Produce Retailer Blog

When was the last time you Googled your operation?

I’ve seen a lot of social media or mobile marketing seminars lately. There is a lot of information out there about how to reach customers, what types of messages you should be doing and how to build your brand.

But how much attention are you paying to what other people say about your store?

Do you check your reviews on Google or Yelp?

Before I travel, I always go to Google and look up things like “Best produce in…” or “supermarkets in…”

From there I check out what consumers are saying on the various review sites before I decide who I’m going to see in a given market.

But what about “worst produce” or “bad supermarket” or the like?  You need to be aware of the criticism out there because it can get out of control fast.

Most of the review sites allow comments or follow-up reviews.  You could easily be doing some damage control on reasonable complaints and turn those negatives back into loyal shoppers. Consumers want to know you care what they think. click image to zoomPamela RiemenschneiderDo you have the best produce in town? Or are people complaining about your staff? Keep an eye on the reviews on social media websites like Google reviews and Yelp.com.

Just for fun, I Googled the name of a retailer I met today at the National Grocer’s Association convention in Las Vegas.

It’s an easy name to remember – Acquistapace’s—in Covington, La. I’m actually looking for some retailers to see while I’m in New Orleans next month and wanted to know what people thought of the store’s produce department.

Here’s a sample of the reviews I found on Yelp.com. People had some pretty great things to say about the wine department and decent comments about produce so I think I’ll put them on my list.

• They have a bigger selection of unprocessed meat than I would expect, and also a reasonable array of locally-produced meats and produce.
• I stop here just about every day. I usually buy just enough groceries to make it through the day. Kinda European, I know. But that's the way I like it.
• They always have what I am looking for. Their produce is really fresh and amazing. My grandmother has taught me how to shop for produce. And ACQ produce always meets the requirements.

While you can’t control what people are saying about you out there on the internet free-for-all, it’s helpful to keep track of that.  Who knows, it might all be compliments.