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In-store POS advertising budgets to increase says Epson 20/20 Survey

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By Richard Draycott, Managing Director

March 5, 2013 | 5 min read

In-store point of sale (POS) advertising is set to get a significant boost in the coming years after more than 50% of UK’s retailers revealed that they will increase their POS budgets by 2020.

The findings come as part of the Epson 20|20 Vision Survey, which interviewed 500 retail brand and marketing managers across the five largest European economies – the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Spain – to evaluate the retail industry’s use of in-store print and electronic POS signage today and how it will change up to the year 2020.

The survey reveals that the volume of print and electronic POS advertising is predicted to change considerably over the next few years as retailers seek to protect and expand their business by more accurately targeting customers by age, gender and product value.

The survey also showed that increasing competition and the drive for growth by diversifying into new specialist, mass or regional markets will result in more frequent print/electronic POS campaigns and, as a result, generate increased POS volumes overall.

As a result, retailers predict that in-store POS campaigns will become much more dynamic and targeted in their design. While most retailers say that print will remain a vital component of in-store POS in the future, electronic POS will have a significant and growing presence. Today over half of all in-store POS activity is print-based, but this is predicted to fall to just over a third (39%) by 2020 when electronic POS will comprise the largest proportion of POS activity (61%).

In the future, the choice of using print and/or electronic POS will be linked much more closely to the product value and to the age and gender of the target customer. Retailers link the choice of POS media to the value of the product being promoted with print POS preferred to convey brand quality for high value products and dynamic electronic POS preferred for special promotions that can change on a daily or hourly basis.

While print POS is the most popular medium used to promote high-end goods today (used by 85% of companies polled), retailers predict that they will adopt a more integrated media approach by 2020 – using print and electronic media almost equally. Electronic POS will remain the most popular media (75%) used to promote fast moving, short life-cycle commodity items by 2020.

Target customer gender and age are additional key factors influencing retailers’ choice of POS advertising medium. By 2020, print will be the dominant medium used to advertise to men (said 74% of retailers), while print and electronic POS will be used almost equally to promote to females, reflecting the fact that they are a key target for both high-end and commodity products. When it comes to the age, retailers will use more electronic advertising to target 18-65 year olds, but print-based promotions will still be preferred for products aimed at children, teens and the over 65s.

Commenting on the findings James Henry, head of retail at Intermarketing Agency, said: “The research findings are interesting and certainly echo the trends we are already experiencing in the sector. As a retail marketing agency our focus has always been on providing the best possible POS solutions based on our clients’ needs, brands and budgets and having a view on return on investment. We’ve already started to see significant growth in digital POS. This is enabling us to deliver highly targeted and tactical campaigns that we can tailor based on targets, sales and seasonality. Face recognition, proximity sensors, footfall tracking and many other advances make digital POS increasingly well targeted and effective. Plus with its fast turnaround and low cost, it allows us to deploy campaigns quickly and cost effectively. Our in-store campaigns are always supported by printed POS that enhances the experience and provides an ‘always on’ brand message regardless of the digital element. POS can help enhance the retail experience and drive an emotional brand connection, whilst also delivering a more rational product offer message, which is key at that zero moment of truth – the point where a purchase decision is made.”

“The Epson 20|20 Vision survey clearly shows how the POS market in the UK is set to grow and evolve over the next few years,” says Nick White, Business Manager, Professional Graphics, Epson UK. “As campaigns become more frequent, more dynamic, more localised and more targeted to specific consumer demographics, both print and electronic POS media will play important roles in retailers’ sales strategies.”

Epson, a leading manufacturer of professional imaging products, launched the Epson 20|20 Vision project to better understand the POS needs of retailers in the France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK today and up to 2020.

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