Looking through our data on CashbackHQ.com, I noticed something interesting. Latino shoppers were much more likely to redeem rewards they saw at checkout versus upfront offers. We moved some bonuses to the final step and redemption from that group jumped. It made me realize that what happens right at the end matters most. If you want to surprise your loyal customers, try putting your best perks right there at checkout.
Running Dirty Dough, I noticed our Latino customers liked packaging with a story or familiar colors like warm reds and golds, not the minimalist stuff. We kept hearing requests for more vibrant displays, so we changed up our in-store signs and cookie boxes. It worked. Sales in stores with more Latino customers climbed about 15 percent. My advice is to listen to what people tell you, even when it surprises you.
Discovering that the carniceria was the prime store anchor made all the difference. The meat they buy is a staple in the meal planning of many Latino shoppers. We stopped treating the meat counter as a sidebar. It became our strategy. We moved the meat counter to the rear wall. That required shoppers to travel through fresh produce and spices. Sales of tortillas and salsas jumped 20%. This effectively turned the store into a pre-determined meal-planning path.
Scent has a lot to do with where people decide to shop. I discovered that having the smell of fresh bread wafting from the bakery was one of the major reasons why customers stayed longer. This was a smell that reminded them of home and made the whole store seem more inviting. It was more intense a lure than any discount or sale. I dragged the ovens I used for baking toward the front of the bakery and ran them all day. The smell now draws people right off the street. That layout tweak helped sales of the coffee and milk sections next door surge massively. It made what could have been a fleeting trip into a day of shopping.