Sales may be a moving target, but grocers can leverage continually-moving conveyor belts for greater engagement and promotions.

The pandemic accelerated interest in the checkstand communications platform that fuses marketing and sanitation via an antimicrobial surface. “We’ve realized that it is a vehicle for the store experience,” said Nathan Vanderploeg, CEO.

While the belt covers simultaneously serve as a touchpoint for advertising and the sanitary movement of products from a cart or basket to the bagging area, they represent another best practice for customer relations. “It’s a captive audience for two to five minutes, and people look at it when putting their groceries on it – it’s a loyalty moment and a moment when the cashier is interacting with shoppers,” Nathan Vanderploeg explained. “This is one of the only parts of the store where there is a human being standing next to you, and grocers use this as a visual aid. Shoppers can ask about an initiative that is on the MessageWrap, where it’s a limited time offering or a ‘Drive Up and Go’ service.”

Added founder Susan Vanderploeg: “We’ve had store managers who have huddles and talk about what they are promoting (on the covers) at checkout. It’s a powerful way to get engagement.”

MessageWrap was Susan Vanderploeg’s brainchild. The former SVP of properties at Grand Rapids-based Meijer started the company in 2011 when she saw an opportunity to address shoppers’ frequently-voiced concerns about the handling of items at checkout on conveyor belts that they perceived as less than hygienic.

Read more: How Checkout Conveyors Can Move More Than Products
https://www.progressivegrocer.com/how-checkout-conveyors-can-move-more-products