Leaving a lasting impression - colour at the point of sale
By James Thompson
Technology Editor, Retail Week UK.

From shop-fitting to signage, staffing and promotions, every year companies invest a huge amount in their business from which they expect to see a return on investment. Take advertising for example. Whether in-store, TV, online or on billboards, retailers are stumping up the cash to fund lavish promotions designed to present an engaging and consistent brand. So, why then are many missing the opportunity at the point of sale with receipts and coupons which do little to enhance their image or the customer experience? In the past, technology has only allowed retailers to print in two colours, or just black and white. But all this looks set to change with a new generation of fast, four-colour inkjet PoS printers that will hit the UK market in the next few years.

A couple of US retailers are already piloting a proof-of-concept version of the technology. One of these is Florida-based supermarket Sweetbay, a client of coupon specialist Catalina Marketing. Following Sweetbay’s trial, which started in mid-2005, Catalina aims to install full colour PoS printers and software free of charge in most of its customers’ 17,000 stores by the end of 2007.

For companies in the retail, leisure and entertainment sectors, these next generation colour PoS printers promise a myriad of benefits.

For a start, they are much faster than traditional inkjets. Catalina chief information officer Eric Williams says the new four-colour printers provide speeds equal to thermal printers for Catalina’s black and white coupons. Equipped with sophisticated anti-vibration technology, the printers are not only robust enough to cope with the demands of PoS environments in stores, but also do not need cleaning regularly.

Above all, however, these new inkjets aim to deliver improved revenues through improved redemption rates on promotions.

Another hard benefit, albeit a less measurable one, is a more consistent brand experience for customers. Any retailer worth their salt recognises that receipts and coupons need to complement the product experience at
the PoS.

At a simple level, colour printing will help retailers to use receipts more effectively to promote products or reinforce their brand. A multi-coloured receipt leaves a more lasting impression on customers than dull black and white ones, hopefully leading to repeat purchases. To further drive sales, the new PoS printers will help retailers to exploit commercial events to smarten up their bottom line. Events, such as the Football World Cup
or the release of a new album, provide opportunities to target customers with laser-guided, colourful promotions on receipts and vouchers. The launch of DVDs typically sees a flood of advertising on TV, in stores or on gift cards, but often nothing on receipts, for example.

The new technology should also pave the way for retailers to routinely deliver coupons, based on individual purchases at the till. A customer buying wine, for example, would receive a different voucher than for a purchase of nappies. More ambitiously, retail IT departments could integrate colour printers, PoS systems and loyalty card databases to deliver vouchers tailored to a customer’s historical spend.

Demonstrating quick wins, Sweetbay says its trial of Epson’s new printing technology has already delivered “significantly higher” rates of redemption, compared with its previous red-frame, black-and-white coupons.

The company declined to provide figures. The supermarket has also used the colour coupons to create awareness of different departments, when it opens its new ‘Kash n’ Karry’ stores. Steve Smith, vice-president of marketing at Sweetbay/Kash n’ Karry, says: “So, if someone buys [organic] cereal we let them know there’s a Nature’s Place department in the new store.” The new printers are not just geared towards transactions, but also act as a brand-communication vehicle, says Smith. “With the colour, you can have better visual representation of foods and packaging, and of our logo,” he adds.

In the short-term, the speed of colour PoS devices is likely to lag behind that of high-speed thermal printers. But some industry experts believe full colour printing at the point of sale is a viable option and that the new inkjets will eventually replace their faster cousin for printing receipts and coupons. With this, UK retailers need to start reviewing how they deliver promotions in stores, particularly integrating colour receipt into their PoS
printing communications and working with brand owners to put new campaigns in place. The harsh reality is that traditional two-colour coupons and receipts are starting to feel as anachronistic as black-and-white TVs did in the 1980s.

More and more retailers are recognising that full colour printing at the PoS is more than just a nice idea, it’s becoming a reality.