The Roper Starch report - Statistical Data Included - Illustration

Discount Store News, April 17, 2000 by Murray Forseter

For maintenance drug prescriptions Like insulin, heart medication and the Like, consumers appear more wilting to pass the task of restocking home supplies to the retailer.

Anticipation based on past history might work welt for the home center and food service segments. For restaurateurs, nothing would be more inviting to a patron than being welcomed by name with a comment (drawn from the database) that their special needs, such as a low-fat diet, can be accommodated in the kitchen.

Home centers might consider keeping records of their customers' major home-improvement projects and activities. For example, a customer who paints his house in 2001 should be queried about a new paint order two or three years later. This type of programmed anticipation of customer needs can work well for department stores, furniture stores and other retailers as well. It takes very few brain cells to realize that a family with a newborn will need progressively bigger clothing every few months and eventually children's furniture to replace the crib and bassinet. Communication targeted to their specific, individualized circumstances, and not easily identified mass mailings, wilt go far in solidifying a Lasting relationship.

Convenience is a major theme consumers are looking for in the next 10 years. In fact, they desire it so much they want it to be automated. Ninety-six percent like the idea of public restrooms in stores with stalls that sterilize themselves automatically after every use; 94 percent favor shopping carts in grocery stores with computerized mapping systems to indicate where products are located, their price and what goods are on sale (apparently VideoCart was ahead of its time); and three-quarters of them are intrigued with the idea that restaurants would have electronic menu systems that would make printed menus a thing of the past. These menus would display visual images of the food. They'd have audio components for the sight-impaired or for young children.

Another 62 percent like fitting rooms that size and fit shoppers electronically and recommend the most flattering materials, clothing styles and colors for each body type. But more consumers dislike than like (47 percent to 44 percent) the possibility of elderly or disabled shoppers riding around stores in motorized shopping carts for a small fee. It's unclear if their objections centered on the fee or fear factor.

Though waiting on line at the checkout always ranks high among the least-desirable aspects of shopping, respondents to the Roper Starch AOL survey surprisingly did not universally embrace an idea that would eliminate a visit to the cash register. Only 56 percent say they like a system that incorporates a hand-held scanner logged into a personal shopping account that is activated once the shopper scans an item. Indeed, 30 percent dislike the concept outright.

But men and those from households with more than $80,000 in total income favor the system more than women and Lower-income household members. The differences are significant: at least 25 percent greater in each comparison. Perhaps it's a reflection of the predominantly male aversion to shopping and the feeling "rich" people have that they are wasting not only their time but their money when they wait in line anywhere.