not necessarily translate into the development of the company, but rather think about health portals, magazines, and conferences presenting how to have a healthy lifestyle. There you will find people who may need exactly what your company does.

IT Promotion – Use Simple Language and Don’t Forget to Present the Benefits

You see some exotic fruit or vegetable on display. On the one hand, you are curious; on the other hand, you are worried—will you know how to make it? What do you do to get to know this new taste? How do you deal with it properly? If you ask the seller, he will surely give you the name of the product, tell you how to use it and what it tastes best with. And all of a sudden, the fears are gone. You buy it and bring it home to surprise everyone with a brand new exotic dish.

It’s similar to the case of creating a new program, application, or product. You’ve seen it work for someone, and now you’re wondering if it would work for you. Questions and doubts begin to multiply in your head: you’re not sure you’re going to do everything right, or maybe it will take you too long to learn this solution and it will turn out that it wasn’t worth it at all.

In the case of providing IT services, you do not always have the opportunity to directly talk to a potential customer. Often, the first point of contact is the website. It is a showcase of what you do. Remember that industry language can be difficult to perceive, and thus may discourage your audience. What do you need to do now? First of all, show the website to several people with different tastes and ask them for opinions on the readability of the website and the clarity of the messages contained therein. Then let them play the role of your client and tell you about their needs.

Context Counts Every Time

Would a grocery store located next to a gas station or between clothing stores in a shopping mall inspire your trust? It wouldn’t for me, because in my opinion, such a store doesn’t fit in such places. The same is true for IT promotion.

Beginner entrepreneurs come to our agency and say they want to be everywhere. We advise them against this type of activity every time, because:

This would often be associated with a very large time burden—it would also take time to participate in interviews and recordings, and they usually cannot afford to take a few days off to just meet journalists.
Not every medium will reach the group that they are actually interested in—so maybe their ego would grow, but it would not translate into an increase in value or the number of customers of the company.

I strongly recommend choosing the media channels that are crucial for the client, and then establishing and building a good and lasting relationship with journalists. I would advise against the reckless transmission of information to everyone, as well as sending one piece of information to multiple people at the same time. It is just a step to spoil the cooperation that has not yet started.

We Buy With Our Eyes

How many times did you stop by the grocery store and buy a product that you didn’t actually need, but it was so nicely displayed that you immediately wanted it?

The same is true of your company. The better you present it, even using attractive photos or graphics, the more you will attract the attention of others. Remember this! Our brain processes images 60,000 times faster than text. And as shown by the 2014 State of Inbound Marketing study:

63% of the content posted on social media is photos.
94% of content placed on the web, and enriched with photos, has more views than without them.
Tweets with photos are shared more often by 150%.

And finally, remember that the best promotion does not sell the product. It sells values, emotions, and feelings. Now imagine how effective your company could be if you were to conduct communication activities properly and interestingly.