How you’re smashing Member Trade
This article will take approximately 3 minutes to read
Published 8 Aug 2023 in Colleagues
We have a Society target to get member trade to 50% by 2026. To do this, we’re aiming to hit 35% by the end of 2023. So, what are colleagues doing right now to help the Society achieve that? We hear from two food stores that are excelling in this area and what our other trading groups are doing, too.
Society member stats (P6)
Society member trade: on track for 30.1% (29.9% target)
New members recruited so far this year: 44.5k (47k target)
Fabulous food stores
Member trade in Food is now 30% and it continues to improve month on month.
By encouraging new member sign ups and asking existing members for their cards every time they shop we can drive member trade further.
Initiatives such as the 10% member discount day in February (where Bloxwich Knave tripled their member trade on the day!) and introducing member prices on meal deals (driving 500 new member sign ups each week) have helped. And there are more changes in the pipeline to encourage further growth in member trade.
But for now, let’s celebrate two stores, Brewood and Knighton, who are performing particularly well and find out just how they’re doing it…
Chorleywood Food ready for Member Discount Day in June
A man on a mission at Knighton
During July, Knighton became the first store to achieve over 60% member trade, coming in at an amazing 63%! We asked Store Manager, Peter Leach how they did it.
“We are fortunate to have a very loyal customer base in Knighton and the store team have taken on the challenge of increasing our membership to hit our initial target of 54% (we were at 44% this time last year). As you can see they have smashed that and are still pushing membership each day!
“We discuss the results each morning as they update. If a colleague has a low result one day, they are really determined to go onto the tills and work to raise their score so they can see the improvement the next day. This seems to be what has driven our performance the most.”
The fantastic team at Knighton
Peter says, “At the start of this year, Keith was regularly hitting around 20% each week. At our Check Ins we discussed how he could improve his score but Keith felt he was at a disadvantage working in our fuel site where many customers just want to pay for their fuel quickly and leave.
“To get around this, we introduced food members deals into the fuel station, giving Keith the opportunity to up-sell the benefits of being a member. Gradually we saw Keith’s score rising, and when we introduced the members price on meal deals he started to interact with younger customers coming in for their lunch too.
I’m so proud of what he has achieved for himself and, of course, the store.”
Keith himself says, “After my talks with Peter, I decided I had to give it my best shot. I am really pleased to see how well it has worked, although I never thought I would even get above 50%. It has actually given me a new lease of life in my job and I really look forward to seeing my daily score now. The next target is 90%!”
Brewood’s member trade is up 10%
This time last year, Brewood’s member trade was at 44% but it’s now an impressive 54%. Store Manager Wendy Parkes shares her store’s recipe for success.
“We are always trying to sign up new members by handing out leaflets about how to join and explaining the benefits – things like getting a share of the profits and cheaper prices around the store. The cheaper price of the meal deal is one of the reasons most of our lunch time regulars have signed up.
“The member’s day we held recently where members got 10% off their shopping was very popular. Also, when we have 25% off 4 bottles of wine with the member’s card that really goes down well.
“It really has been a team effort to achieve this and all of our colleagues are getting great member trade percentages. But Rachel Worrall and Lynn Jones are really excelling, reaching 65% and 64% respectively in week 25.”
Our CEO, Phil Ponsonby (right) with Store Manager, Wendy Parkes (second left) at Brewood in Staffordshire along with her team
You can increase member trade in your store by:
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Asking customers for their membership card EVERY TIME
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Encouraging non-members to sign up and show them how
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Reminding customers of the reasons to join and what they could save
Travel’s member trade is flying high
Member trade in Travel is soaring to new heights this year, reaching an average of 59% weekly. With holidays back on the agenda for many after Covid, Travel is really maximising this uplift through exclusive member campaigns and branch teams are working hard to promote the benefits of membership.
Cross trade direct mail campaigns have resulted in a remarkable 171 new member bookings, with 65% of these bookings coming from members who have used other Midcounties businesses but hadn’t previously booked with Travel. The team is seeing similarly strong cross trading results from email marketing campaigns.
In branch, colleagues are sharing best practice, tracking colleague member trade results and promoting membership to their customers.
Looking ahead, Travel is conducting a member insights survey to understand members’ travel needs and preferences to better tailor their offers.
Childcare is nearing 100% member trade!
Membership in Childcare has always been strong but is now sitting at an amazing 98.7%, with majority of nurseries reaching 100%. This growth has been achieved by integrating membership into our registration process when a family books their child’s place at one of our nurseries.
When new families join us, colleagues let them know that they need to be a member to access all the benefits, including receiving a share of the profits for the money they spend on childcare fees. It really is a no-brainer for them.
Looking ahead, Childcare are exploring ways to make membership even more meaningful for families as a differentiator in the market.
Want to tell us what your site is doing to boost member trade? Email us at communications@midcounties.coop.