Have You Seen It: Health and Wellbeing E-Commerce Integration
By RDBA Executive Director, Annette Maggi, MS, RDN, LD, FAND
The 2021 RDBA Member Survey showed that 56 percent of retail RD survey respondents are actively working with e-commerce teams on health and wellbeing integration. This work includes adding nutrition and lifestyle attributes on products, the ability to filter products by attribute, health-focused banner ads, and RD approved and/or themed bundles. Below we’re highlighting some of this amazing work being done by retail dietitians in e-commerce.
Themed Bundles
I have to admit to being a bit obsessed with the concept of e-commerce themed bundles as they help the shopper easily purchase products that align with their health needs as well as introduce them to products they may have not considered before. It’s also an effective way to provide seasonally relevant health content and provides a tangible way for retail RDs to track return-on-investment. The example below is from Harmon’s Collections. The category tag makes it clear that these bundles are developed by dietitians, and the names indicate the specific focus. Options like carb conscious, allow the RDs to meet a consumer demand but ensure healthy options are the focus.
Banner Ads
The goal of banner ads is to gain the shopper awareness and encourage them to click through to more content, offers, recipes and more. In 2021, Coborn’s ran a promotion in partnership with the National Pork Board, with the banner ad pictured here leading to nutritious recipes that were shoppable. Health and nutrition focused banner ads can disrupt the shoppers’ line of sight and engage them on the topic. They can be driven by seasonal health topics and/or create a true shopper omnichannel experience when combined with in-store displays, magazine articles, blog posts, and live streams.
Shoppable Recipes
Many retail RDs are partnering with e-commerce so with a simple click, shoppers can drop items into their shopping carts directly from content and blog posts, cooking class registrations, and recipes. On their recipes, Wegman’s allows shoppers to build lists, which then show exactly where the product can be found in store as well as to sort based on their Wellness Keys. Stop & Shop offers educational content which links to shoppable recipes as well as product recommendations. This approach is an effective way to focus on educational selling, providing soundbites of information tied to products and recipes.
