Putting Enjoyment Back Into the Shopping Experience

“Shopping is getting much less fun” was one of the key points in Integer’s latest issue of The Checkout. While there are many things that contribute to and impact this overall feeling of shoppers, I am encouraged by seeing helpful, interactive, and fun tools that aid the shopping experience.

Here are a few recent examples.

Target’s Shoe-Sizing Floor Map.

Clorox’s Wipes placed next to shopping carts.

Minneapolis Intl. Airport’s Piano Player located in the middle of the airport’s major shopping area.

The power of these helpful shopping tools lies in the fact that the tools represent an understanding of the mindset and struggles/pains/annoyances shoppers experience. Second, the tools positively improve the shopping experience and provide shoppers brief moments of enjoyment. These tools can be placed anywhere during the shopping experience (parking lot, aisles, checkouts, departments, etc.). Tools can be developed at a retail level (Target’s Shoe-Sizing Floor Map), a brand level (Clorox’s Wipes), or at a shopping facilitation level (airport, mall).

With such helpful tools now in the market, it makes we wonder: what else can improve the shopping experience? Which takes me right to the parking lot. Parking is one of my pet peeves. How could parking lots be improved to make parking and entering stores less stressful? Which brands or retailers would be the best to do and sponsor this?