In the fourth episode of BRAVE COMMERCE, hosts Rachel Tipograph (Founder & CEO of MikMak) and Sarah Hoffstetter (President of Profitero) chat with Kraft Heinz’s Vice President of Global eCommerce, Elizabeth Bennett. Together they discussed Elizabeth’s guiding principle for creating an eCommerce strategy that works and her approach to online grocery innovation and enhancing consumer experiences. Here’s what they had to say:
Solutions rather than products
“Always start with the end consumer and work backwards,” began Elizabeth. Now that much of the consumer experience has moved online where product discovery is significantly less sensory, marketers can’t go to market the way they once did. Brands need to be more aware of their consumer’s shopping experience and adopt a mindset shift to “helping provide solutions for consumers versus products.” In Elizabeth’s experience, this has the potential to increase brand loyalty and order margins because consumers value brands that care about serving the needs of their consumers.
To ensure Kraft Heinz meets these needs, Elizabeth relies on actionable data that can be used to optimize media and eCommerce strategies. “I love to see all the consumer data so we can see their trends and what they're doing, and we can show up for them...It's a big responsibility to serve consumers. And right now this is how consumers are shopping and we've got to show up and put our best foot forward.”
Breaking Down Silos
Retail, media, and eCommerce teams can no longer continue operating in silos. “We're in this world where what used to be a traditional retailer is now a media outlet,” Elizabeth expounds. As the world around us changes, not only must the consumer adapt, but also companies, namely internal structures, have to as well.
For Elizabeth, the shift towards eCommerce and social commerce requires an integrated approach. If brands want to be successful, all teams must be aligned on messaging, strategy, intent, etc. With an increase in social commerce, online purchase and in-store pickups, or ‘Click and Collect’, media consumption and digital and physical storefronts are all now intertwined in the consumer journey, and company structures need to reflect the same merge. “Selling as well as media, as well as marketing, all of those things are all tied together.”
By unifying teams, brands are able to leverage not only social media channels, but content and storefronts on digital retailers, which can directly lead to conversion. Elizabeth imparted, “Whether it’s Walmart, Amazon, fill in the blank, everyone has these huge media outlets, which is incredibly powerful because you can actually tie it to an end consumer purchase.”
Vulnerability for growth
“I think it's incredibly important to create a space for vulnerability for the team, because they are going to have to learn,” shared Elizabeth.
An unprecedented world requires innovative solutions which can only come through a test and learn approach. Brands have to create new solutions for consumers who have suddenly developed a new lifestyle and shopping habits just as much as they have to reconsider and restructure their internal systems. There is no perfect game plan for how each company should meet new consumer needs but companies who leave space for flexibility are the ones who are priming themselves for success with their consumers.
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