Over the weekend, FT.com’s Robert Shrimsley - whose column is modestly sub-headed ‘the national conversation’ - riffs at considerable length on his emotional separation from ‘Ocado man’. Shrimsley has dumped his online grocer, he informs us, marking his second such parting of the ways with a supermarket’s delivery service.
He laments that the “algorithmically driven special offers lacked the originality of the early days” but says the main problem was that “we wanted different things from each other. I wanted my orders delivered at the time agreed and they wanted me to see things from their point of view when they failed to do this”.
If his ‘relationship’ metaphor gets old fast, the central point has relevance. Consultancy Yuseo, which specialises in this sort of thing, sent over some research today measuring how well the big supermarkets - and some other major retailers - meet the priorities of their online shoppers.
The results, taken from 24,000 internet shoppers, are more common-sense than revelatory - confirming that service is seen as a winner for Waitrose, for instance, while Tesco shoppers put more stock in the loyalty benefits they get.
However, flexibility of delivery hours was cited as the single most important factor for online shoppers of groceries - suggesting Shrimsley may have the pulse of the nation after all.
That emphasis on convenience is also the key factor behind the rise and rise of click & collect - a revolution still in its infancy but judged to have so much potential that even Amazon is testing the water.
In last Saturday’s edition of The Grocer, Simon Creasey spoke to the key players in this burgeoning channel. The results offer plenty of food for thought - not just for ‘Ocado man’ and his ex.
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