For some time, I’ve been a HUGE fan of Whole Foods Market. With their headquarters in Austin, I eat lunch in their awesome cafe three or four times a week. That being said, I rarely do my grocery shopping at Whole Foods, simply because it is so much less expensive to go to a competing grocery store. Today, I decided that I’d change pace and do my weekly shopping at Whole Foods.
Wow! The Whole Foods Market in Austin has a digital pricing system. Every single product in the store has a digital display below it on its shelf (similar to a calculator face) that gives the product’s current price. At first glance, you might assume that this is Whole Foods way of simplifying the rather tedious process of replacing price labels on a daily basis. But, I think these digital price displays are a little smarter than first look might render.
While walking up and down the herbal tea isle, looking for “my brand” I noticed that several of the price displays changed as I looked at them. WHAT!? Yes, the price of three herbal teas dropped as I walked past them. This got me thinking, how complex is the pricing system that Whole Foods is using? Are product prices rising and falling as I shop? If I stand around the store long enough, will I end up saving money, or is it possible that I take an item off the shelf at one price, but find it to be a completely different price upon checkout? Or was this just a glitch in the system, that I happened to experience first hand?
Regardless, I think that Whole Foods has a winner on its hands. I would imagine that these displays are intrinsically linked to a much more advanced system that logs consumer behavior. Being that Whole Food prides itself on selling only the freshest of fresh, I’ll assume that shelf life goes into the end price that is displayed digitally. The longer a product is on the shelf, the more of a discount is given off the retail price. This allows them to move products off the shelf that will expire soon. But, I wonder if they don’t also consider consumer buying habits? If a particular brand of herbal tea is selling really well, will Whole Foods lower the price, or make it higher? Will I save more money shopping on a Wednesday than shopping on a Sunday? These are all questions that I’d like to learn the answers to in regards to this digital pricing system.
Whatever the answers, I love Whole Foods. Their Animal Compassion and Whole Planet Foundations alone are reason enough to enjoy Whole Foods. But, let’s face it, they just offer a superior shopping experience and I think these digital displays are designed to heighten that experience. Whole Foods is basically taking consumer tracking techniques from the internet and applying them to real life, like many other retailers are doing. So, go visit a Whole Foods, enjoy the experience (impossible not to) and let me know whether you think those digital displays are designed to help increase your shopping experience, increase Whole Foods bottom line, or a pleasant blend of both?
Is your company’s pricing system designed to fluctuate from day-to-day or month-to-month, depending on market conditions? Do you give incentives to frequent clients or consumers? How are you making your customer’s shopping experience more efficient and pleasant? What are people saying about the new technology that you’ve recently implemented?
