What makes us buy?

STORY BY PHOEBE DEY
PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROTH AND RAMBERG

Ever wonder why we buy the foods we do?  According to the experts there's a whole raft of reasons.

It probably comes as no surprise—but facts are; we grocery shoppers are a complex bunch. Grocery stores and food companies spend millions each year on market research trying to figure us out.

What specific factors trigger our purchase decisions as we hit the grocery store? There is no typical consumer, so the answer is not as simple as it might seem, says Tamara Gottlieb,

a pollster with the opinion-research firm Compas. Many shoppers like the idea of buying local products in smaller stores, for example, but cleanliness and atmosphere are just as important, she says.

“How consumers make decisions to buy food is very complex. Shoppers aren’t just driven by price, package or where it is on the shelf—it’s a whole array of factors,” says Gottlieb. “There are some products we can’t live without so there is the constant struggle over what we need and what we want.

“Complicating it even more, is the fact that unlike some other retail choices, such as clothing, the food shopper not only has to think about quality, value and price but also, ‘Is it good for the rest of my family and will they like it?’”

We’re health conscious

What drives us to fill our shopping carts as we do? Hunger, to state the obvious. It is a well-known fact that a prudent shopper should never buy groceries on an empty stomach. We run the risk of blowing both the diet and the week’s budget on croissants or salami rather than working methodically through our list of ingredients for well-planned casseroles and salads. If we’re health conscious, we’ll follow the golden rule—keeping to the outer aisles of a supermarket where the healthy stuff like fresh produce, meat, dairy, bulk food, deli and bakery reside.

Alas, we’re human. Keeping on top of the latest recommendations for a healthy lifestyle is challenging for the average shopper, says Gottlieb. Although most Canadian shoppers have become more conscientious and are more interested in nutrition, the market is confusing. “What is considered nutritious? Is it organic, low-fat, low-carb? There is a definite increased interest in nutrition but there is also an increase in confusion.”

Despite all the hype surrounding such diets as South Beach or Atkins or the push for organic food, these trends generally affect a small percentage of the Canadian population, says Marion Chan, vice-president Food and Beverage of NPD Canada, a company that conducts food-tracking research.

Her company found that only 12% of people surveyed will buy organic foods when they are available and that number drops to 11% when asked if it is worth paying a higher price for organic.

Even with such a strong marketing push towards low-carb products, only 5% of individuals are on such a diet, said Chan. They did find that 25% of people are watching their carbohydrate intake, but don’t consider themselves on diets—they’re just conscious of what they eat. That shift in healthy eating is reflected in NPD Canada research that shows the fastest growing snack foods include fresh fruit, granola and yogurt, while potato chips and crackers are quickly on the decline.

Chan likens the wave of low-carb products lining the grocery shelves with a similar trend 10 years ago. “It’s a lot like when low-fat food was the craze. Nobody talks about fat anymore because it is passé and commonplace. There are constantly new low-fat products that come into the market, but if they can’t deliver on taste they don’t survive.”

The gradual shift to healthier eating is substantiated by the factors that stop us from buying some foods. Compas research indicates that 21% of us avoid buying certain foods because of the caloric count; 20% of us will be stopped by a price tag and 18% of us will hesitate if we perceive a product to be unhealthy.

We’ll pay for convenience

One thing Canadians can agree on is convenience, said Chan. Since we only devote 6% of our daily activity to food-related chores, shoppers want something that is quick and easy to make—especially something that we know well. “Canadians are very traditional,” says Chan. “We don’t like things to change much. We continue to eat three-dish meals made up of protein, vegetables and starch.

Although more than half (54%, to be exact) of our dinners at home include at least one prepared or semi-prepared item, much thought still goes into what fills our grocery bags. When it comes to planning, Canadians do very little of it, says Chan. About a quarter of all meals are actually planned in the morning but a lot more are spur of the moment.

We want value

Whatever thought process goes into what we put on the table, the driving factor for the consumer is value—a definition measured in different ways, says Bryan Walton, vice-president Western Canadian Council of Grocery Distributors.

“Convenience might be the most important thing for some people, so if a shopper wants to make a quick stop, he will likely go to a small store while the larger stores tend to be used more for stocking up on items”.  One just has to look at the evolution of the deli business in stores as proof that convenience has become key for consumers.

“If price is the issue, shoppers will cherry pick and look at specials in the weekly flyer.  If time is the issue, shoppers will look for something convenient. The two biggest factors are price and quality,” says Walton.

Compas research agrees. When asked to describe the most important factors in their food buying decisions, the overwhelming majority said cost (24%), freshness and appearance (23%) and healthfulness (21%). Interestingly, taste ranked fairly low on scale—just 6% of us let that drive our shopping choices on a regular basis.

We’re patriotic

Given that we like fresh healthy food, it’s no wonder we like to buy local. Not only do we perceive locally produced food to be fresher, the statistics show that we believe it is also safer and healthier. Moreover, we have a sentimental drive to support local producers. Fortunately Alberta’s high-quality local market means we can find a home-grown item in almost every section of the grocery store.

We’re demanding

In the last five years, the grocery industry has seen major shifts such as more natural products, a trend toward organic, low carb and high fibre foods, and a boom in the beverage category, says Walton.  Because all labels and packages in Canada must meet the criteria of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency before they can be marketed commercially, buyers can easily verify what they’re taking home.  “Not everyone is reading labels but they’re the easiest way to get contact information for the manufacturer or for someone who might be on a low-sodium diet, for example, to monitor their salt intake.”

But where people buy products is shifting now that groceries are available at such varied places as drugstores or mass merchants, says Walton. This shift, called channel blurring, means that all types of retailers are in the food game—dollar stores have even bought into the business.

“No matter where you shop, the important thing for retailers it to make the shopping experience an enjoyable one,” says Walton, adding retailers conduct extensive research to ensure their customers’ demands are readily met.