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Belgian supermarket chain Delhaize is replacing its loyalty card with an app that gives customers personalised discounts. In this way, the chain strengthens its healthy image and sharpens price perception, without getting bogged down in a price war.
More data, more discounts
Health, purchasing power and digitisation are the trends reinforced by the corona crisis. Delhaize’s new Superplus programme, integrated in the revamped MyDelhaize app, responds to this: it gives loyal customers discounts on their purchases, just like the familiar loyalty card, but goes a few steps further. The app becomes a “loyalty club” with additional benefits for members. Customers who are willing to share their data with the retailer will receive more discount.
For example, if a product in the shop is on -20%, members of the club can get it on -30%. An offer “2nd at half price” becomes 1+1 free for members. The points saving system also becomes more flexible: for example, customers will be able to exchange points for specific products, or for vouchers from partners, such as bol.com.
On top of that, Delhaize stimulates a healthier purchasing behaviour. For 5,000 healthy products with Nutri-Score A or B, the discount runs up to 15% for customers who spend more than 500 euros per month. The Nutri-Profile in the app shows how many products the customer has purchased, and with which Nutri-Score. The app also suggests healthier alternatives.
Two birds with one stone
The new program builds on Delhaize’s previous testing of discounts on products with a good Nutri-Score and personalized e-deals for customers who registered online. These tests showed that customers are buying up to 35% more healthy products thanks to a Nutri-Score discount. According to Delhaize, this allows customers to save up to 360 euros per year.
With the new approach, Delhaize seems to want to kill two birds with one stone: the chain profiles itself even more as a supermarket that thinks along with its customers, and also wants to make people eat and live healthier. Moreover, the retailer is sharpening the price image without risking a pointless price war. After all, a competitor such as Colruyt cannot respond to the personalised discounts with red prices. “The fixed price on the shelf is no longer relevant,” says CEO Xavier Piesvaux. The future is in discounts tailored to shoppers’ behaviour.
