Online groceries require trust
The German grocery market is worth over €200 billion. Many companies are trying to create a new, online market but there’s a problem: you can’t just copy a supermarket and put it online. Buying groceries online is a whole new experience. People have to feel comfortable in letting someone else do their grocery shopping. And to do so, it’s important to gain their trust.
Growing up with groceries
I grew up surrounded by groceries. Some kids have a little grocery store set but mine was an entire playground. My mother ran a grocery store in Moers, Germany. As a kid, I’d hide in the aisles, help out customers and learn about the different products. By the time I was 11, I was baking bread and working on the till. In my late teens, I even had my own section to manage.
We were always friendly and ready to talk to customers. People shopped at my mum’s store not only because we sold great products but because they trusted the team that worked there. Now, in my role as the category manager for Picnic in Germany, it’s amazing to see the same trust in an app-only grocery service.
A new experience of trust and convenience
Picnic combines modern technology with the golden age of delivery: the milkman. This was someone you could rely on. They were on time, delivered quality products and were friendly and open for a chat. Because when you take the time to talk to someone and hear about their day, trust is built up. So people trusted the milkman, just like my mum’s customers trusted her team.
Likewise, we show people that Picnic’s service is reliable, convenient and a great shopping experience with a superb delivery team: the Runners. These guys and girls are the main point of contact for our customers. As our modern milkmen, they dress authentically in a slick apron, clean white shirt and whenever there’s a delivery, Runners are ready to chat and offer a helping hand.
Runners bring the friendliness I gave customer’s in my mum’s store, right to the doorstep.
Giving customers updates
Even if your delivery team is friendly, it can be surprising when someone arrives unexpectedly. We make sure that customers know to-the-minute when a Runner will arrive via the Picnic Radar. And if anything does go wrong, a customer can always contact us. They’re not redirected to some random hotline but a “real” and dedicated Customer Success who are ready to offer their help and find a quick and easy solution.
Trust in people
In 2018, Picnic launched in Germany and our friendly service continues to flourish. As an online supermarket, it is through the power of people that customers trust us. They know we’ll always deliver high quality and fresh groceries. After having grown up surrounded by groceries, it’s exciting to be part of the new experience.
