Written by If you haven’t heard of it yet, Instacart is an app-based service that allows customers to order groceries from a number of different retailers in their area with just a few taps of the finger. After filling a digital cart, users then arrange for home delivery at a time convenient to them. While available for larger metropolitan areas, those outside of the delivery range have been left without access to the service. However, in March 2016, Whole Foods and Instacart announced an expanded partnership with the goal of increasing the number of Whole Foods stores with dedicated Instacart shoppers up to 50% by the end of 2016 while also expanding into areas that have yet to experience the convenience.
As shoppers move towards buying less and less in stores, it will be fascinating to see how CPG companies will react to these changes. Products and their packages are often optimized to draw consumer interest, whether it’s a new product hoping to be purchased or a tried and true favorite hoping to maintain its popularity. But oftentimes, these optimizations are made to attract shoppers standing in front of a shelf. As Instacart and similar apps become more and more popular, it will be interesting to see how studies change when objectives turn from “how much shelf appeal does this product have” to “how much app-appeal does this product have?”
In a world with Amazon Prime and the even speedier PrimeNow (in some markets) shoppers are clearly enamored with the convenience of fast delivery, especially if it’s same day. With the popularity of online shopping on the rise, in-context research will have to take on a whole new lens in order to remain on top of how shoppers choose products. If people are making their purchases through an app, wouldn’t it make sense that, in time, research on these purchases will be done in the same way? With our extensive experience in online and mobile methodologies, it will be interesting to see how much more these methods will come into play, and how they will evolve as customers shop more and more from their couch.