November 8, 2025 • 46 mins
A grocery disruptor is surging, hype is reshaping demand, and AI might quietly become your favorite holiday shopper. We sit down with Claire Reed to unpack Aldi’s value-first playbook, from lean operations and private labels to a smart Instacart partnership that skips building a retail media network from scratch. The takeaway: when quality meets price discipline, traffic follows, and Aldi’s store growth and rising visits prove it.
From there, we dive into hype marketing that actually works. Think collabs and limited editions that earn the buzz because the product hits. Supreme Oreos, fast-food celebrity meals, vinyl variants, great examples when timing, audience fit, and the goods align. We also call out the misses: weak products wrapped in loud campaigns. The principle holds across categories; brand heat can spark trial, but only product performance keeps the repeat.
Then we turn to holiday predictions with two big swings. First, agentic shopping gets real as more people use AI to shortlist gifts, compare options, and buy faster than any livestream can pace. Second, TikTok Shop becomes the season’s impulse engine, blending entertainment and checkout with deals that tip you from scroll to sold. We also track a quieter shift: subscriptions and experiences are becoming the “new gift card,” and meaningful DIY or secondhand gifts are rising as clutter-conscious choices.
Quick hits keep it spicy: Meta’s plan to use AI chats for ad targeting, the hidden cost of “work slop” when AI outputs go unchecked, and Amazon’s add to delivery as a simple but powerful nudge for basket growth. Along the way, we share practical guardrails, why human review still matters, how to build trust with private labels, and where to place your holiday bets across channels.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_01 (00:06):
What's up, party people?
BV here, and welcome to episodefive of Retail Media Vibes, a
doing business in Bettonvillepodcast.
We are back once again inRogers, Arkansas, recording at
Podcast Video Studios.
My guest this week is ClaireReed, and we're going to get to
(00:27):
know Claire a little bit in justa minute.
So our topics today are going tobe the growth of Aldi.
Aldi's definitely been on a runof late, hype marketing, and
everything you want to knowabout hype marketing and what
impact it has in the marketingspace and advertising space.
And then we're going to wrap itup with some holiday
predictions, what Claire and Iboth think is going to happen
(00:50):
this holiday season.
We're going to do our quickquick hits as always, and we'll
wrap things up with our game,Bold Vibes.
So stick with us.
All right.
So we are jumping into our vibechat and we get a chance to meet
today's guest.
Today's guest is Claire Reed.
Welcome, Claire, to Hateel MediaVibes.
Thanks for having me.
(01:10):
Great.
Well, it's good to have you.
Good to have you.
Um, quick question How manyepisodes of the podcast, Retell
Media Vibes, have you listenedto so far?
SPEAKER_00 (01:20):
Okay, so you're not gonna like my answer, but I'm
going to be very blunt and veryhonest.
Zero.
SPEAKER_01 (01:25):
Oh, wow.
SPEAKER_00 (01:27):
I am not, I'm not a podcast girly.
I'm not, I can't, I can't, Ican't listen to him.
I don't know what it is.
Every now and then I can listento him, but I am more, much
more, and maybe I need to trythe video because I'm much more.
SPEAKER_01 (01:43):
Yeah, it's just a video, YouTube.
Yeah, we're on YouTube.
SPEAKER_00 (01:45):
More of a visual learner.
Um, even when it comes toreading books or listening to
books, I've never been anaudible person.
I'm trying to get more into itjust with my commute driving to
Bedonville.
So maybe I'll listen to thisone.
But even the podcasts that I'vebeen on in the past, I have not
listened to.
Yeah.
The ones that are published.
SPEAKER_01 (02:04):
Well, all right.
Here, do me a favor.
Do me a favor.
So listen, maybe listen to thisone.
Maybe.
SPEAKER_00 (02:10):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (02:10):
But at least share.
Okay.
Oh, sorry, sure.
Share, share the podcast.
SPEAKER_00 (02:14):
I'll share them at least with my husband.
SPEAKER_01 (02:15):
Okay, there you go.
That's one more listen to one,what, what, one more, uh, one
more listen.
So, but let's get to know you alittle bit.
So, you know, tell well, I knowyou, I've known you for years,
obviously, but um tell theaudience a little bit about
Claire and your background andyou know, how we get how we know
each other and those types ofthings.
SPEAKER_00 (02:34):
So, personal side, um, I've lived in Fayetteville
for almost 20 years, I think.
Um, so been in this NorthwestArkansas bubble for quite a long
time.
I'm married, have two littlegirls, four and five years old.
Um, I have been in marketing, Ilike to say from day one,
because whenever you fill outyour college application, you
(02:55):
have to automatically select amajor.
Um, and I randomly selected adPR.
Um, so advertising and publicrelations and the journalism
department.
And I just randomly selected itall on a whim, um, thinking I
would probably change it downthe line.
Nope, never did.
(03:15):
Loved it, loved both the PR sideand the marketing advertising
side of it.
I loved it all.
I loved being able to have acreative hand in things, but
then also the strategic mindsetas well.
Um, and I've been in marketingever since.
So started in the e-commercespace, um, which was super fun
(03:36):
to be a part of.
And then I switched, stille-commerce focused, but in the
digital space.
And so that's how I met you umat Saatchi.
Uh, fun fact, whenever I wasinterviewing with BB, he
actually didn't initially wantto hire me.
Um, so that that's a it was fora different role, but okay.
That that's a super fun fact.
Anyways, he hired me, um, was onhis team for quite a few years,
(04:00):
left Sachi, left agency life fora little bit, uh, came back and
rejoined your team.
Um, yeah, we've been partneredtogether for a long time.
Now I'm in the B2B space, uh,still marketing, uh, B2B space
with stat recovery services.
Um, and I'm I'm loving it.
SPEAKER_01 (04:17):
Good.
Yeah, awesome.
Yeah, it's been great knowingyou obviously all this time.
And obviously, we've been greatfriends and um been through a
lot of you know cool momentstogether.
Um, so listen, let me ask you afew ice few icebreakers, kind of
you know, to a couple of thosequestions.
So um you like Taylor Swift?
Yeah.
Have you listened to her latestalbum?
SPEAKER_00 (04:39):
I have.
SPEAKER_01 (04:39):
Okay, I'd love to hear your your thoughts.
SPEAKER_00 (04:42):
Um, I feel like she is getting a lot of hate for it.
Okay.
I love it.
Yeah.
Um, I mean, there's a few songsthat I like more than others.
And it's funny, one of mycoworkers she told me, she calls
me very much a millennial, andI'll own it, I'm very much a
millennial.
Okay.
She's like, I feel like youwould really like this song.
This song is so millennial.
And it was actually one of myleast favorites.
(05:04):
Um, but overall, I love it.
Um, and I want to save some ofthat for hype marketing for that
section.
SPEAKER_01 (05:11):
Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (05:11):
Uh yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (05:12):
All right.
Well, we'll bring can bring thatback around.
SPEAKER_00 (05:14):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (05:14):
Um, and then what was your last impulse buy
online?
SPEAKER_00 (05:19):
Oh gosh.
Honestly, I have been all aboutjust cozy sweatsuits.
And dude, Walmart's crushing itin their private label game
right now.
Oh, good.
So they wear suit with theirwith their clothing lines.
So I got um, yeah, I just boughtanother sweatsuit from Walmart.
SPEAKER_01 (05:38):
Yeah, okay.
Um, yeah, I think, I mean,honestly, like I think the
hoodie in general is I'm not ahoodie girl.
SPEAKER_00 (05:46):
You're not a hoodie.
I'm not a hoodie girl.
Oh, okay.
No, no, I've tried.
Um, I even thought about tryingto wear my black hoodie just
because I thought you might bein a black hoodie.
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (05:54):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (05:55):
I don't think no, just your classic crew.
SPEAKER_01 (05:59):
Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (05:59):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (06:00):
Okay.
All right, cool.
Um, all right.
So we're gonna now move on toour our quick hits.
SPEAKER_00 (06:06):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (06:07):
All right, let's move on now to quick hits.
So our first story in quick hitsthis week is you know, Meta is
now going to start serving adsbased upon your AI chats, right?
So, you know, they're testing adtargeting based upon, you know,
your interaction with their AIchat across Messenger and
(06:30):
Instagram.
So the way that and what you sayto that in that chat and AI is
going to be used as data foradvertising on Meta's platform.
So, you know, think you know,Instagram, obviously, and and
Facebook, et cetera.
So, which is really interesting,and there's obviously been a lot
(06:51):
of pushback, right?
Because then people say, Oh, mychats are private, and why, you
know, you know, if you thinkyour chats are private, yeah,
especially through a socialmedia channel that monetizes for
advertising, using your data,you probably need to go and do
some research.
Yeah, yeah.
Because that's not really, youknow, that's obviously that's
(07:12):
how they they they monetize.
So in a way, to me, that's notsurprising, but I think there's
a lot of pushback, you know,because people just think, oh,
why would they be targeting mebased upon that chat, right?
SPEAKER_00 (07:25):
Right.
Well, and I feel like you and Iare in an interesting position
because personally, I yes, thisis creepy, but I don't think
that this is the first thingthat's creepy from a targeting
perspective.
What?
Right.
And that's where I feel like youand I are probably numb to this
because we already know and arefamiliar with the back end of
(07:49):
the targeting side of things.
Um, so to me, I don't think thatthis is any more creepy than um,
you know, them them listening toto our microphones or getting,
you know, talking about acertain are you about to drop a
a key story here?
SPEAKER_01 (08:08):
You're you saying the microphones on our devices
are being used for advertisingtargeting?
No way.
SPEAKER_00 (08:16):
Yeah, right.
Okay.
Um, I mean, definitely.
I mean, I think there's even asetting right now that you can
turn off on your iPhone whereyou can turn that off.
But I'm like, you know what?
It I'm not gonna turn it offbecause actually some of these
ads that they're getting from metalking about needing a certain
camera lens or a certain XYZ,whatever it is, they've actually
been helpful.
Um, like even one time I waslike, man, I got served an ad
(08:38):
the other day and I can'tremember what it was, but it was
making this up.
It was a it was a really neatbackpack that I needed for
traveling.
And and then maybe I'll if Italk about it enough today, I'll
get served the ad tomorrow.
And and I did, and it wasactually helpful.
And then I went and made thepurchase.
So yes, it's creepy, but andagain, maybe it's because we're
(08:59):
numb to it.
I don't think it's any morecreepy than what every other
what what else is happening?
SPEAKER_01 (09:05):
My my reaction was a three-letter word to the story.
Duh.
SPEAKER_00 (09:10):
Yeah, duh.
SPEAKER_01 (09:10):
Right.
I mean, this is not surprising.
Yeah, right.
And so um, yeah, I think alsoyou throw the word AI in there,
right, right, and AI chat, andof course it gets it gets a lot
of buzz.
Right.
I yeah, I think for the mostpart, most people don't realize
how much data they actually giveup, right, and how that data is
actually used, right?
And we do because of the worldthat we are in.
(09:32):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Cool.
Exactly.
All right, let's move on to thenext quick uh the next quick
hit.
So the next quick hit is aboutwork, uh, work slop.
So work slop is a phrase that'sbeing thrown around the
workplace now for people who areusing AI, it's in AI generated
content, you know, whether it'semails or or reports or
(09:54):
documents, and then they'rethrowing it over to whoever they
have to send that document to,and it's not accurate, right?
There's there's mistakes or it'snot the right, you know, right
content.
Um, and then the person whoreceives it then has to go
through this this process oftrying to validate that
(10:14):
information that has been putinto to that document.
And so it, you know, there'sbeen studies and that have been
have said that that you knowwork slop is costing a lot of
time and all that time is youknow accumulating to lots of
lots of dollars.
So, you know, my question to youis like, have you seen
personally, have you seen workslop?
Have you like actuallycontributed to your workslop?
SPEAKER_00 (10:38):
For sure I have, especially in, you know,
whenever you're jumping into anew role and you're having to
hit that learning curve.
And I mean, I'm transparently,I'm in a whole new industry that
I've never been in before.
And so I was heavily relying onum AI and chat to help me better
(11:00):
understand it.
And now that I'm past thatlearning curve, I feel like I'm
not integrating with it as much.
But even the other day, so we'reredoing our website right now,
and we are tapping into chatquite a bit, but we've got a
tailored chat that should anddoes know our industry and our
company through and through.
And so I feel like once if comemore and more companies do that
(11:23):
for the brands that they'remarketing for or themselves, I
feel like that will help.
But even the other day we wereworking through the website and
we were chatting through um somecopy options.
And I made the comment, I waslike, man, I feel I feel really
bad for a lot of copywriters outthere because I feel like that
(11:43):
that is one of the roles that AIcould potentially replace.
But to your point, on work slopand even what chat spit out for
us for a one-liner, it's like,no, this still needs a human
element to review it.
SPEAKER_01 (11:58):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (11:59):
Um, yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (12:01):
Yeah, and I think, you know, I think first of all,
with AI, AI in the workplace,the AO, it's all new, right?
And so there tends to beopportunity for mistakes, people
misusing it in in in differentways.
Yeah.
Maybe AI wasn't the right, youknow, tool to use for a specific
request.
So I think sometimes it may getoverused, and so that I think
(12:23):
leads leads to it.
Some people may just be lazy anddon't want to, or might maybe,
or we'll we'll do it the otherway.
Maybe they just don't have time,they're very busy, right?
And don't have the time toreally check the check the work
um and before it gets sent out.
I do think that this will youknow correct itself over time,
but I think ultimately theperson that is the person that
(12:45):
is creating the content,whatever it is, uh, if they're
using AI, they are responsiblefor the accuracy and
completeness.
Right.
I also think about it a littlebit like it's like having you
know a more junior levelemployee that it works for you
that's maybe new.
Yeah.
And so, you know, you try toalso help them, you know, get
(13:08):
the content correct, but theyare going to make mistakes,
right?
You train them and they andthey've got it and they're gonna
make mistakes.
So I I do think this is atemporary, a temporary thing.
For sure.
Um, and there's obviously aspeople get more skilled in using
AI, I would expect that workslot will decrease
significantly.
SPEAKER_00 (13:26):
Well, and I think, I mean, I I feel like I even
noticed the other day chat had adisclaimer.
It was like, hey, I'm gonna makemistakes.
Review, review what I send you.
Yeah.
And it's a I don't know ifthat's new or if that's always
been there, but maybe, maybethey know about work slot.
SPEAKER_01 (13:41):
Maybe.
Yeah, maybe, maybe.
All right, let's move on to ournext quick hit.
So Amazon is rolling out thewhat's called ad-to-delivery.
So they have this new ad todelivery feature that lets prime
members bundle small orders intotheir next schedule delivery.
(14:01):
I think of this one like kind oflike uh a double dash, right?
So with DoorDash, you can haveyour dasher stop at another
another spot and bring uhanother complete order instead
of creating two different, youknow, two different orders.
You know, with with this, it'sit's interesting because you
know, when I shop in, you know,when I shop occasionally on
(14:21):
Amazon, you know, I I usuallytry to buy everything I'm
thinking about at one time.
Yeah.
My wife, she'll buy one thingand then she'll buy another
thing, and like and so she'llhave like separate orders that
will come in.
Obviously, it there's someefficiencies if you're you know
bringing all those orderstogether in one, you know, one
package.
Um, and I also see anopportunity for impulse, you
(14:42):
know, impulse shopping, right?
And so an or an impulseopportunity, you know, or you
know, you you've done something,oh yeah, I just remember I need
to get this.
And so it could, it could,could, could help.
You know, what are your yourthoughts about like what add to
you know, add to delivery couldpotentially do for shoppers?
SPEAKER_00 (15:01):
So when I first saw that add to delivery button, I
mean, I forget when it was,maybe a week or so ago, um, my
first thought was, wow, is thisthe first time that Walmart was
actually ahead of the game gamebefore Amazon?
Because so we have Walmart Plusand we use in-home delivery, I
mean, week at least once a week,if not twice a week.
(15:25):
And one of my favorite featuresfor Walmart Plus is that you can
add to delivery.
Yeah.
Um, and I mean, I feel likewe've been doing that for
months.
So if we forget something, yes,there's a time limit on it, but
same, same thing with Amsterdam.
So I was like, wow, this isgreat.
Uh, but Walmart did this first.
And I feel like in the past ithasn't always been like that.
(15:46):
Right.
Um, especially when it comes toe-commerce.
Um and now, yeah, I'm reallyproud of Walmart.
SPEAKER_01 (15:52):
And yeah, yeah.
Um, yeah, I usually see like,you know, I think if if I think
back to you know e-commerce umshopping, it was usually like,
hey, you bought this.
Do you want to buy this?
So it's more recommendation.
This one feels like it's alittle bit more of a pull,
right?
Yeah, you're yeah, you're like,oh yeah, you know, I I bought
all these things.
(16:12):
Oh, I just remember I needed toadd this.
And so then you can go ahead andmove it, move that into your
into your delivery and have onepackage.
Yeah.
I mean, it's it's seems like ano-brainer.
For sure.
Right.
At this stage, you know, it'sstill to me, uh, you know,
thinking about it from animpulse buy perspective as well.
So like I, you know, you know,as more people shop online, like
(16:33):
the impulse, like there's doesseem like there's a lot of
impulse opportunity there.
Like nobody, I don't feel likeanybody's really nailed impulse.
SPEAKER_00 (16:41):
Maybe with like the buy now button where you don't
have to go through the fullYeah, the one-click buy, yeah.
Yes, that one click buy.
I mean, that's gotten me severaltimes some impulse purchases.
SPEAKER_01 (16:51):
Yeah, yeah.
I'm sorry.
And I'm thinking about like theimpulse, like when you go to the
store.
SPEAKER_00 (16:54):
Yes, and you throw it next to it.
SPEAKER_01 (16:56):
And you're walking down, it's I think about it at
like the checkout aisle.
Yeah.
And so like in the in you know,certain stores will snake you
through all these littletchotchkis and things that you
can buy and candy and all thatstuff.
Oh, yeah.
Um, you buy one more thing, buyone more thing, buy one more
thing.
Um, I don't know if that'sreally been nailed in the on the
e-commerce side.
SPEAKER_00 (17:15):
No, because I mean, uh it's definitely slowed down
in our house with Walmart andhome because I don't, yeah, I
don't walk down the candy aisleand I don't go grocery shopping
when I'm hungry, which is when Imake my impulse guys.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (17:27):
So yeah, cool.
Well, it's it's it'sinteresting.
Like you said, you know, it'sgood to see Amazon catch up to
to Walmart and what they've beendoing and Walmart Plus.
So um, yeah, so we'll see.
All right, now we're gonna moveon to main topic.
So our first main topic today,we're gonna talk about Aldi.
Uh you have you shopped at Aldi?
SPEAKER_00 (17:46):
I have.
SPEAKER_01 (17:46):
And do you shop regularly?
SPEAKER_00 (17:48):
I don't.
SPEAKER_01 (17:49):
Okay.
All right.
Uh we'll get we'll get intothat, I'm sure.
But you know, Aldi has reallygrown quite a bit and has become
one of the American one ofAmerica's fastest growing
grocers.
They've doubled their storecount, they bought Win Dixie,
and they keep winning shoppersthrough low price, and and they
(18:11):
have some strong private privatelabels.
They definitely have a verystrong private label strategy.
Um, you know, they're not reallytrying to compete with Walmart
at mass.
Uh, they're very simple in theway that they they do things and
the way that they, you know,they merchandise, and obviously,
you know, using private labelbrands and a lot of things
(18:32):
there.
Um and so they're I feel likethey're getting some some
momentum to be a very prominentgrocer in in America.
I think they're number three nowbehind Kroger.
Walmart's one, Kroger is two,and they're number three.
And so they plan to open anotheruh open 225 stores here in the
(18:54):
US in this year, uh in 2025.
That's gonna bring their storecount to 2600 stores, so you
know, a little bit more thanhalf of what Walmart has
comparatively.
Um and so and their traffic hasrose significantly.
They're they're uh in the firsthalf of this year, their
(19:16):
customer traffic rose to 7% whenpreviously it was 1.8% growth.
So they've they've they've hadlike 7% growth in traffic um as
well in the first half of thisyear.
So it's very, very significant.
I think, you know, um they andthey also they partner with
Instacart, right?
So they didn't so what Iappreciate is it feels like
(19:37):
every retailer that has somesort of data goes out and starts
a retail media network uh andRMN.
They didn't.
They're working with Instacart,right?
And yeah, so and it's andInstacart obviously is a is very
you know is uh very capable inthe retail media space and also
very capable um in in delivery,you know, similar to obviously
(19:58):
in in competing with Walmart.
So they can away they're start,you know, they have that
capability.
Um you know, they've theirproducts are low cost, they
private brands, you know, and Ithink about whatever people
think about the economy, but youknow, potential economic, you
know, changes and you know howpeople are probably thinking
(20:20):
more about value now than thanbefore or in uh times past.
You know, having having a storethat kind of focuses on value
overall and having those privatebrands where they can charge a
lot less than the big brands umreally feels like it's a good
timing for them.
So, you know, I'd love to knowlike what what your thoughts on
(20:43):
your experiences with with Aldiand you know, do you feel like
you know they are on a goodtrack to to continue to grow in
in our country?
SPEAKER_00 (20:53):
Yeah, for sure.
I think my first just looking atthis question, this this topical
conversation, I initially gotowards, I feel like Aldi has
kind of like a social cultfollowing um, really similar to
Trader Joe's as well, whichthey're they're founded by
brother.
(21:13):
Yeah, yeah, for sure.
Um and that's how I first maybenot first came across them, but
first became more knowledgeableabout Aldi, was via influencers.
And I mean, they've got similarto Trader Joe's, they have their
Aldi staples.
And like you said, they're allprivate label.
Um, I mean, I I won't lie,whenever I was going into an
(21:36):
Aldi based on an influencer postthat I saw, I was a little bit
underwhelmed.
But I do think, I mean, that wasyears ago.
Um, but I think that if theycould continue to tap into that
social influencer space andcontinue to build that cult
following, I mean, I thinkthat's that will help them
tremendously or continue to helpthem because I think it's
(21:58):
already happening.
Um, and I mean, you stilldefinitely get the same vibes
between Aldi and Trader Joe'sfrom your in-store experience.
I mean, like you said, theydon't have like a huge
e-commerce play for either ofthem.
I mean, Trader Joe's is a lotsmaller.
Um, but yeah, that's wherethat's where my mind immediately
(22:19):
goes.
SPEAKER_01 (22:20):
Yeah.
I mean, who do you think who doyou think is really the target
Aldi shopper?
Like, you know, like I mean,obviously value can reach all
economics and demographics, butwho do you think like Aldi is
trying to appeal to?
SPEAKER_00 (22:35):
Yeah, I mean, I and my gut says larger families.
Um, so I mean, just theinfluencers that I follow, yes,
yes, that are cost conscious, orthey've got six kids that
they're trying to feed dinnerevery night, and so they want
you know, they want to get thevalue um from what they're
getting as well as the quality.
And I think that that's whereall these winning is you've got
(22:57):
value and quality too.
SPEAKER_01 (22:59):
Yeah.
Yeah, I mean, there is a lot ofpush by stores to create these
store brands, right?
You know, you think about Costcoand Kirkland and you know, the
value of that that brandspecifically at Costco.
And I think it's interesting tosee how these brands are
continue to be trip drivers orhave the opportunity to be trip
drivers, right?
(23:20):
You know, a lot of people, youknow, are are Costco members
because of Kirkland, right?
And um, you know, you know, youhave members mark on the Sam's
Club side, right?
And in Walmart and Grocery,there's Great Value and a lot of
other other store brands.
And so like as you know, Aldicontinues to you know try to
(23:40):
win, you know, with those withthose families and value
shoppers, like can they stillestablish a strong, a strong
brand presence, you know?
SPEAKER_00 (23:50):
I think so, but I I do think that that's probably
where like with the privatelabels themselves, I think that
that's probably where TraderJoe's or even Walmart with
Better Goods might be doing itit a little bit better, it'll
feel way more better.
I mean, look at Better Goods,their branding.
(24:10):
I mean, it's beautiful.
Yeah.
Um, I mean, and it's it'swinning me over.
I mean, in my previous role,whenever I was marketing ice
cream, I mean, and just talkingwith the merchant, I mean, yeah,
Better Goods is taking over theshelves and it's because it's
performing.
It's not just because it's whatWalmart wants, because it's
performing.
Yeah.
And I think that's where Aldimight be slightly different, is
(24:31):
that yes, they're winning withtheir private labels or their
private brands, but themarketing or the even just the
branding behind those privatebrands isn't as I don't want to
say elevated, but maybe elevatedfor lack of a better word,
compared to Trader Joe's and umBettercuts.
SPEAKER_01 (24:49):
Yeah, I think I think that's you hit on a really
important point for me, which islike not only build a brand, but
you have to have a greatproduct, right?
I think so so much in our worldof marketing, we're thinking
about the brand.
SPEAKER_00 (25:01):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (25:02):
Right.
And we're so like, how do we howdo we build up build a brand?
How do we you know build a brandat retail?
But in the reality is if theproduct doesn't live up to the
expectations, then that branddoesn't mean anything, right?
So it's got to be a goodpartnership between a good
product and a good brand.
And I think again, going back tothe Costco and Kirkland example,
(25:24):
like that's you know, it's beengood products going along with
the brand, and those continue toto you get the I'll use the word
synergy, right?
Between those two that reallyallow that that brand to
explode.
And if it's a core of youroffering, then there you go, you
have the opportunity to to win,win at retail, right?
SPEAKER_00 (25:44):
So exactly.
SPEAKER_01 (25:45):
Yeah, cool.
You know, you're just winningthe hearts and the minds of of
your customers.
So you're gonna continue to win,right?
See, it's easy, right?
No problem.
All right, let's move on to ournext main topic.
Um today we're gonna talk abouthype marketing.
So it feels like high marketingis hype marketing always has its
(26:06):
moments for sure.
Like you know, building up allof this excitement, building up
all this energy in a lot ofdifferent ways in order to, you
know, get people excited.
I almost think of hype marketingalmost like FOMO marketing,
right?
Because you've built somethingup so much in people's minds
that they have to have it andthey just have that fear of of
(26:26):
of missing out.
Um and you know, I I will admitI fall for hype all the time.
SPEAKER_00 (26:35):
You'll have the surprise boxes, BB.
SPEAKER_01 (26:37):
Well, I don't go and so for me, hype comes from the
standpoint of if I see somethingand more of a collaboration.
Yeah, I I I like hype more, myhype is more of a collaboration.
So when I see an interestingcollaboration, I think a mystery
box is more of like a lottery,you scratch the lottery ticket,
you just don't know.
So there's that level ofexcitement, right?
Yeah.
Um but I think you know it whenit comes to hype marketing, you
(27:03):
know, like I said, there's a fewdifferent angles of hype that
can be built, right?
So it could be a limited editionproduct, only available for a
limited time.
There is you don't know whatyou're gonna get in the box.
I don't know, I don't know ifthat necessarily works well for
CPG, um, unless it's like, youknow, uh, but you know, there's
(27:23):
that.
And then there's thecollaboration, right?
And so we're there's some sortof partnership.
Um, you know, um, I think Oreohad Supreme, Supreme Oreos, and
those sold out instantly.
SPEAKER_00 (27:37):
Malone and Selena Gummet.
SPEAKER_01 (27:39):
Yes, yeah, and it just builds builds all that
hype.
But you know, to me, in somecases, hype marketing works,
sometimes it doesn't.
Sometimes I roll my eyes,sometimes I get really excited.
So, like in your mind, like whatdo you think really makes hype
marketing work?
SPEAKER_00 (27:57):
Well, I mean, even bringing it back to that, the
other topic, you've got to havea product that works and
branding that works with it.
So, I mean, at first, I mean,using the Oreo Postmalone as an
example, at first, I was like,what?
Why is Postmalone making his ownOreo?
But then, I mean, the marketingbehind it and then actually
(28:17):
trying the product, which I loveOreos, but yeah, that's my
kryptonite.
Yes, same.
And um, I mean, yeah, I lovedit.
I mean, and I think the campaignperformed from what I hear.
It it did it did really well.
SPEAKER_01 (28:29):
Right.
SPEAKER_00 (28:29):
Um, so I think, yeah, you've got to have the
right product and the rightmarketing behind it.
Yeah.
Or branding behind it.
SPEAKER_01 (28:35):
Yeah, and you also see the clubs even at the in the
QSR or fast food space quite abit that actually drive a lot of
hype.
So a few years back, TravisScott had the Travis Scott meal.
Oh yeah.
And he was offering, you know,offering that through McDonald's
and uh SpongeBob and Wendy's,right?
Yeah, Spongebob and Wendy's umin the sneaker and and sneaker
(28:57):
community.
And um, I would say like therewas one with uh cactus plant
flea market.
Okay.
And so all the high beastsaround the in the sneaker
community and and uh were allabout buying up all these happy
meals that had the toys in them.
Have you ever have you everbought like a happy meal or some
sort of meal like just to getthe toy?
SPEAKER_00 (29:19):
Oh yeah, for my girls for sure.
I think the squishmallow oneswere were a hit for the girls
for sure.
And yeah, they wanted all ofthose.
Um, I think I've even had to goand ask, hey, can I just buy the
squishmallow toy?
And they let me.
SPEAKER_01 (29:36):
So So do you think hype marketing will always work?
Or do you think I mean obviouslyyou have to have the right
pairing, but like do you thinkpeople just get, ah, not not
another mystery box or yeah,it's been low.
SPEAKER_00 (29:50):
I I mean I think it's I I think it's also just
trends and what people arejumping on with trends.
I mean, even using like thesurprise, like the that's Things
that are boxed.
I feel like it's more so in thetoy space where you don't know
what you're gonna get.
Um, candy could probably playinto that.
And cereal does that.
Yeah, actually, you know, dumdums even do like think back to
(30:11):
the dum-dums, like the thepurple question mark wrap bro.
Oh, yeah, yeah.
That's the original, right?
Yeah.
That's the original surprise.
Um, but I mean, my kids lovethat.
And now it's across almost everysingle toy.
Like there's Barbie, there'sthose puppy dolls.
I mean, there's there'severything.
You don't know what toy you'regonna get, and it's
gamification.
You gotta try to get them all.
SPEAKER_01 (30:32):
Yeah, it is.
I guess there is a certain levelof gamification, you know, as
well.
Um to it, because you know,you're you're you know, I I
think of it as like the Pokemonmentality, you gotta catch them
all and kind of thing.
Yeah.
So I I I think, you know, to me,if you if you find a the right I
also feel like like a the rightcultural moment also is an
(30:54):
opportunity.
Um like Cranch, right?
That was that was you know,catch up in Ranch and app became
a thing.
That was Taylor Swift, right?
With Cranch?
SPEAKER_00 (31:05):
I don't think so.
Was it?
SPEAKER_01 (31:07):
I think she did something with Cranch and then
it took off and maybe maybe allright.
We might edit that one out.
SPEAKER_00 (31:11):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (31:12):
Um, but anyway, um, so I I I do think that you know,
I I do think it has the timinghas to be good.
SPEAKER_00 (31:19):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (31:20):
The partnership has to be right.
You have to know your audience,right?
Right.
You know, because the otherthing too is if you put
something in a box or you collabwith somebody and that user or
or that customer is a big fanand they go and they buy it, are
they gonna come back and buyyour product when it's not a
(31:42):
collab anymore, right?
And it's not, you know, it'sjust a it's just the regular,
regular product.
So are you well by then theremight be another trend that that
yeah, I know so you're so thatthat brand switch over switch
over tapiness too.
I know I I do I do think like Ido think as long as there is an
opportunity to build excitement,right?
And so and that's what marketingis, right?
(32:03):
You're trying to build demand,right?
You're trying to build a desirefor a certain brand or product,
right?
As long as as long as that canwork and it's done in the right
way, the right product, rightcollab, I think hype marketing
will continue to work.
It'll continue to catch me forsure.
SPEAKER_00 (32:23):
For sure.
SPEAKER_01 (32:23):
But you know, and so I think I think I think hype
marketing is really gonna stick.
SPEAKER_00 (32:27):
Stick around.
Well, and I mean, yes, we'vetalked about collabs, but I feel
like we only briefly touched onlike the limited edition side of
things.
Yeah.
And looping it back to do I likeTaylor Swift's new album?
Dude, she has crushed it when itcomes to hype marketing.
Oh, yeah, her limited editionalbums.
I was looking at an infographicthe other day that shows Taylor
(32:50):
Swift's album sales by album.
And I think it was theMidnight's album where it there
was an uptick and then anotheruptick for the 1989 Taylor Swift
Taylor's Taylor's version.
But the reason that theMidnights album had such a high
point of sales was I think thatwas her first one where she had
(33:13):
multiple vinyl editions.
So you could collect all ofthem.
And then with this, the Life ofShowgirl, I don't even know how
many she had, but I mean, I Ithink at least eight.
I'm not don't quote me on that.
But and they were all limitededition.
You could only buy them for 24hours.
So they she released it on herwebsite for 24 hours, and so
(33:33):
then the graphic shot up forLife of a Showgirl because there
were so many unique versions ofher album.
Um, I mean, and yeah, it got alittle annoying with the
marketing of it, but also sheknows what she's doing, and
people are still coming back formore.
SPEAKER_01 (33:51):
Yeah, she's a machine for sure.
Yeah, yeah, so cool.
All right, we're gonna move onto our third and final main
topic, and we're gonna have ourholiday season predictions.
So uh Claire has a couplepredictions.
I have a couple predictions thatwe are going to uh talk about
today.
So um, you know, some of thesepredictions may happen, some of
(34:14):
them may not.
That's why they're predictions.
And I don't think anybody'sholding me to these.
All right.
So I have a I will have a ohthat's true.
We will.
Uh you will.
So uh so this holiday season,this is you know my prediction.
Prediction number one here is Ido believe that agentic shopping
will actually go mainstream,well more mainstream than I
(34:37):
think we expect.
I actually think that morepeople or more shoppers will buy
through AI through live stream,which I know live streams have
had a had a surge and thenthey've kind of quieted down.
Now they've kind of normalized,like it is still obviously a way
(34:57):
that uh brands and products canengage with shoppers.
I I still, you know, I stillthink there has to be the right
product fit.
You know, I don't think everyproduct is great for a live
stream, um, but I do think thatthere, you know, there are
definitely opportunities.
So um, but that all being said,even though there is this
(35:18):
normalization of the live streamshopping, there's obviously all
this excitement about agenticshopping and using AI to shop.
And now we have these verypowerful tools that can do a lot
of this research and they makeus allow us to find gifts,
right?
We don't have to sit through alive stream and wait for the
gifts to show up, you know, orto show up to buy them.
(35:40):
We can just find them directlyon on AI through AI, ChatGPT,
etc.
Um, so that's my prediction.
My my prediction is that we'rereally gonna hit it hit a hit
its stride.
I think it's gonna drive a lotof adoption and more people will
buy via agents and AI than theywill through live streams, we
(36:00):
thought.
SPEAKER_00 (36:00):
I totally agree.
I even the other day, this wasat holiday shopping, but the
other day we're renovating ourhouse or a portion of our house
right now, and I needed to ordersome windows and doors.
And I was trying to do justresearch on my own via Google,
just shopping online.
And I was like, you know what?
I'm gonna go, I'm just gonna goin-store to Home Depot, or I
(36:23):
think Home Depot.
I don't know which one.
I went to Home Depot or Lowe's,and I was like, I'm gonna go
back to the back of the back ofthe store, talk to a person,
they can help me plan out thewhole thing.
I hate to say this, it was nothelpful at all.
He just asked me to pull up myitem skew, and I was like,
that's that's not what I want.
So I left.
Along with using chat, I alsoused Home Depot's AI chat
(36:46):
feature on their website.
It was amazing.
Yeah, it f I finally found whatI was looking for.
I was looking for matchingwindows and doors and a single
door and a double door, and Iused it or I found it all via
the Home Depot AI chat.
So yes, I had a little bit ofhelp from Chat GBT, but so I
mean, yeah, I think it'll if I'musing it for home renovations,
(37:08):
people are definitely gonna beusing it for do you use ChatGBT
to talk to the Home Depot app?
SPEAKER_01 (37:13):
They could work it out.
SPEAKER_00 (37:14):
No, and actually, I mean, truly, Home Depot's was a
lot more helpful than ChatGPT.
SPEAKER_01 (37:19):
Well, it should be all right.
It has that it has all of thedata, right?
So it should be able to be moreuh more helpful.
So cool.
All right, uh, what's your boldprediction?
Give me one.
SPEAKER_00 (37:28):
So I feel like this one has honestly been trending
upwards over the last few years,but it's definitely trending in
my household.
Um, we are leaning more towardsexperiences and subscriptions
over physical, I say toys justbecause I've got little kids in
the house right now.
(37:49):
Yeah.
Um, but over physical items.
I mean, even the other day Ialmost asked Chad for some new
loafers, and I was like, no, Ineed to do need to get something
that's more of an experience ormore of a subscription.
Yeah.
Um, and so last year forChristmas, I asked Chad for some
pottery lessons over time.
(38:10):
So it was a subscription and anexperience.
Um and yeah, I think that'sdefinitely at least my household
is going.
SPEAKER_01 (38:18):
Yeah, I think I think that's it, I think that's
really interesting.
I I do think, you know, kidslike to get their, you know, the
PlayStation Network, you know,subscription, you know, as a,
you know, usually as a gift cardand a lot of that stuff.
But I think also like Isubscribe to Calm.
SPEAKER_00 (38:33):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (38:34):
You know, I subscribe to Blinkist, some of
these things that I personallypay for.
It would be great if somebody,yes, to be gifted, you know,
something like that.
SPEAKER_00 (38:44):
Were those storybooks?
What are those uh the brand, thestorybooks where you I I gifted
it to my dad actually.
Um, but you it's an email andthe gift recipient gets an
email.
You can choose how often to getit, but I think I set it up for
once a week or once every otherweek.
And they get a question, therecipient fills out the
question, and then um and thenat the end of the subscription,
(39:07):
it's all put into a book.
So it's basically your familymembers' story put into a book
and it's bound in everything.
So there's a little bit of aphysical element to it.
SPEAKER_01 (39:18):
So it's to to put a finer point on your prediction,
uh, are you saying that uh moresubscriptions and you know,
let's say digital, you know,just and experiences,
subscriptions and experiencesare going to increase
significantly this holidayseason.
SPEAKER_00 (39:36):
For sure.
And I feel like it's almost likeit's the new gift card in a way.
SPEAKER_01 (39:40):
And we all love gift cards.
SPEAKER_00 (39:41):
Yeah, everyone loves a gift card.
SPEAKER_01 (39:45):
Okay.
All right.
So let's move back to me with mynext bold prediction.
So I'm going to say that TikTokshops are going to be the new
Black Friday.
So there's going to be we weretalking about impulse buying,
right?
I think TikTok shops are one ofthe uh best, biggest recipients
(40:06):
of impulse buys, right?
You're flop flipping throughyour feed and all of a sudden
you caught you land on somethingthat, all right, it's it's it's
a it's an impulse buy.
I think, you know, with TikTokbeing as popular as it is and
becoming more of a shoppingsearch and shopping destination,
I still I think there's gonna beuh it's gonna be a huge season
(40:29):
for for TikTok shops.
I mean, what are your thoughts?
SPEAKER_00 (40:32):
For sure.
SPEAKER_01 (40:32):
I mean Do you die through TikTok shops?
SPEAKER_00 (40:35):
I have in the past.
I actually removed the apprecent.
Yes, just getting out of thesocial commerce space, and then
I just needed to take a breakfrom shopping online.
Yeah.
Um in TikTok shop, I mean, yeah,they get you with the deals.
I mean, they get you with thedeals and it not even being
Black Friday.
So I I totally agree with you.
(40:57):
I think they're gonna blow up onBlack Friday.
But then to your firstprediction, I think that that's
also gonna help with livestreaming on TikTok too.
Because I know that that'sthat's where a lot of the TikTok
shops get in their livestreaming.
So absolutely.
Well they'll they'll still winthere.
SPEAKER_01 (41:15):
Okay, cool.
All right.
Well, let's go back to you foryour second and final bold
prediction for this holidayseason.
SPEAKER_00 (41:21):
So this might be a little more on the personal
side, but I do feel from myalgorithm that I'm served on
TikTok, even though I justdeleted the app, um, Instagram
reels, or even this makes mesound so old, but Facebook
reels.
(41:42):
I feel like Facebook reels thatthey actually know me better
than Instagram or um or TikTok.
But one thing that I'm seeing isre-gifting.
So going to That's usually afaux pot.
Yes, yes, yeah, yeah, true.
I'll be honest, we actually dohave a tote in our attic that is
re-gifting.
(42:02):
But no, not that type ofre-gifting.
I should say secondhand.
So I've seen quite a fewinfluencers going to Goodwill,
finding something, and andthey're not just re-gifting an
old t-shirt that they find onthe rack.
They're finding something andmaking it into something new.
So Chad and I actually did thisa few years ago, where we went
(42:23):
to Goodwill or I went toPotter's house locally, and I
bought a bunch of teacups, oldbowls, whatever I could find
that honestly I just thought waspretty.
Um, and we made candles.
So we melted down the wax, putin our essential oils, and made
candles.
And those were our gifts toquite a few family members.
(42:43):
And so I feel like, yeah, Ithink that that's gonna come.
SPEAKER_01 (42:48):
Is going to definitely be a big trend this
this holiday season.
SPEAKER_00 (42:52):
Yes, whether it's making candles or secondhand
like refurbishing furniture forsomeone.
Um, definitely.
SPEAKER_01 (42:58):
Yeah, love that.
I love that.
That's I mean, I would havenever thought about that.
Yeah.
So it's that's cool, cool.
All right.
All right, well, those are ourholiday predictions.
So we are going to wrap thingshere with some bold vibes.
So we're gonna play our littleor play our game.
Um, so it's it's going to be I'mgonna throw out a a statement to
(43:20):
Claire and Claire has to give mewhat she thinks immediately.
Like, what is your gut reaction?
What is your gut vibe on mystatement?
Okay, okay.
All right, so pretty, prettyeasy.
All right, here we go.
Agentic shopping will outselllive commerce by 2026.
(43:42):
So in total.
SPEAKER_00 (43:43):
Maybe not outsell, but I think it'll definitely be
on par.
SPEAKER_01 (43:46):
All right, cool.
What is one item you would mostdefinitely impulse add to your
Amazon order?
SPEAKER_00 (43:54):
Um, I said it at the beginning of this uh show, a
sweatsuit.
SPEAKER_01 (43:58):
Sweatsuit.
Yeah, all right.
SPEAKER_00 (43:59):
Sweatsuit.
SPEAKER_01 (44:00):
Leboo Boo will make a resurgence during the holiday.
They're kind of down right now.
So what do you think?
SPEAKER_00 (44:05):
Definitely.
Yeah, I think stocking stuffers?
SPEAKER_01 (44:07):
Yeah, okay.
Aldi will jump Kroger to becomethe number two grocer in the US
by 2027.
SPEAKER_00 (44:17):
No.
SPEAKER_01 (44:18):
No.
Okay.
Work slop is no big deal andreally not a problem.
SPEAKER_00 (44:22):
Yes and no.
It's not a pro it is a problem,but I think it'll get better,
like I said.
SPEAKER_01 (44:27):
And what will your kids want for Christmas?
SPEAKER_00 (44:31):
Um, but to your point earlier, my oldest
daughter, she wants to catchthem all.
She wants anything andeverything Pokemon.
And younger sister, she's justalong for the rush.
SPEAKER_01 (44:42):
Awesome.
Well, those are great answers,Claire.
Uh, thanks for thanks forplaying bold, bold vibes.
So uh let's move on to wrapthings up.
So uh that's gonna wrap us upfor Retail Media Vibes episode
number five.
A big thanks to my guest,Claire, for bringing all of her
love and energy today to thepodcast.
(45:03):
Um, Claire, would you come back?
SPEAKER_00 (45:05):
Definitely.
SPEAKER_01 (45:06):
All right, yeah, you gotta listen to the episode
though before you come back.
SPEAKER_00 (45:09):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (45:10):
Um anything you wanna shout out, anything you
want to plug before he wraps itup.
SPEAKER_00 (45:16):
I want to say thank you for having me.
I mean, you mentioned this toeveryone at the beginning of
this, but yeah, it's really coolto see to see this come to life.
I know that this has been adream of yours for a while.
So thank you for having me andletting me be a part of it.
SPEAKER_01 (45:30):
Oh, it's exciting.
It was great to have you on.
So um, all right.
Well, to wrap it up, if you uhif you enjoyed this episode, be
sure to like, subscribe.
You know, if you're on YouTube,hit the little bell for
notifications.
The this podcast is a bi-weeklypodcast.
So just so you know, so a newepisode launches every other
(45:51):
week, and that's on Saturdayafternoons.
Um, so you'll you'll see it popup in in your feed if you
subscribe.
So please, please like, pleasesubscribe.
Um, it definitely helps peoplelearn about the podcast.
So I really would appreciate it.
And uh, if you have anyquestions for me, you can send
that to retailmedia vibes atgmail.com.
(46:13):
And so thanks again so much forlistening and being with us
today.
And I definitely promise I willdo better next time.
All right, B V out.
What's up, party people?
BV here, and welcome to episodefive of Retail Media Vibes, a
doing business in Bettonvillepodcast.
We are back once again inRogers, Arkansas, recording at
Podcast Video Studios.
My guest this week is ClaireReed, and we're going to get to
(00:27):
know Claire a little bit in justa minute.
So our topics today are going tobe the growth of Aldi.
Aldi's definitely been on a runof late, hype marketing, and
everything you want to knowabout hype marketing and what
impact it has in the marketingspace and advertising space.
And then we're going to wrap itup with some holiday
predictions, what Claire and Iboth think is going to happen
(00:50):
this holiday season.
We're going to do our quickquick hits as always, and we'll
wrap things up with our game,Bold Vibes.
So stick with us.
All right.
So we are jumping into our vibechat and we get a chance to meet
today's guest.
Today's guest is Claire Reed.
Welcome, Claire, to Hateel MediaVibes.
Thanks for having me.
(01:10):
Great.
Well, it's good to have you.
Good to have you.
Um, quick question How manyepisodes of the podcast, Retell
Media Vibes, have you listenedto so far?
SPEAKER_00 (01:20):
Okay, so you're not gonna like my answer, but I'm
going to be very blunt and veryhonest.
Zero.
SPEAKER_01 (01:25):
Oh, wow.
SPEAKER_00 (01:27):
I am not, I'm not a podcast girly.
I'm not, I can't, I can't, Ican't listen to him.
I don't know what it is.
Every now and then I can listento him, but I am more, much
more, and maybe I need to trythe video because I'm much more.
SPEAKER_01 (01:43):
Yeah, it's just a video, YouTube.
Yeah, we're on YouTube.
SPEAKER_00 (01:45):
More of a visual learner.
Um, even when it comes toreading books or listening to
books, I've never been anaudible person.
I'm trying to get more into itjust with my commute driving to
Bedonville.
So maybe I'll listen to thisone.
But even the podcasts that I'vebeen on in the past, I have not
listened to.
Yeah.
The ones that are published.
SPEAKER_01 (02:04):
Well, all right.
Here, do me a favor.
Do me a favor.
So listen, maybe listen to thisone.
Maybe.
SPEAKER_00 (02:10):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (02:10):
But at least share.
Okay.
Oh, sorry, sure.
Share, share the podcast.
SPEAKER_00 (02:14):
I'll share them at least with my husband.
SPEAKER_01 (02:15):
Okay, there you go.
That's one more listen to one,what, what, one more, uh, one
more listen.
So, but let's get to know you alittle bit.
So, you know, tell well, I knowyou, I've known you for years,
obviously, but um tell theaudience a little bit about
Claire and your background andyou know, how we get how we know
each other and those types ofthings.
SPEAKER_00 (02:34):
So, personal side, um, I've lived in Fayetteville
for almost 20 years, I think.
Um, so been in this NorthwestArkansas bubble for quite a long
time.
I'm married, have two littlegirls, four and five years old.
Um, I have been in marketing, Ilike to say from day one,
because whenever you fill outyour college application, you
(02:55):
have to automatically select amajor.
Um, and I randomly selected adPR.
Um, so advertising and publicrelations and the journalism
department.
And I just randomly selected itall on a whim, um, thinking I
would probably change it downthe line.
Nope, never did.
(03:15):
Loved it, loved both the PR sideand the marketing advertising
side of it.
I loved it all.
I loved being able to have acreative hand in things, but
then also the strategic mindsetas well.
Um, and I've been in marketingever since.
So started in the e-commercespace, um, which was super fun
(03:36):
to be a part of.
And then I switched, stille-commerce focused, but in the
digital space.
And so that's how I met you umat Saatchi.
Uh, fun fact, whenever I wasinterviewing with BB, he
actually didn't initially wantto hire me.
Um, so that that's a it was fora different role, but okay.
That that's a super fun fact.
Anyways, he hired me, um, was onhis team for quite a few years,
(04:00):
left Sachi, left agency life fora little bit, uh, came back and
rejoined your team.
Um, yeah, we've been partneredtogether for a long time.
Now I'm in the B2B space, uh,still marketing, uh, B2B space
with stat recovery services.
Um, and I'm I'm loving it.
SPEAKER_01 (04:17):
Good.
Yeah, awesome.
Yeah, it's been great knowingyou obviously all this time.
And obviously, we've been greatfriends and um been through a
lot of you know cool momentstogether.
Um, so listen, let me ask you afew ice few icebreakers, kind of
you know, to a couple of thosequestions.
So um you like Taylor Swift?
Yeah.
Have you listened to her latestalbum?
SPEAKER_00 (04:39):
I have.
SPEAKER_01 (04:39):
Okay, I'd love to hear your your thoughts.
SPEAKER_00 (04:42):
Um, I feel like she is getting a lot of hate for it.
Okay.
I love it.
Yeah.
Um, I mean, there's a few songsthat I like more than others.
And it's funny, one of mycoworkers she told me, she calls
me very much a millennial, andI'll own it, I'm very much a
millennial.
Okay.
She's like, I feel like youwould really like this song.
This song is so millennial.
And it was actually one of myleast favorites.
(05:04):
Um, but overall, I love it.
Um, and I want to save some ofthat for hype marketing for that
section.
SPEAKER_01 (05:11):
Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (05:11):
Uh yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (05:12):
All right.
Well, we'll bring can bring thatback around.
SPEAKER_00 (05:14):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (05:14):
Um, and then what was your last impulse buy
online?
SPEAKER_00 (05:19):
Oh gosh.
Honestly, I have been all aboutjust cozy sweatsuits.
And dude, Walmart's crushing itin their private label game
right now.
Oh, good.
So they wear suit with theirwith their clothing lines.
So I got um, yeah, I just boughtanother sweatsuit from Walmart.
SPEAKER_01 (05:38):
Yeah, okay.
Um, yeah, I think, I mean,honestly, like I think the
hoodie in general is I'm not ahoodie girl.
SPEAKER_00 (05:46):
You're not a hoodie.
I'm not a hoodie girl.
Oh, okay.
No, no, I've tried.
Um, I even thought about tryingto wear my black hoodie just
because I thought you might bein a black hoodie.
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (05:54):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (05:55):
I don't think no, just your classic crew.
SPEAKER_01 (05:59):
Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (05:59):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (06:00):
Okay.
All right, cool.
Um, all right.
So we're gonna now move on toour our quick hits.
SPEAKER_00 (06:06):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (06:07):
All right, let's move on now to quick hits.
So our first story in quick hitsthis week is you know, Meta is
now going to start serving adsbased upon your AI chats, right?
So, you know, they're testing adtargeting based upon, you know,
your interaction with their AIchat across Messenger and
(06:30):
Instagram.
So the way that and what you sayto that in that chat and AI is
going to be used as data foradvertising on Meta's platform.
So, you know, think you know,Instagram, obviously, and and
Facebook, et cetera.
So, which is really interesting,and there's obviously been a lot
(06:51):
of pushback, right?
Because then people say, Oh, mychats are private, and why, you
know, you know, if you thinkyour chats are private, yeah,
especially through a socialmedia channel that monetizes for
advertising, using your data,you probably need to go and do
some research.
Yeah, yeah.
Because that's not really, youknow, that's obviously that's
(07:12):
how they they they monetize.
So in a way, to me, that's notsurprising, but I think there's
a lot of pushback, you know,because people just think, oh,
why would they be targeting mebased upon that chat, right?
SPEAKER_00 (07:25):
Right.
Well, and I feel like you and Iare in an interesting position
because personally, I yes, thisis creepy, but I don't think
that this is the first thingthat's creepy from a targeting
perspective.
What?
Right.
And that's where I feel like youand I are probably numb to this
because we already know and arefamiliar with the back end of
(07:49):
the targeting side of things.
Um, so to me, I don't think thatthis is any more creepy than um,
you know, them them listening toto our microphones or getting,
you know, talking about acertain are you about to drop a
a key story here?
SPEAKER_01 (08:08):
You're you saying the microphones on our devices
are being used for advertisingtargeting?
No way.
SPEAKER_00 (08:16):
Yeah, right.
Okay.
Um, I mean, definitely.
I mean, I think there's even asetting right now that you can
turn off on your iPhone whereyou can turn that off.
But I'm like, you know what?
It I'm not gonna turn it offbecause actually some of these
ads that they're getting from metalking about needing a certain
camera lens or a certain XYZ,whatever it is, they've actually
been helpful.
Um, like even one time I waslike, man, I got served an ad
(08:38):
the other day and I can'tremember what it was, but it was
making this up.
It was a it was a really neatbackpack that I needed for
traveling.
And and then maybe I'll if Italk about it enough today, I'll
get served the ad tomorrow.
And and I did, and it wasactually helpful.
And then I went and made thepurchase.
So yes, it's creepy, but andagain, maybe it's because we're
(08:59):
numb to it.
I don't think it's any morecreepy than what every other
what what else is happening?
SPEAKER_01 (09:05):
My my reaction was a three-letter word to the story.
Duh.
SPEAKER_00 (09:10):
Yeah, duh.
SPEAKER_01 (09:10):
Right.
I mean, this is not surprising.
Yeah, right.
And so um, yeah, I think alsoyou throw the word AI in there,
right, right, and AI chat, andof course it gets it gets a lot
of buzz.
Right.
I yeah, I think for the mostpart, most people don't realize
how much data they actually giveup, right, and how that data is
actually used, right?
And we do because of the worldthat we are in.
(09:32):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Cool.
Exactly.
All right, let's move on to thenext quick uh the next quick
hit.
So the next quick hit is aboutwork, uh, work slop.
So work slop is a phrase that'sbeing thrown around the
workplace now for people who areusing AI, it's in AI generated
content, you know, whether it'semails or or reports or
(09:54):
documents, and then they'rethrowing it over to whoever they
have to send that document to,and it's not accurate, right?
There's there's mistakes or it'snot the right, you know, right
content.
Um, and then the person whoreceives it then has to go
through this this process oftrying to validate that
(10:14):
information that has been putinto to that document.
And so it, you know, there'sbeen studies and that have been
have said that that you knowwork slop is costing a lot of
time and all that time is youknow accumulating to lots of
lots of dollars.
So, you know, my question to youis like, have you seen
personally, have you seen workslop?
Have you like actuallycontributed to your workslop?
SPEAKER_00 (10:38):
For sure I have, especially in, you know,
whenever you're jumping into anew role and you're having to
hit that learning curve.
And I mean, I'm transparently,I'm in a whole new industry that
I've never been in before.
And so I was heavily relying onum AI and chat to help me better
(11:00):
understand it.
And now that I'm past thatlearning curve, I feel like I'm
not integrating with it as much.
But even the other day, so we'reredoing our website right now,
and we are tapping into chatquite a bit, but we've got a
tailored chat that should anddoes know our industry and our
company through and through.
And so I feel like once if comemore and more companies do that
(11:23):
for the brands that they'remarketing for or themselves, I
feel like that will help.
But even the other day we wereworking through the website and
we were chatting through um somecopy options.
And I made the comment, I waslike, man, I feel I feel really
bad for a lot of copywriters outthere because I feel like that
(11:43):
that is one of the roles that AIcould potentially replace.
But to your point, on work slopand even what chat spit out for
us for a one-liner, it's like,no, this still needs a human
element to review it.
SPEAKER_01 (11:58):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (11:59):
Um, yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (12:01):
Yeah, and I think, you know, I think first of all,
with AI, AI in the workplace,the AO, it's all new, right?
And so there tends to beopportunity for mistakes, people
misusing it in in in differentways.
Yeah.
Maybe AI wasn't the right, youknow, tool to use for a specific
request.
So I think sometimes it may getoverused, and so that I think
(12:23):
leads leads to it.
Some people may just be lazy anddon't want to, or might maybe,
or we'll we'll do it the otherway.
Maybe they just don't have time,they're very busy, right?
And don't have the time toreally check the check the work
um and before it gets sent out.
I do think that this will youknow correct itself over time,
but I think ultimately theperson that is the person that
(12:45):
is creating the content,whatever it is, uh, if they're
using AI, they are responsiblefor the accuracy and
completeness.
Right.
I also think about it a littlebit like it's like having you
know a more junior levelemployee that it works for you
that's maybe new.
Yeah.
And so, you know, you try toalso help them, you know, get
(13:08):
the content correct, but theyare going to make mistakes,
right?
You train them and they andthey've got it and they're gonna
make mistakes.
So I I do think this is atemporary, a temporary thing.
For sure.
Um, and there's obviously aspeople get more skilled in using
AI, I would expect that workslot will decrease
significantly.
SPEAKER_00 (13:26):
Well, and I think, I mean, I I feel like I even
noticed the other day chat had adisclaimer.
It was like, hey, I'm gonna makemistakes.
Review, review what I send you.
Yeah.
And it's a I don't know ifthat's new or if that's always
been there, but maybe, maybethey know about work slot.
SPEAKER_01 (13:41):
Maybe.
Yeah, maybe, maybe.
All right, let's move on to ournext quick hit.
So Amazon is rolling out thewhat's called ad-to-delivery.
So they have this new ad todelivery feature that lets prime
members bundle small orders intotheir next schedule delivery.
(14:01):
I think of this one like kind oflike uh a double dash, right?
So with DoorDash, you can haveyour dasher stop at another
another spot and bring uhanother complete order instead
of creating two different, youknow, two different orders.
You know, with with this, it'sit's interesting because you
know, when I shop in, you know,when I shop occasionally on
(14:21):
Amazon, you know, I I usuallytry to buy everything I'm
thinking about at one time.
Yeah.
My wife, she'll buy one thingand then she'll buy another
thing, and like and so she'llhave like separate orders that
will come in.
Obviously, it there's someefficiencies if you're you know
bringing all those orderstogether in one, you know, one
package.
Um, and I also see anopportunity for impulse, you
(14:42):
know, impulse shopping, right?
And so an or an impulseopportunity, you know, or you
know, you you've done something,oh yeah, I just remember I need
to get this.
And so it could, it could,could, could help.
You know, what are your yourthoughts about like what add to
you know, add to delivery couldpotentially do for shoppers?
SPEAKER_00 (15:01):
So when I first saw that add to delivery button, I
mean, I forget when it was,maybe a week or so ago, um, my
first thought was, wow, is thisthe first time that Walmart was
actually ahead of the game gamebefore Amazon?
Because so we have Walmart Plusand we use in-home delivery, I
mean, week at least once a week,if not twice a week.
(15:25):
And one of my favorite featuresfor Walmart Plus is that you can
add to delivery.
Yeah.
Um, and I mean, I feel likewe've been doing that for
months.
So if we forget something, yes,there's a time limit on it, but
same, same thing with Amsterdam.
So I was like, wow, this isgreat.
Uh, but Walmart did this first.
And I feel like in the past ithasn't always been like that.
(15:46):
Right.
Um, especially when it comes toe-commerce.
Um and now, yeah, I'm reallyproud of Walmart.
SPEAKER_01 (15:52):
And yeah, yeah.
Um, yeah, I usually see like,you know, I think if if I think
back to you know e-commerce umshopping, it was usually like,
hey, you bought this.
Do you want to buy this?
So it's more recommendation.
This one feels like it's alittle bit more of a pull,
right?
Yeah, you're yeah, you're like,oh yeah, you know, I I bought
all these things.
(16:12):
Oh, I just remember I needed toadd this.
And so then you can go ahead andmove it, move that into your
into your delivery and have onepackage.
Yeah.
I mean, it's it's seems like ano-brainer.
For sure.
Right.
At this stage, you know, it'sstill to me, uh, you know,
thinking about it from animpulse buy perspective as well.
So like I, you know, you know,as more people shop online, like
(16:33):
the impulse, like there's doesseem like there's a lot of
impulse opportunity there.
Like nobody, I don't feel likeanybody's really nailed impulse.
SPEAKER_00 (16:41):
Maybe with like the buy now button where you don't
have to go through the fullYeah, the one-click buy, yeah.
Yes, that one click buy.
I mean, that's gotten me severaltimes some impulse purchases.
SPEAKER_01 (16:51):
Yeah, yeah.
I'm sorry.
And I'm thinking about like theimpulse, like when you go to the
store.
SPEAKER_00 (16:54):
Yes, and you throw it next to it.
SPEAKER_01 (16:56):
And you're walking down, it's I think about it at
like the checkout aisle.
Yeah.
And so like in the in you know,certain stores will snake you
through all these littletchotchkis and things that you
can buy and candy and all thatstuff.
Oh, yeah.
Um, you buy one more thing, buyone more thing, buy one more
thing.
Um, I don't know if that'sreally been nailed in the on the
e-commerce side.
SPEAKER_00 (17:15):
No, because I mean, uh it's definitely slowed down
in our house with Walmart andhome because I don't, yeah, I
don't walk down the candy aisleand I don't go grocery shopping
when I'm hungry, which is when Imake my impulse guys.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (17:27):
So yeah, cool.
Well, it's it's it'sinteresting.
Like you said, you know, it'sgood to see Amazon catch up to
to Walmart and what they've beendoing and Walmart Plus.
So um, yeah, so we'll see.
All right, now we're gonna moveon to main topic.
So our first main topic today,we're gonna talk about Aldi.
Uh you have you shopped at Aldi?
SPEAKER_00 (17:46):
I have.
SPEAKER_01 (17:46):
And do you shop regularly?
SPEAKER_00 (17:48):
I don't.
SPEAKER_01 (17:49):
Okay.
All right.
Uh we'll get we'll get intothat, I'm sure.
But you know, Aldi has reallygrown quite a bit and has become
one of the American one ofAmerica's fastest growing
grocers.
They've doubled their storecount, they bought Win Dixie,
and they keep winning shoppersthrough low price, and and they
(18:11):
have some strong private privatelabels.
They definitely have a verystrong private label strategy.
Um, you know, they're not reallytrying to compete with Walmart
at mass.
Uh, they're very simple in theway that they they do things and
the way that they, you know,they merchandise, and obviously,
you know, using private labelbrands and a lot of things
(18:32):
there.
Um and so they're I feel likethey're getting some some
momentum to be a very prominentgrocer in in America.
I think they're number three nowbehind Kroger.
Walmart's one, Kroger is two,and they're number three.
And so they plan to open anotheruh open 225 stores here in the
(18:54):
US in this year, uh in 2025.
That's gonna bring their storecount to 2600 stores, so you
know, a little bit more thanhalf of what Walmart has
comparatively.
Um and so and their traffic hasrose significantly.
They're they're uh in the firsthalf of this year, their
(19:16):
customer traffic rose to 7% whenpreviously it was 1.8% growth.
So they've they've they've hadlike 7% growth in traffic um as
well in the first half of thisyear.
So it's very, very significant.
I think, you know, um they andthey also they partner with
Instacart, right?
So they didn't so what Iappreciate is it feels like
(19:37):
every retailer that has somesort of data goes out and starts
a retail media network uh andRMN.
They didn't.
They're working with Instacart,right?
And yeah, so and it's andInstacart obviously is a is very
you know is uh very capable inthe retail media space and also
very capable um in in delivery,you know, similar to obviously
(19:58):
in in competing with Walmart.
So they can away they're start,you know, they have that
capability.
Um you know, they've theirproducts are low cost, they
private brands, you know, and Ithink about whatever people
think about the economy, but youknow, potential economic, you
know, changes and you know howpeople are probably thinking
(20:20):
more about value now than thanbefore or in uh times past.
You know, having having a storethat kind of focuses on value
overall and having those privatebrands where they can charge a
lot less than the big brands umreally feels like it's a good
timing for them.
So, you know, I'd love to knowlike what what your thoughts on
(20:43):
your experiences with with Aldiand you know, do you feel like
you know they are on a goodtrack to to continue to grow in
in our country?
SPEAKER_00 (20:53):
Yeah, for sure.
I think my first just looking atthis question, this this topical
conversation, I initially gotowards, I feel like Aldi has
kind of like a social cultfollowing um, really similar to
Trader Joe's as well, whichthey're they're founded by
brother.
(21:13):
Yeah, yeah, for sure.
Um and that's how I first maybenot first came across them, but
first became more knowledgeableabout Aldi, was via influencers.
And I mean, they've got similarto Trader Joe's, they have their
Aldi staples.
And like you said, they're allprivate label.
Um, I mean, I I won't lie,whenever I was going into an
(21:36):
Aldi based on an influencer postthat I saw, I was a little bit
underwhelmed.
But I do think, I mean, that wasyears ago.
Um, but I think that if theycould continue to tap into that
social influencer space andcontinue to build that cult
following, I mean, I thinkthat's that will help them
tremendously or continue to helpthem because I think it's
(21:58):
already happening.
Um, and I mean, you stilldefinitely get the same vibes
between Aldi and Trader Joe'sfrom your in-store experience.
I mean, like you said, theydon't have like a huge
e-commerce play for either ofthem.
I mean, Trader Joe's is a lotsmaller.
Um, but yeah, that's wherethat's where my mind immediately
(22:19):
goes.
SPEAKER_01 (22:20):
Yeah.
I mean, who do you think who doyou think is really the target
Aldi shopper?
Like, you know, like I mean,obviously value can reach all
economics and demographics, butwho do you think like Aldi is
trying to appeal to?
SPEAKER_00 (22:35):
Yeah, I mean, I and my gut says larger families.
Um, so I mean, just theinfluencers that I follow, yes,
yes, that are cost conscious, orthey've got six kids that
they're trying to feed dinnerevery night, and so they want
you know, they want to get thevalue um from what they're
getting as well as the quality.
And I think that that's whereall these winning is you've got
(22:57):
value and quality too.
SPEAKER_01 (22:59):
Yeah.
Yeah, I mean, there is a lot ofpush by stores to create these
store brands, right?
You know, you think about Costcoand Kirkland and you know, the
value of that that brandspecifically at Costco.
And I think it's interesting tosee how these brands are
continue to be trip drivers orhave the opportunity to be trip
drivers, right?
(23:20):
You know, a lot of people, youknow, are are Costco members
because of Kirkland, right?
And um, you know, you know, youhave members mark on the Sam's
Club side, right?
And in Walmart and Grocery,there's Great Value and a lot of
other other store brands.
And so like as you know, Aldicontinues to you know try to
(23:40):
win, you know, with those withthose families and value
shoppers, like can they stillestablish a strong, a strong
brand presence, you know?
SPEAKER_00 (23:50):
I think so, but I I do think that that's probably
where like with the privatelabels themselves, I think that
that's probably where TraderJoe's or even Walmart with
Better Goods might be doing itit a little bit better, it'll
feel way more better.
I mean, look at Better Goods,their branding.
(24:10):
I mean, it's beautiful.
Yeah.
Um, I mean, and it's it'swinning me over.
I mean, in my previous role,whenever I was marketing ice
cream, I mean, and just talkingwith the merchant, I mean, yeah,
Better Goods is taking over theshelves and it's because it's
performing.
It's not just because it's whatWalmart wants, because it's
performing.
Yeah.
And I think that's where Aldimight be slightly different, is
(24:31):
that yes, they're winning withtheir private labels or their
private brands, but themarketing or the even just the
branding behind those privatebrands isn't as I don't want to
say elevated, but maybe elevatedfor lack of a better word,
compared to Trader Joe's and umBettercuts.
SPEAKER_01 (24:49):
Yeah, I think I think that's you hit on a really
important point for me, which islike not only build a brand, but
you have to have a greatproduct, right?
I think so so much in our worldof marketing, we're thinking
about the brand.
SPEAKER_00 (25:01):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (25:02):
Right.
And we're so like, how do we howdo we build up build a brand?
How do we you know build a brandat retail?
But in the reality is if theproduct doesn't live up to the
expectations, then that branddoesn't mean anything, right?
So it's got to be a goodpartnership between a good
product and a good brand.
And I think again, going back tothe Costco and Kirkland example,
(25:24):
like that's you know, it's beengood products going along with
the brand, and those continue toto you get the I'll use the word
synergy, right?
Between those two that reallyallow that that brand to
explode.
And if it's a core of youroffering, then there you go, you
have the opportunity to to win,win at retail, right?
SPEAKER_00 (25:44):
So exactly.
SPEAKER_01 (25:45):
Yeah, cool.
You know, you're just winningthe hearts and the minds of of
your customers.
So you're gonna continue to win,right?
See, it's easy, right?
No problem.
All right, let's move on to ournext main topic.
Um today we're gonna talk abouthype marketing.
So it feels like high marketingis hype marketing always has its
(26:06):
moments for sure.
Like you know, building up allof this excitement, building up
all this energy in a lot ofdifferent ways in order to, you
know, get people excited.
I almost think of hype marketingalmost like FOMO marketing,
right?
Because you've built somethingup so much in people's minds
that they have to have it andthey just have that fear of of
(26:26):
of missing out.
Um and you know, I I will admitI fall for hype all the time.
SPEAKER_00 (26:35):
You'll have the surprise boxes, BB.
SPEAKER_01 (26:37):
Well, I don't go and so for me, hype comes from the
standpoint of if I see somethingand more of a collaboration.
Yeah, I I I like hype more, myhype is more of a collaboration.
So when I see an interestingcollaboration, I think a mystery
box is more of like a lottery,you scratch the lottery ticket,
you just don't know.
So there's that level ofexcitement, right?
Yeah.
Um but I think you know it whenit comes to hype marketing, you
(27:03):
know, like I said, there's a fewdifferent angles of hype that
can be built, right?
So it could be a limited editionproduct, only available for a
limited time.
There is you don't know whatyou're gonna get in the box.
I don't know, I don't know ifthat necessarily works well for
CPG, um, unless it's like, youknow, uh, but you know, there's
(27:23):
that.
And then there's thecollaboration, right?
And so we're there's some sortof partnership.
Um, you know, um, I think Oreohad Supreme, Supreme Oreos, and
those sold out instantly.
SPEAKER_00 (27:37):
Malone and Selena Gummet.
SPEAKER_01 (27:39):
Yes, yeah, and it just builds builds all that
hype.
But you know, to me, in somecases, hype marketing works,
sometimes it doesn't.
Sometimes I roll my eyes,sometimes I get really excited.
So, like in your mind, like whatdo you think really makes hype
marketing work?
SPEAKER_00 (27:57):
Well, I mean, even bringing it back to that, the
other topic, you've got to havea product that works and
branding that works with it.
So, I mean, at first, I mean,using the Oreo Postmalone as an
example, at first, I was like,what?
Why is Postmalone making his ownOreo?
But then, I mean, the marketingbehind it and then actually
(28:17):
trying the product, which I loveOreos, but yeah, that's my
kryptonite.
Yes, same.
And um, I mean, yeah, I lovedit.
I mean, and I think the campaignperformed from what I hear.
It it did it did really well.
SPEAKER_01 (28:29):
Right.
SPEAKER_00 (28:29):
Um, so I think, yeah, you've got to have the
right product and the rightmarketing behind it.
Yeah.
Or branding behind it.
SPEAKER_01 (28:35):
Yeah, and you also see the clubs even at the in the
QSR or fast food space quite abit that actually drive a lot of
hype.
So a few years back, TravisScott had the Travis Scott meal.
Oh yeah.
And he was offering, you know,offering that through McDonald's
and uh SpongeBob and Wendy's,right?
Yeah, Spongebob and Wendy's umin the sneaker and and sneaker
(28:57):
community.
And um, I would say like therewas one with uh cactus plant
flea market.
Okay.
And so all the high beastsaround the in the sneaker
community and and uh were allabout buying up all these happy
meals that had the toys in them.
Have you ever have you everbought like a happy meal or some
sort of meal like just to getthe toy?
SPEAKER_00 (29:19):
Oh yeah, for my girls for sure.
I think the squishmallow oneswere were a hit for the girls
for sure.
And yeah, they wanted all ofthose.
Um, I think I've even had to goand ask, hey, can I just buy the
squishmallow toy?
And they let me.
SPEAKER_01 (29:36):
So So do you think hype marketing will always work?
Or do you think I mean obviouslyyou have to have the right
pairing, but like do you thinkpeople just get, ah, not not
another mystery box or yeah,it's been low.
SPEAKER_00 (29:50):
I I mean I think it's I I think it's also just
trends and what people arejumping on with trends.
I mean, even using like thesurprise, like the that's Things
that are boxed.
I feel like it's more so in thetoy space where you don't know
what you're gonna get.
Um, candy could probably playinto that.
And cereal does that.
Yeah, actually, you know, dumdums even do like think back to
(30:11):
the dum-dums, like the thepurple question mark wrap bro.
Oh, yeah, yeah.
That's the original, right?
Yeah.
That's the original surprise.
Um, but I mean, my kids lovethat.
And now it's across almost everysingle toy.
Like there's Barbie, there'sthose puppy dolls.
I mean, there's there'severything.
You don't know what toy you'regonna get, and it's
gamification.
You gotta try to get them all.
SPEAKER_01 (30:32):
Yeah, it is.
I guess there is a certain levelof gamification, you know, as
well.
Um to it, because you know,you're you're you know, I I
think of it as like the Pokemonmentality, you gotta catch them
all and kind of thing.
Yeah.
So I I I think, you know, to me,if you if you find a the right I
also feel like like a the rightcultural moment also is an
(30:54):
opportunity.
Um like Cranch, right?
That was that was you know,catch up in Ranch and app became
a thing.
That was Taylor Swift, right?
With Cranch?
SPEAKER_00 (31:05):
I don't think so.
Was it?
SPEAKER_01 (31:07):
I think she did something with Cranch and then
it took off and maybe maybe allright.
We might edit that one out.
SPEAKER_00 (31:11):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (31:12):
Um, but anyway, um, so I I I do think that you know,
I I do think it has the timinghas to be good.
SPEAKER_00 (31:19):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (31:20):
The partnership has to be right.
You have to know your audience,right?
Right.
You know, because the otherthing too is if you put
something in a box or you collabwith somebody and that user or
or that customer is a big fanand they go and they buy it, are
they gonna come back and buyyour product when it's not a
(31:42):
collab anymore, right?
And it's not, you know, it'sjust a it's just the regular,
regular product.
So are you well by then theremight be another trend that that
yeah, I know so you're so thatthat brand switch over switch
over tapiness too.
I know I I do I do think like Ido think as long as there is an
opportunity to build excitement,right?
And so and that's what marketingis, right?
(32:03):
You're trying to build demand,right?
You're trying to build a desirefor a certain brand or product,
right?
As long as as long as that canwork and it's done in the right
way, the right product, rightcollab, I think hype marketing
will continue to work.
It'll continue to catch me forsure.
SPEAKER_00 (32:23):
For sure.
SPEAKER_01 (32:23):
But you know, and so I think I think I think hype
marketing is really gonna stick.
SPEAKER_00 (32:27):
Stick around.
Well, and I mean, yes, we'vetalked about collabs, but I feel
like we only briefly touched onlike the limited edition side of
things.
Yeah.
And looping it back to do I likeTaylor Swift's new album?
Dude, she has crushed it when itcomes to hype marketing.
Oh, yeah, her limited editionalbums.
I was looking at an infographicthe other day that shows Taylor
(32:50):
Swift's album sales by album.
And I think it was theMidnight's album where it there
was an uptick and then anotheruptick for the 1989 Taylor Swift
Taylor's Taylor's version.
But the reason that theMidnights album had such a high
point of sales was I think thatwas her first one where she had
(33:13):
multiple vinyl editions.
So you could collect all ofthem.
And then with this, the Life ofShowgirl, I don't even know how
many she had, but I mean, I Ithink at least eight.
I'm not don't quote me on that.
But and they were all limitededition.
You could only buy them for 24hours.
So they she released it on herwebsite for 24 hours, and so
(33:33):
then the graphic shot up forLife of a Showgirl because there
were so many unique versions ofher album.
Um, I mean, and yeah, it got alittle annoying with the
marketing of it, but also sheknows what she's doing, and
people are still coming back formore.
SPEAKER_01 (33:51):
Yeah, she's a machine for sure.
Yeah, yeah, so cool.
All right, we're gonna move onto our third and final main
topic, and we're gonna have ourholiday season predictions.
So uh Claire has a couplepredictions.
I have a couple predictions thatwe are going to uh talk about
today.
So um, you know, some of thesepredictions may happen, some of
(34:14):
them may not.
That's why they're predictions.
And I don't think anybody'sholding me to these.
All right.
So I have a I will have a ohthat's true.
We will.
Uh you will.
So uh so this holiday season,this is you know my prediction.
Prediction number one here is Ido believe that agentic shopping
will actually go mainstream,well more mainstream than I
(34:37):
think we expect.
I actually think that morepeople or more shoppers will buy
through AI through live stream,which I know live streams have
had a had a surge and thenthey've kind of quieted down.
Now they've kind of normalized,like it is still obviously a way
(34:57):
that uh brands and products canengage with shoppers.
I I still, you know, I stillthink there has to be the right
product fit.
You know, I don't think everyproduct is great for a live
stream, um, but I do think thatthere, you know, there are
definitely opportunities.
So um, but that all being said,even though there is this
(35:18):
normalization of the live streamshopping, there's obviously all
this excitement about agenticshopping and using AI to shop.
And now we have these verypowerful tools that can do a lot
of this research and they makeus allow us to find gifts,
right?
We don't have to sit through alive stream and wait for the
gifts to show up, you know, orto show up to buy them.
(35:40):
We can just find them directlyon on AI through AI, ChatGPT,
etc.
Um, so that's my prediction.
My my prediction is that we'rereally gonna hit it hit a hit
its stride.
I think it's gonna drive a lotof adoption and more people will
buy via agents and AI than theywill through live streams, we
(36:00):
thought.
SPEAKER_00 (36:00):
I totally agree.
I even the other day, this wasat holiday shopping, but the
other day we're renovating ourhouse or a portion of our house
right now, and I needed to ordersome windows and doors.
And I was trying to do justresearch on my own via Google,
just shopping online.
And I was like, you know what?
I'm gonna go, I'm just gonna goin-store to Home Depot, or I
(36:23):
think Home Depot.
I don't know which one.
I went to Home Depot or Lowe's,and I was like, I'm gonna go
back to the back of the back ofthe store, talk to a person,
they can help me plan out thewhole thing.
I hate to say this, it was nothelpful at all.
He just asked me to pull up myitem skew, and I was like,
that's that's not what I want.
So I left.
Along with using chat, I alsoused Home Depot's AI chat
(36:46):
feature on their website.
It was amazing.
Yeah, it f I finally found whatI was looking for.
I was looking for matchingwindows and doors and a single
door and a double door, and Iused it or I found it all via
the Home Depot AI chat.
So yes, I had a little bit ofhelp from Chat GBT, but so I
mean, yeah, I think it'll if I'musing it for home renovations,
(37:08):
people are definitely gonna beusing it for do you use ChatGBT
to talk to the Home Depot app?
SPEAKER_01 (37:13):
They could work it out.
SPEAKER_00 (37:14):
No, and actually, I mean, truly, Home Depot's was a
lot more helpful than ChatGPT.
SPEAKER_01 (37:19):
Well, it should be all right.
It has that it has all of thedata, right?
So it should be able to be moreuh more helpful.
So cool.
All right, uh, what's your boldprediction?
Give me one.
SPEAKER_00 (37:28):
So I feel like this one has honestly been trending
upwards over the last few years,but it's definitely trending in
my household.
Um, we are leaning more towardsexperiences and subscriptions
over physical, I say toys justbecause I've got little kids in
the house right now.
(37:49):
Yeah.
Um, but over physical items.
I mean, even the other day Ialmost asked Chad for some new
loafers, and I was like, no, Ineed to do need to get something
that's more of an experience ormore of a subscription.
Yeah.
Um, and so last year forChristmas, I asked Chad for some
pottery lessons over time.
(38:10):
So it was a subscription and anexperience.
Um and yeah, I think that'sdefinitely at least my household
is going.
SPEAKER_01 (38:18):
Yeah, I think I think that's it, I think that's
really interesting.
I I do think, you know, kidslike to get their, you know, the
PlayStation Network, you know,subscription, you know, as a,
you know, usually as a gift cardand a lot of that stuff.
But I think also like Isubscribe to Calm.
SPEAKER_00 (38:33):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (38:34):
You know, I subscribe to Blinkist, some of
these things that I personallypay for.
It would be great if somebody,yes, to be gifted, you know,
something like that.
SPEAKER_00 (38:44):
Were those storybooks?
What are those uh the brand, thestorybooks where you I I gifted
it to my dad actually.
Um, but you it's an email andthe gift recipient gets an
email.
You can choose how often to getit, but I think I set it up for
once a week or once every otherweek.
And they get a question, therecipient fills out the
question, and then um and thenat the end of the subscription,
(39:07):
it's all put into a book.
So it's basically your familymembers' story put into a book
and it's bound in everything.
So there's a little bit of aphysical element to it.
SPEAKER_01 (39:18):
So it's to to put a finer point on your prediction,
uh, are you saying that uh moresubscriptions and you know,
let's say digital, you know,just and experiences,
subscriptions and experiencesare going to increase
significantly this holidayseason.
SPEAKER_00 (39:36):
For sure.
And I feel like it's almost likeit's the new gift card in a way.
SPEAKER_01 (39:40):
And we all love gift cards.
SPEAKER_00 (39:41):
Yeah, everyone loves a gift card.
SPEAKER_01 (39:45):
Okay.
All right.
So let's move back to me with mynext bold prediction.
So I'm going to say that TikTokshops are going to be the new
Black Friday.
So there's going to be we weretalking about impulse buying,
right?
I think TikTok shops are one ofthe uh best, biggest recipients
(40:06):
of impulse buys, right?
You're flop flipping throughyour feed and all of a sudden
you caught you land on somethingthat, all right, it's it's it's
a it's an impulse buy.
I think, you know, with TikTokbeing as popular as it is and
becoming more of a shoppingsearch and shopping destination,
I still I think there's gonna beuh it's gonna be a huge season
(40:29):
for for TikTok shops.
I mean, what are your thoughts?
SPEAKER_00 (40:32):
For sure.
SPEAKER_01 (40:32):
I mean Do you die through TikTok shops?
SPEAKER_00 (40:35):
I have in the past.
I actually removed the apprecent.
Yes, just getting out of thesocial commerce space, and then
I just needed to take a breakfrom shopping online.
Yeah.
Um in TikTok shop, I mean, yeah,they get you with the deals.
I mean, they get you with thedeals and it not even being
Black Friday.
So I I totally agree with you.
(40:57):
I think they're gonna blow up onBlack Friday.
But then to your firstprediction, I think that that's
also gonna help with livestreaming on TikTok too.
Because I know that that'sthat's where a lot of the TikTok
shops get in their livestreaming.
So absolutely.
Well they'll they'll still winthere.
SPEAKER_01 (41:15):
Okay, cool.
All right.
Well, let's go back to you foryour second and final bold
prediction for this holidayseason.
SPEAKER_00 (41:21):
So this might be a little more on the personal
side, but I do feel from myalgorithm that I'm served on
TikTok, even though I justdeleted the app, um, Instagram
reels, or even this makes mesound so old, but Facebook
reels.
(41:42):
I feel like Facebook reels thatthey actually know me better
than Instagram or um or TikTok.
But one thing that I'm seeing isre-gifting.
So going to That's usually afaux pot.
Yes, yes, yeah, yeah, true.
I'll be honest, we actually dohave a tote in our attic that is
re-gifting.
(42:02):
But no, not that type ofre-gifting.
I should say secondhand.
So I've seen quite a fewinfluencers going to Goodwill,
finding something, and andthey're not just re-gifting an
old t-shirt that they find onthe rack.
They're finding something andmaking it into something new.
So Chad and I actually did thisa few years ago, where we went
(42:23):
to Goodwill or I went toPotter's house locally, and I
bought a bunch of teacups, oldbowls, whatever I could find
that honestly I just thought waspretty.
Um, and we made candles.
So we melted down the wax, putin our essential oils, and made
candles.
And those were our gifts toquite a few family members.
(42:43):
And so I feel like, yeah, Ithink that that's gonna come.
SPEAKER_01 (42:48):
Is going to definitely be a big trend this
this holiday season.
SPEAKER_00 (42:52):
Yes, whether it's making candles or secondhand
like refurbishing furniture forsomeone.
Um, definitely.
SPEAKER_01 (42:58):
Yeah, love that.
I love that.
That's I mean, I would havenever thought about that.
Yeah.
So it's that's cool, cool.
All right.
All right, well, those are ourholiday predictions.
So we are going to wrap thingshere with some bold vibes.
So we're gonna play our littleor play our game.
Um, so it's it's going to be I'mgonna throw out a a statement to
(43:20):
Claire and Claire has to give mewhat she thinks immediately.
Like, what is your gut reaction?
What is your gut vibe on mystatement?
Okay, okay.
All right, so pretty, prettyeasy.
All right, here we go.
Agentic shopping will outselllive commerce by 2026.
(43:42):
So in total.
SPEAKER_00 (43:43):
Maybe not outsell, but I think it'll definitely be
on par.
SPEAKER_01 (43:46):
All right, cool.
What is one item you would mostdefinitely impulse add to your
Amazon order?
SPEAKER_00 (43:54):
Um, I said it at the beginning of this uh show, a
sweatsuit.
SPEAKER_01 (43:58):
Sweatsuit.
Yeah, all right.
SPEAKER_00 (43:59):
Sweatsuit.
SPEAKER_01 (44:00):
Leboo Boo will make a resurgence during the holiday.
They're kind of down right now.
So what do you think?
SPEAKER_00 (44:05):
Definitely.
Yeah, I think stocking stuffers?
SPEAKER_01 (44:07):
Yeah, okay.
Aldi will jump Kroger to becomethe number two grocer in the US
by 2027.
SPEAKER_00 (44:17):
No.
SPEAKER_01 (44:18):
No.
Okay.
Work slop is no big deal andreally not a problem.
SPEAKER_00 (44:22):
Yes and no.
It's not a pro it is a problem,but I think it'll get better,
like I said.
SPEAKER_01 (44:27):
And what will your kids want for Christmas?
SPEAKER_00 (44:31):
Um, but to your point earlier, my oldest
daughter, she wants to catchthem all.
She wants anything andeverything Pokemon.
And younger sister, she's justalong for the rush.
SPEAKER_01 (44:42):
Awesome.
Well, those are great answers,Claire.
Uh, thanks for thanks forplaying bold, bold vibes.
So uh let's move on to wrapthings up.
So uh that's gonna wrap us upfor Retail Media Vibes episode
number five.
A big thanks to my guest,Claire, for bringing all of her
love and energy today to thepodcast.
(45:03):
Um, Claire, would you come back?
SPEAKER_00 (45:05):
Definitely.
SPEAKER_01 (45:06):
All right, yeah, you gotta listen to the episode
though before you come back.
SPEAKER_00 (45:09):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (45:10):
Um anything you wanna shout out, anything you
want to plug before he wraps itup.
SPEAKER_00 (45:16):
I want to say thank you for having me.
I mean, you mentioned this toeveryone at the beginning of
this, but yeah, it's really coolto see to see this come to life.
I know that this has been adream of yours for a while.
So thank you for having me andletting me be a part of it.
SPEAKER_01 (45:30):
Oh, it's exciting.
It was great to have you on.
So um, all right.
Well, to wrap it up, if you uhif you enjoyed this episode, be
sure to like, subscribe.
You know, if you're on YouTube,hit the little bell for
notifications.
The this podcast is a bi-weeklypodcast.
So just so you know, so a newepisode launches every other
(45:51):
week, and that's on Saturdayafternoons.
Um, so you'll you'll see it popup in in your feed if you
subscribe.
So please, please like, pleasesubscribe.
Um, it definitely helps peoplelearn about the podcast.
So I really would appreciate it.
And uh, if you have anyquestions for me, you can send
that to retailmedia vibes atgmail.com.
(46:13):
And so thanks again so much forlistening and being with us
today.
And I definitely promise I willdo better next time.
All right, B V out.
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