Loyalty cards helping agri-food firms

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Written By Adam Morrison, PhD Researcher, Ulster University Business School and Dr Lynsey Hollywood

Small businesses and producers in Northern Ireland’s agri-food sector have used loyalty card data and consumer insights in the past to identify key areas for improvement in their business. One leading local ready-meal supplier, with support from a university and government initiative, accessed this data free of charge. This data was important for the company and allowed them to see opportune gaps in the market and as a result they were able to extend their range and introduce vegan and vegetarian products. Accessing consumer information through the loyalty card data allowed them to stay competitive in an evolving food industry. Big data and shopper insight can be important for firms to understand who is buying their products and make small adjustments as well as major product launches. One leading local egg supplier in used loyalty card data and shopper information to identify that their customers were not happy with the lack of a family-size box options. As a result, the company used the shopper insights to better understand the needs of their customers and introduce a twelve-pack box to meet their customer needs. These small adjustments and changes based on the data and shopper information can be very small but impactful to a company’s profitability. For example, one NI meat supplier used such information to identify that their packaging was no longer appealing to consumers. As a result, this firm changed their packaging to a more modern alternative which increased the number of people who regularly bought their products. Understanding these consumer demands can help businesses ensure brand loyalty and maintain competitive in the market.

However, for a small business especially, accessing this type of data can be costly and difficult to understand without a dedicated insights team to help. The local success stories discussed, all received support from universities and government organisations, both in the purchase and interpretation of the data showing how this type of information can allow companies to develop new products quickly and make changes to their current products based on what their customers are demanding. Investment in shopper data is costly and for many small producers it is totally inaccessible due to its high price tag meaning that small businesses may lag behind the competition.

From our experience, it is clear that when data and shopper insights are available small businesses have embraced the data and used it to their advantage. Regular access to this information for agri-food businesses could allow them to understand who is buying their products, when they are buying and what else they buy. Despite small businesses using and embracing the data, we currently do not know if and where in the product development process such information is used. We do not know if it is used to come up with new ideas, reassure the development process or look at areas for improvement. The answers to these questions remain relatively unknown and are currently being explored by the team at Ulster University.

To address the gaps and support Northern Ireland’s small businesses, our Food and Drink Business Research Centre at Ulster University have invested in a state-of-the-art Market Intelligence Lab to allow small businesses to access data and shopper insights. This lab provides a valuable opportunity for small agri-food businesses in Northern Ireland to access market information and data to help them improve their marketing and product development processes. Our current research aims to explore how small producers can maximise the benefits of loyalty card data in their product development and marketing activities. If you are one of Northern Ireland’s small food producers and are interested in data to improve your product development and identify new opportunities, we invite you to participate in the study. As part of this study, data and market information will be provided free of charge through the Market Intelligence Lab.

If you are interested, please contact PhD researcher Adam Morrison for more information at [email protected]. This is a unique opportunity to access data which could shape the future of your products and allow you to stay ahead of the game in the Northern Ireland food industry.