Today's WSJ (reg. req'd.) has an interesting article about WalMart's new back to school work from Martin Agency (image at left is from WSJ article).
Gone are the bouncing happy face and price rollback device - they are replaced with a "lifestyle" approach that the brand is hoping will have more consumer relevance and continue the store's spring sales increase:
- There's a new focus on big name brands (e.g., Philips, Samsung)- to generate brand appeal among more affluent shoppers
- There's a shift away from their traditional very rational focus on savings ("Always Low Prices. Always.") - to a rallying cry that puts savings into an overall context for the consumer ("Save Money, Live Better").
- They're tapping into the consumer's life outside the store and shopping - e.g., referencing gas prices, and suggesting that if you're going to spend a lot on gas, you don't need to spend a lot on merchandise too.
It will be interesting to see how this new effort unfolds................
Here's an interesting soundbite from the article for readers who don't have kids: "Families with school-age children are expected to spend $563.49 a family this year on back-to-school merchandise, up 6.9%, according to BIGresearch, a market-research firm."
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