Walmart Grocery Sales Up

The retailing giant has drawn half of its U.S. sales from groceries for the first time in the store's history, reports the Wall Street Journal. Writes reporter Karen Talley, "The drive to offer more groceries is appealing to certain retailers, especially as consumers are still a bit skittish about discretionary purchases. Target Corp. is making a big push into groceries by converting existing stores to sell food and incorporating fresh produce and food at newer ones."

Do you think that Walmart will continue to lead other retailers in their grocery offerings? When the recession ends will they still reign?

Walmart Set to Cut Grocery Prices

Blogging Stocks reports that Walmart is ready to start slashing its grocery prices, putting more pressure on its competitors. The cuts will be across all of the retailer's grocery lines.

Over the next six weeks, the mega-retailer will cut food prices and start a new advertising campaign to promote the move. Grocery stocks, on the other hand, will be running for cover over the same period. This is, as expected, a move by Walmart to keep the customer foot traffic it recruited during the recession in 2009 who now may be returning to rival competitors for purchasing their wares.

What do you think about the move by Walmart? Will we see the competitors drop their prices; and how will this effect the US economy?

Learn more: Walmart Again Vows to Slash Grocery Prices Nationwide

New Content Added to Walmart Presentation at the Shopper Marketing Fusion Event!

Walmart has added a new section to their presentation entitled “The Walmart Smart Network: Smarter Shopping, Smarter Marketing." In addition to the original content, Walmart has added a new piece around “halos” which will be shared for the first time at this event.

• Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009: http://bit.ly/2Z8bHW
• Brochure: http://bit.ly/14ZMFc
• Speakers: http://bit.ly/3Lvp3m
• Registration: http://bit.ly/fKjKy

New Section: THE 3 HALOS OF IN-STORE MARKETING
James Beck, General Manager, Walmart Smart Network, Walmart Stores, Inc.

What is an in-store marketing halo? When marketing drives lift beyond the advertised item to other related items and beyond the campaign to subsequent weeks. It’s the inverse of cannibalization or forward buying.

On Friday, October 16, learn more about this outcome and see examples from the Walmart Smart Network that include brand halo and post-campaign halo.


Plus, James will share:
The Walmart Smart Network: Smarter Shopping, Smarter Marketing
The Walmart Smart Network was introduced a year ago to improve the shopper experience and to drive higher sales lift. Since then, it has delivered impressive results for Walmart’s partners. What has been achieved? What has been learned? What does the future hold? Learn how the Walmart Smart Network combines expertise in retail messaging, dynamic targeting in- store, and reliable insights to accelerate business results.

Key Takeaways:
· How partners on the Walmart Smart Network have achieved exceptional marketing results.
· Programs and programming that deliver what shoppers want and inspire them to buy.
· New approaches to optimization that drive higher sales lift.

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James Beck, General Manager of the Walmart Smart Network, guides a team that is helping moms shop smarter and Walmart suppliers market smarter. Prior to the Walmart Smart Network, James led Walmart’s Home and Hardlines category marketing teams. Before joining Walmart, James served in executive marketing roles with Coca-Cola, Pillsbury and General Mills.

We hope to see you next month!

Cheers,
Shopper Marketing Fusion

Walmart seeing new shoppers

In a recent piece at the Dallas Morning News, they look at how some higher end shoppers have begun to frequent WalMart in these trying economic times. Although many of the shoppers aren't ready to admit they're WalMart customers, WalMart is taking steps to ensure they stick around after the recession is over. They're remodeling stores to appear cleaner, faster and friendlier. Walmart is gaining market share across the US, including a 40% share in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex.

Read more about the new shopper at WalMart here.