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FC NOW: The Fast Company Weblog

August 13, 2004

Supermarket Tech

Supermarkets and grocery stores are testing new forms of advertising and ways of communicating with customers. Some ideas being tested and/or on the horizon:

Personalized messages while shopping via wireless phone or other type of wireless device
Advertising via television screens in the aisles
Info about sale items available via radio station prior to arrival at the store
Terminals attached to shipping carts that will keep track of what has been selected and a running tab

Taking it a step further, how about if those terminals then printed-out coupons for tangential items? For instance, if you were to scan a box of pasta into your cart, the terminal would print a coupon for a particular pasta sauce.

I actually find it interesting that in-store supermarket advertising and promotion has been so slow to evolve and am looking forward to seeing what's to come.

[via Adrants]