Seattle-based location analytics firm Placed has released its Moms in the Grocery Aisle report, which offers findings on a number of facets of food shopping including the use of smartphones during shopping, couponing preferences and grocery store visitation by ethnicity.
In overall findings, Kroger was the most-visited grocery store, with 13.7 percent of U.S. mothers visiting in November 2013, more than double the reach of No. 2 grocer Aldi (6.5 percent). Mothers were 26 percent less likely to visit specialty grocers Trader Joe’s and 41 percent less likely to visit Whole Foods, while both grocers slightly over-indexed for females without children. Mothers were 11 percent more likely to access coupons on their smartphone prior to grocery shopping instead of while in store.
In the hunt for deals, mothers are turning to a variety of retailers for their food and grocery needs including dollar stores. This is evident with Dollar Tree, Dollar General and Family Dollar having higher reach for U.S. moms than all grocers except Kroger.
Mothers were 34 percent more likely to visit Family Dollar than the average U.S. consumer, 30 percent more likely to visit Dollar General and 28 percent more likely to visit Dollar Tree, underscoring the importance of cost savings for this consumer segment.
Using its Placed Questions approach, the firm’s study found that four in five respondents use their smartphone to perform grocery shopping activities with “making/referencing shopping lists” and “finding/accessing coupons” leading as the most popular activities for mothers.
- Mothers were 11 percent more likely to access coupons on their smartphone prior to grocery shopping instead of while in store, underscoring why CPG brands need to utilize behavioral mobile targeting to reach these mothers before they step foot in stores.
- Mothers who access coupons while in store were more likely to shop at Save-A-Lot, Kroger and Safeway than average.
- Nearly 20 percent of mothers who own smartphones do not use their device for grocery shopping activities, highlighting greenfield opportunities for CPGs and grocery brands.
A free PDF of the study is available for download (registration required).
Moms in the Grocery Aisle layers in Placed Questions, a feature within Placed Insights, which combines mobile survey questions with the direct measurement of consumers’ location activities. The study is based on 5,221 U.S. smartphone responses from females with children in household. These panelists were surveyed in December 2013 to layer in attitudinal insight into couponing activities and preferences.