Page 56 - North American & Caribbean Cruise Traveller

Industry Insider:
North American & Caribbean Cruise Duty & Tax Free Retail 2015
5.2.1.1 AREAS TO ADDRESS: SAMPLING OPPORTUNITIES
An opportunity to sample products is perceived to be the weakest area of the overall store experience both on-board and on-land, and therefore should be addressed as a priority.
Sampling is a key aspect of the overall Duty / Tax Free offering
and has the potential to encouraging shoppers to try new
products, trade-up to premium brands and exclusive offers and
furthermore, drive incremental spend. In addition, providing the
shopper with the opportunity to ‘try before you buy’ negates some of the risk associated with switching to alternative brands or product variants, and is therefore particularly key with local, lesser known brands.
On-board retailers should also consider taking the sample to the customer via sending brand ambassadors or trained staff members throughout the cruise liner, thus allowing sampling to occur when the traveller is engaging in other activities. Sampling could also occur at other facilities, such as Alcohol sampling at on-board bars. On-land retailers could target travellers in a similar way by offering free samples in the area surrounding port stores.
Support sampling activities through activations such as interactive touch screens providing product information and showcasing sampled items via animations and interactive content.
ON-BOARD...
Sampling opportunities are one of the most negatively perceived areas of the on-board offer with only half giving the top two ratings. Poor ratings are most common amongst Canadian travellers (27%), over 40s (25%) and females (22%).
Figure 11: Sampling Opportunities Perceptions: On-board
ON-LAND...
Sampling opportunities are perceived to be stronger on-land compared to on-board. Younger travellers are the most positive, with 73% giving sampling opportunities on-land a rating of ‘excellent’ or ‘good’. Americans are more positive than Canadians.
Figure 12: Sampling Opportunities Perceptions: On-land
SAMPLING OPPORTUNITIES PRIORITY RATING: 1
Excellent Very Good Good Poor/Very/Extremely Poor
22% 30%
30% 18%
Excellent Very Good Good Poor/Very/Extremely Poor
29% 33%
23% 15%
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