LONDON: Constant technological innovation can make the world of shopper marketing appear increasingly complex, but an industry figure suggests marketers take a simple approach that tests any idea against the three Es of ease, economy and experience.

Writing in the current issue of Admap, Sarah Green, CEO of GreyShopper EMEA, assesses The new technology in shopper marketing and reminds readers that "the most effective shopper activations are always those which require the least effort for the greatest gains".

She argues that "winning at the 'First Moment of Truth' has never been more important" and tech has to enhance marketing efforts to drive brand preference and sales, not distract from them.

At the same time a good idea has to work for all three stakeholders involved – the brand, the retailer and the shopper. And GreyShopper also requires that it ticks at least two of the three Es it uses to evaluate all shopper marketing ideas.

So, for example, L'Oréal Paris has harnessed facial recognition technology to enable consumers to use a smartphone as a virtual interactive mirror to try on a variety of make-up products and share selfies with friends before making a purchase.

Green reported that the app, nuanced for different markets, is resonating with consumers across the world, its success coming from a winning combination of cultural insight and creative application.

Elsewhere, the use of augmented reality to provide shoppers with an opportunity to "try without trying" everything from glasses to sofa fabrics "delivers a demonstrable benefit" and stands a good chance of being readily adopted, Green suggests.

Beacons, however, have yet to fully welcomed into the shopper journey, she says, largely because of the barriers that have to be overcome – including persuading consumers to download and open an app while also disclosing their location and personal information.

But there are instances where they have been deployed to great effect, as Coca-Cola demonstrated in Norway in a tie up with a cinema and a tabloid newspaper. Users of the paper's app were offered a free Coke on entry to the cinema and those taking up the offer were subsequently retargeted online with an offer of free cinema tickets outside peak hours.

The results were impressive enough for the cinema chain to decide to roll out the technology nationally.

The task for shopper marketing professionals, Green concludes, is to connect the physical and digital worlds in creative, inspiring and seamless ways that drive commercial success.

Data sourced from Admap