Coles Richmond Traders – Smart Trolley Shopping.
After an inspirational morning listening to Norrelle Goldring speak about Evolving Shopper Journeys and their implications for touchpoint activations at the Shop! ANZ professional development series breakfast in Melbourne, I went to experience the Smart Trolley way of shopping at Coles Richmond Traders.
I love putting on my shopper hat and mixing it with a dash of retail marketing background to experience nuanced ways to shop!
Norrelle talked about shopper ‘ecosystems’ today - A progression from omnichannel retail, where retailers are evolving to accommodate a sophisticated shopper journey which embraces in-store, online, social, quick commerce, livestream, influencers, AI chatbots, visual search, AR, VR, and Meta commerce. The list goes on!
The Coles Smart Trolley experience is promoted to “Save Time. Skip the Line”, so I tried to keep this in mind while I conducted my usual mini-shop, but for me this Coles eco-system was much more playful than that.
My Experience
With no prior research, I was led by in-store signage. I saw the traditional static banner signage and headed for the Smart Trolley Bay, which was neatly positioned alongside the analogue trolleys.
I assumed I’d need my credit card or Coles app to start my journey, and I was a little apprehensive thinking I’d need to go through a process on my phone, add my personal details etc., but I was pleased to find that none of that was needed. I didn’t need to do anything other than follow the instructions on the tablet – a decent size tablet I might add that I did not need glasses to read! In 30 seconds, I’d taken the tutorial – 1. Move the item through the top of the trolley. 2. Hear a beep. 3. Place in trolley. That’s it!
I removed my trolley and headed into shop. I chatted to a Coles team member when I went into the store. I wanted a rich experience, and I was looking for a bit of non-marketed advice. I was told that there’s not much complexity beyond adding items slowly to the trolley. If I heard a ‘beep’, and/or saw the trolley lighting around the basket turn green, the item has been added – much like when you go to an express checkout lane. An evolution.
I did not bring my own shopping bags, so I needed to go to an express checkout lane and get one. Side note - Adding bags inside the store entrance would be ideal for me.
The shopper journey was fun, insightful, and engaging. If there were specials on the items I was purchasing, these would appear on the screen as an option. Or if there were specials in the aisle I was shopping, these would also pop up on the screen. You can also check the specials in the aisle you are shopping. Perhaps location proximity triggered marketing would be handy, but personally I liked that the pop-up promotions only appeared when I chose to engage i.e. When I shopped an item or if I choose to browse the aisle promotions.
When I finished my shop, I headed for the Smart Trolley Express Lane. This lane did look a little unused, so I was unsure if it was in action, but it was. A Coles team member just advised me that I just needed to pay as usual on the payment device on the left side of the Smart Trolley – I probably didn’t need to ask how to pay, and in hindsight I realised I could have finished my shop and paid anywhere in-store before I got to the traditional check-out aisle ( slightly embarrassed by my caveman instincts now!). I tapped my phone to pay, entered my email address for a receipt – All done! But not quite because there were a few surveys to do. I don’t think this is a requirement to exit, but being immersed and compliant I did the surveys.
The Smart Trolley light went green, and I was good to go.
In conclusion
I enjoyed the experience. I loved the easiness of getting started without any personal qualifying preamble like having an app. Or adding my credit card etc. Perhaps that’s a miss for Coles to gather insights, but as a shopper I was grateful.
The Coles Richmond Traders store was beautifully designed – I say this coming from a retail store design background. Wide aisles, with a fresh market feel. The Coles team members were perfect – helpful, while not over the top.
I look forward to trying the Coles Smart Shopping Trolley experience again, leveling up to use all the touchpoints I choose to create a truly personal shopper ecosystem experience.
Contact me to review new store experiences: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zita-watkin/
