Produce is one of the last holdouts for online grocery. Why? No one trusts someone else to pick their produce. They should! We're the experts, after all. Here's a few pointers to make sure you deliver on your promise.
1 >Expect very little margin for error in perishables, especially fresh produce.
For example, if the clerk substitutes cilantro instead of parsley, or radicchio for red cabbage, your store will see fewer orders from that customer and with other shoppers who will shy away due to poor or inconsistent service. This is a pass or fail enterprise folks, so grocers should train their online shopping clerks to be accurate in every way.
2. > Equate to shopping for your own family.
As a produce clerk is trained to only stock what he or she would buy for themselves, an online shopping clerk should be trained to think likewise: look for the best. Avoid produce that is bruised or shows any trace of decay. Ideally, the online shopper should spend a shift or two shadowing experienced produce clerks. They can show the shopper the difference between a fresh apple, and one that is starting to dehydrate, for example. Or show them that the best citrus is heavy for its size — same goes for watermelons. With so many pointers within numerous produce stock-keeping-units, every commodity has a unique set of selection factors. Teach as many of these as possible to the clerk, and emphasize that they should embrace the same mindset as when they shop for their own family. The online shopping clerk is pressed for time and productivity, but they should be coached to shop, using their own consumer eyes.
3. >Scrutinize everything, especially the Subjective Top Three Produce Items.
Each customer's ideal banana color will vary. That's why you see shoppers hesitating over the display, like they're contemplating a move in a game of checkers. Bananas are one of the top three, what I call subjective purchases. The other two are tomatoes and avocados. So it's a good idea to explain to the online shopping clerk how ripeness is defined, perhaps by referring to banana, avocado or tomato ripening charts, which are readily available
For example, banana ripening charts are listed as 1=all green, 3.5=half green/ half yellow, 6=all yellow.
Probably the safest banana selection (or strive to this degree as close as possible) is a 3.5 to 4 stage. This is yellow fruit with green tips. This ripeness degree will provide the customer with ripe enough fruit to enjoy right away, while still providing a few days shelf life at home.
Tomatoes have a similar ripeness chart and are the second, top three subjective items that an online shopper has to keep in mind. The best selection will feel firm to yielding slight pressure when held, and will have an even color – a 4.5 to 5 on ripening charts. At this level, a customer will find it is firm enough to slice for salads or into sandwiches, yet have enough shelf life to last on the counter a few days.
Avocados are the last-but-not-least of my top three subjective list. Ideally, your customers should be able to specify variety and ripeness degree on their online order guide. Even it's as simple as we informally kick around in produce circles; descriptors such as “green, breakers or ripe.” Because that's what every customer considers as well, even if they don't express the terminology.
If selecting bananas is like a checkers game move, then avocado selection is closer to a chess move. Coach your online shopper that ripe avocados are for immediate use, breakers work well for salads or in sandwiches, and green is for later use.
4. >Produce manager briefing: get caught up before shopping
Even an experienced online produce shopper is unaware of what's happening in the produce aisle from one week to the next, let alone seasonal changes. So it's a good idea to train the clerk to frequently touch base with the produce manager. “What's happening this week, this month? Anything I should keep an eye out for?”
Many times the produce manager can weigh in and advise the clerk with common tips such as, “Make sure you inspect the bottom of tomatoes this week. We've seen some growth cracks (cat faces). Select the grapes or blueberries with the frosty-looking ‘bloom.' We're into a new area for cantaloupe, here's how to pick a good one…. Avoid the bell peppers that were inadvertently sprayed with water today.” A tip or three each week and constant emphasis on care and handling during selection will help build the clerk's produce shopping confidence and knowledge.
5. >Click here to checkout
Online shopping, while starting somewhat slowly decades ago, is here to stay. It continues to evolve and stake an ever-growing claim of the overall grocery business. While customers will be naturally wary of dairy or bakery expiration dates, no other perishable purchase will be scrutinized as closely as fresh produce. To achieve complete customer satisfaction, keep complaints to a minimum and drive further sales, the produce order has to be right. This means training the online shopping clerk to have the basics down and shop with a consumer and a produce clerk's eyes. In any shopping method, the best produce order is fresh, ripe and accurate.
In the world of e-commerce, it's known as staying one click ahead.