How to Appropriately Communicate & Position Premium Offerings

As the tastes of consumers continue to evolve in the convenience channel, it is essential for retailers to stay informed and implement new trends. But when a rising trend — like premium offerings — signifies an increase in quality and price, it is key to appropriately communicate and position these new offerings to have a greater chance for success, or even to understand if items are the right fit for their convenience stores.

By using the methods and tactics detailed below, retailers may increase their opportunities to win over consumers who are already looking for premium options, as well as those who have never previously considered these options.

How Consumers Define Premium Offerings Has Changed

Consumers used to consider an item as premium if it was a simple food item with a distinctive feature, such as whole-wheat bread or a salad with protein. Those are now considered mainstream basics.

For an item to be considered premium today, it must offer the consumer a departure from the routine and the anonymous. When products feature specialty ingredients, including artisan breads, specialty cheeses and infused sauces, they suggest a more unique, elevated eating experience.

Calling out these ingredients encourages customers to purchase more premium offerings, especially with the growing recognition of quality food available at convenience stores.

Products boasting fresh taste and cleaner-label ingredients are becoming essential for consumers. And while there may be value in talking about what an item excludes from their diet (i.e., reduced sodium), premium products should offer the consumer something they are seeking, such as a meat offering with high protein content or breads made with ancient grains.

Consumers also have growing concerns about the use of antibiotics and other additives in their food, so their exclusion can likewise serve as an indicator of a premium offering.

Retailers can communicate premium by calling out key attributes such as "natural," "all-natural," "freshly-made," and "no antibiotics ever," as appropriate.

Premium Offerings Need to Look PREMIUM             

Aside from signage indicating the key attributes, claims and ingredients, if a retailer is going to offer customers a premium product at a premium price, it must look the part.

Packaging is key. Hand-wrapped packaging conveys a level of care and individual attention that went into the making of the product. Rigid, firm packaging asserts the contents inside are valuable enough to be protected from abuse and crushing. Better packaging communicates the food is worth the extra investment and justifies the higher price point. Whenever possible, the packaging should also allow the consumer to see the item to validate the product’s freshness and quality.

Size is another factor that can visually indicate a product is worth a premium. Increased size of an item communicates to customers the item will be more filling and supports its higher price point.

Familiar brands can also tip the scales. For consumers who are going to try a new premium offering and pay more in price, it helps to know the offering comes from a brand they know and trust in the category. Signage invoking brand recognition is essential to providing hesitant customers the comfort they need to make the leap to new, premium offerings.

Premium Partnering Is an Attractive Incentive

For a retailer introducing a new premium product, one of the best ways to incentivize a customer to purchase is to complement the new premium product with others of high quality that sell well together. For example, if a retailer adds a premium breakfast sandwich to their menu, they should have a premium coffee or other premium beverage selection to accompany it.

This pairing, however, does not necessarily have to be offered as a deal or discounted bundle. Rather, retailers can focus on grouping premium products together in locations of the store with more visibility, including signage to give more attention to these offerings and attract customers.

Premium refrigerated items should be positioned at eye-level in a well-lit case.

Retailers may even want to consider creating a segment of their store solely dedicated to premium offerings, with shelving and signage reinforcing the elevated offerings.

Premium Offerings Should Encourage, Not Alienate

One of the conundrums to building onto the success of a retailer's business is to find a way to satisfy customers looking for something new, while still satisfying the loyal customers happy with traditional offerings.

A simple suggestion to rolling out new premium items is to add these items to menus to offer choices and encourage trial, but not replace proven favorites, even if it appears to be a duplication. If customers trade up, which is often the case, the menu can be trimmed of lower-selling items later. Otherwise, price-sensitive consumers may be lost for good.

Customers may not always be eager to try new things, especially if an item has a higher price. This reluctance may be curbed by incentivizing trial of new, premium products with free samples, letting consumers experience the product with low risk. Free samples are a great way to introduce a flavor or concept to new and existing customers. By taking the time to portion a new product into bite-size samples for hungry customers during busy meal times, operators improve the chance of immediate purchase.

Engage Customers in a Dialogue

It may sound overly simple, but one of the best ways of ensuring premium offerings are promoted at a location is to engage directly with consumers.

Retailers should allow their staff to try new premium offerings free of charge so they can recommend those products to customers. Word-of-mouth endorsements are effective to keep customers informed of new products and persuade trial. With successful trial will come loyalty and future premium-product purchases.

Surveying customers, either directly or indirectly, can also prove beneficial in understanding whether there is a demand for premium offerings. Observe regular buying habits. Are they buying a premium drink option, but no food to accompany it? Are they walking into your store carrying a take-out bag or cup from a local restaurant? 

Having open conversations with customers might reveal they don’t know a store offers premium options, or they are looking for trending new flavors, product attributes or benefits, or alternative brands not currently being stocked by the store.

After surveying and engaging consumers to determine whether premium items are the right fit for their store, retailers can apply these methods to communicate premium offerings to their customers and, potentially, grow their sales.  

Nancy Todys is director of c-store and vending channel development for Tyson Foods.

Editor's note: The opinions expressed in this column are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the views of Convenience Store News.