In a time in which so much revolves around digital, The Fresh Market has launched a monthly magazine replete with seasonal features, perspective from culinary and entertaining experts, recipes, new product showcases and more. Miller discusses how the new print product brings something different and needed to the table for the retailer’s customers.
Q: What was the inspiration for launching this new magazine?
A: We wanted to bring the joy of shopping at The Fresh Market into people’s homes, whether they are planning to celebrate a special occasion, are entertaining, or if they need inspiration for what to serve for dinner that night. It is a way for us to bring the full experience of shopping in our stores into our guests’ homes.
Q: With the ubiquity of cell phones and the rise of digital, what role do print products — from the circular to a publication like your new magazine — play in the company’s overall communication with customers?
A: Digital can’t be all things to all people. There is something to be said about sitting down to a nice publication. It is different experience and offers a personalized touch to be able to linger over the pages.
A good analogy is when someone takes the time to send you a handwritten note versus an email or text; it makes an impact. It really stands out.
Receiving The Fresh Market: The Magazine in your mailbox lets our customers know they are extra special and that we care about them.
Q: This might be a grocery retail marketing 101 question for you, but how do you decide which departments to prioritize in the ads, on social media, in the magazine, for in-store announcements, etc.?
A: The magazine features what is new in store, seasonal items, hard-to-find or highly curated products or those exclusive to The Fresh Market, along with partnering with our vendors to create custom content — storytelling, like we did with our Passion Roses in the February issue.
What we put in the magazine we want to illuminate and bring to life in the stores, to enhance the customer experience and make it special.
We have seen our guests walk into the store with pages from the magazine, looking for the featured products and ingredients to make the recipes featured.
Q: With e-commerce rapidly growing, what are some marketing tools you all have found effective for non-packaged items — like those prevalent in fresh produce — in the online environment?
A: At The Fresh Market, fresh is our focus. Unlike traditional grocery stores, the vast majority of our product is fresh or freshly prepared in stores. We have made some great strides in improving our curbside service to deliver the freshest products to our guests, with a 100% satisfaction guarantee on every item, double-checked for quality and freshness.
We believe we provide the freshest, highest-quality produce shopping experience in the industry. We educate our guests about what makes the product superior, such as the citrus feature in the magazine offering a wide variety of citrus like Sumo or blood oranges to seedless lemons, as well as how to supreme citrus and a link to citrus inspired recipes.
Q: In a physical store, of course, so much fresh produce is bought on impulse — what role can marketing play in encouraging that same behavior in the online environment?
A: Fresh produce is prominently featured in all of our marketing, from the daily emails that reach over one million guests, to our e-commerce shopping site, our website, and now the magazine.
We feature our growers in our storytelling, so people know what makes our produce special — like we fly our cherries from Tasmania, or only sell California avocados, heirloom variety offerings, etc.