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SHYLA UX

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Sam’s Club Wine Innovations, 2022

Exploring Team Creativity

My Roles

~Team Project Monitoring Lead (link to team charter) ~

~Research, User Experience, Project Management~

~January 11th-April 1st, 4 Weeks, Spring 2022~

STAR Summary

Situation

My team and I were challenged with coming up with the Sam's Club Wine Department's "Next Big Idea." My team, Team Harmony, chose eight of my twenty-one ideas (link to twenty-one ideas) to analyze within my team to submit to Jonathan Saffian (link to LinkedIn), Sam's Club's Senior Director of Innovation.

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Tasks

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  • Team Monitoring Lead - Strategically assigned tasks based on each team member's unique strengths (link to team charter).

  • Developed and led team brainstorming sessions (link to mural).

  • Led 2 journey mapping exercises over two hours (link to mural).

  • Collected customer feedback through a Qualtrics survey (link to survey) with 16 respondents and 5 in-person interviews with Sam’s Club Members. 

  • Did in-store observations using the Six Looking Glasses exercise at Kroger and Sam’s Club.

  • Performed 3 in-person observations of wine sections for various stores (Sam’s Club, Kroger, Sprouts) to note customer behavior (link to observations).

  • Identified and validated 3 innovation categories (In-Store Experience, Technology/Gamification, and Personalization) with our stakeholder, Jonathan Saffian (link to mural)

  • Led 3 one-hour Ideation Sessions with my team over 2 weeks.

  • Created 43 How Might We statements to address pain points in the customer journey (link to mural).

  • Asked the 5 Whys to find the root cause of the problems.

Actions

  • ​Used Journey Map to evaluate pain points (link to mural).

  • Organized and directed four Stakeholder meetings with Jonathan that were conducted to gather feedback.

  • Conducted weekly hour-long ideation sessions.

  • Headed the final presentation (link to presentation) of our solutions to the Director of Innovation.

  • Facilitated 5 team ideation sessions that included:

  • Presented & discussed creative innovative ideas over 3 meetings with Jonathan Saffian.

Results

  • Worked with the Innovation Director on: 

    • Ideating 43 ideas with 8 of those voted highly by the team and Jonathan Saffian

    • Discovering new pivots in ideas related to pain points in the in-store experience, personalization, and education/gamification insights (link to categorized wine idea presentation)

    • Ideating Augmented Reality scanning of solutions that moves beyond barcodes (link to video presentation of "Scandit")

    • Evolving ideas via partnerships with wine information apps, wine drinker focus groups (link to wine research), and further developed ideations

My Ideas

Provide an engaging Free Wine Certification or Tier to members through the Sam’s Club App.

1.

Pain Point: Although consumers desire to be educated on their wine shopping decisions, many aren’t and resort to internet reviews. 

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When researching consumer behavior and wine, I found that consumers, when shopping for wine, look to be educated on wine to make better decisions (Source).

 

Insights: Education courses and certifications are effective; people want to be educated.

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Online research into studies on wine education revealed that education courses on wine are effective in helping people understand how to shop for wines they like (Source).

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Looking into Google and LinkedIn Certifications, offering certification is appealing to consumers. LinkedIn Learning (Source) and Google Certification (Source) have millions of users that engage with their courses.

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A customer interview stated,

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“I want to be informed on my wine (best pairing with food). I live off of it (wine).” 

-Alex J., 2/14/2022, In-Store Interview)

 

Solution: Allow/offer free certifications in wine (much like the free google certifications online).

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This would motivate customers' knowledge & will engage the customer to shop at Sam’s Club for wine.

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Here's a storyboard of this idea...

 

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Who, What, Wow: 

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Wine drinkers taking wine education courses experienced an increase in wine education by about 20% (Source). Therefore, educating members on wine can promote wine sales.

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Result: When reviewing our ideas with Jonathan, he greatly appreciated this idea explaining that this was a strong path to take as customer education is a huge area for opportunity.

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Below are a few comments on the idea comprised by my team based on Jonathan’s feedback:

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  • Yellow Hat (Positive commentary)

    • Idea educated customers while providing them with free certification

    • Exclusive to Sam’s Club; encourages membership

    • Allows customers to shop for wine with variety at Sam’s Club.

  • Black Hat (Critical commentary)

    • May be difficult to figure out the details of the certification.

  • Green Hat (Revision commentary)

    • What if this concept involved a partnership with a small business or sommelier?

2.

Set up “Wine Blossoms” or wine infused fake flowers within each wine type as a type of wine sample. 

Pain Point: Customers are scared to buy a wine they won’t like (Source). 

 

Insights: Wine and flowers are commonly paired together (Source).

 

Solution: Place a flower display tester for each type of wine infused with the scent of each wine type.

 

Here's a storyboard of this idea...

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Who, What, Wow: 

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Consumers offered free samples or testers are 75% more likely to buy a product (Source). Therefore, if members were offered this form of testing wines, there would be a comprehensive wine experience.

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Result: Below are a few comments on the idea comprised by my team based on Jonathan’s feedback:

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  • Yellow Hat (Positive commentary)

    • Idea creates an enjoyable wine shopping experience

    • Allows trying different wines

    • Reduces waste & promotes safety

  • Black Hat (Critical commentary)

    • Difficult to implement and standardize.

  • Green Hat (Revision commentary)

    • What if this concept is tested at Sam’s Now?

    • What if this concept involved a partnership with a small business?

Utilize Spotify & QR Codes on wine labels to make shopping enjoyable and seamlessly educational.

3.

Pain Point: Customers often find difficulty pairing wine with events (Source).

 

Insights: Music is proven to enhance the experience of wine (Source).

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Solution: Partner with Spotify to make a QR code for playlists next to each wine type. Put Spotify playlists QR codes on Members Mark wine.

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Here's a storyboard of this idea...

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Who, What, Wow: 

Wine drinkers listening to music while drinking wine experience an enhanced and flavorful taste of wine by up to 10% (Source). Sam's Club can use this to improve the shopping experience of wine.

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Result:  Below are a few comments on the idea comprised by my team based on Jonathan’s feedback:

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  • Yellow Hat (Positive commentary)

    • Idea creates an enjoyable wine shopping experience.

    • QR codes make pairing much easier and help guide customers.

  • Black Hat (Critical commentary)

    • AR can easily replace QR codes

    • Getting members to actually use the system is tricky.

  • Green Hat (Revision commentary)

    • What if this concept is integrated with AR (Augmented Reality) or Scan & Go?

Implement an Augmented Reality (AR) gamification option called “Sam’s Says” that navigates, engages, and educates members through interactive features within Scan & Go.

4.

Pain Point #1: Consumers sometimes view shopping as a burden and a chore versus an activity (Source). 

Pain Point #2: Additionally, finding the wine section is not easy at Sam’s Club. 

 

Insights: Retailers utilized “Pokémon Go” to draw customers in and increase their store traffic (Source).

 

Solution: Have an Augmented Reality (AR) experience for alcohol shopping that includes wayfinding, color for navigation, seasonal AR features, and features with educational aspects of the wine (food pairings, events, etc.).

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Here's a rough prototype of this idea...

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Who, What, Wow: 

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About 82% of Pokémon Go gamers visited & shopped in stores that were “Pokestop Locations” (Source). Therefore, if Sam's Club had a function like this for wine and more, sales will potentially increase.

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Result: Below are a few comments on the idea comprised by my team based on Jonathan’s feedback:

  • Yellow Hat (Positive commentary)

    • Idea creates an enjoyable wine shopping experience.

    • Helps navigate customers to wine options.

    • Creates an exclusive experience.

  • Black Hat (Critical commentary)

    • Difficult to build.

  • Green Hat (Revision commentary)

    • What if this concept is integrated with Tastry  (Source), a human wine machine learning system, and with other ideas?

Create a “Bring it Back” sustainability initiative called “Sam’s Sustain” in which wine-related materials are reused, turned in for rewards, or crafted into artwork.

5.

Pain Point: Consumers search for sustainable practices; they do not see it in Sam’s Club or Walmart (Source).

 

Insights: Artwork and sustainability work very well together. Also, turn-back-in or trade-in programs are regularly used by many retailers to be more sustainable (Source).

 

Solution: Create sustainability initiatives in store where Sam’s Club can: Host local art galleries with sculptures or art made from wine products from Sam’s Club (cork, bottles, etc.) which could be used to decorate their wine section and have a turn-in-your-bottles program, in which Sam’s Club donate these bottles to other companies and give store credit or rewards to members.

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Here's a storyboard of this idea...

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Who, What, Wow: 

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Target, utilizing a trade-in program, recycled over 11.9 million pounds of materials (Source). Sam's Club could take this a step further in wine and more.

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Result: Below are a few comments on the idea comprised by my team based on Jonathan’s feedback:

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  • Yellow Hat (Positive commentary)

    • Idea creates an enjoyable wine shopping experience.

    • Creates a great appearance of Sam’s Club.

    • Reduces waste & promotes sustainability.

    • Created a social and creative aspect to Sam’s Club.

  • Black Hat (Critical commentary)

    • Difficult to implement and standardize.

    • Costly.

  • Green Hat (Revision commentary)

    • What if this concept is tested at Sam’s Now?

    • What if this concept could promote a “local & neighborhood store” appearance of Sam’s Club?

    • What if this concept involved a partnership with a small business?

Form a partnership platform between businesses that specialize in social experiences and Sam’s Club; through this, Members Mark wine and other Members Mark branded products could be sold to these businesses at discounted bulk prices. 

6.

Pain Point: Members Mark wine has not reached its full potential in brand visibility (Source).

 

Insights: Wine is highly social; many businesses specialize in providing social activities or events for consumers (Source).

 

Solution: Collaborate with paint activity sites, nail salons, and other smaller businesses offering Members Mark wine at a discounted bulk price.

 

Here's a storyboard of this idea...

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Who, What, Wow: 

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Zaza Nail & Wine Lounge, in pairing wine and beauty services, increased its brand visibility through its unique sommelier created wine list that is gaining recognition from 12+ publications, such as Forbes Magazine, Allure, 7X7, etc. as the “best wine list in America” (Source, Source).

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Result: Below are a few comments on the idea comprised by my team based on Jonathan’s feedback:

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  • Yellow Hat (Positive commentary)

    • Idea helps Sam’s Club and small businesses.

    • Allows Members Mark branding to expand out of Sam’s Club, much like Costco’s Kirkland brand.

    • Increases sales through orders from small businesses (nail salons, etc.)

    • Builds more memberships.

  • Black Hat (Critical commentary)

    • Difficult to implement and standardize.

    • Difficult to continuously communicate.

  • Green Hat (Revision commentary)

    • What if this concept were broadened to consider Members Mark wines marketing as a whole? (packaging, etc.)

    • What if this idea were combined with other ideas involving Members Mark marketing?

​Utilize Iconography on wine signs and personalized taste “cheat sheets” for each type of wine to effectively describe each unique wine type quickly.

7.

Pain Point: Consumers are often confused when shopping for wine (Source).

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Insights: Symbols and icons easily communicate messages to consumers (Source).

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Solution: Use icons and symbols to display flavors, sweetness level, food pairings, and a short description for each type of wine through signs & personalized taste “cheat sheets”.

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Here's a storyboard of this idea... (image to the left is Kroger's example).​

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Who, What, Wow: 

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Over 30% of wine consumers heavily desire iconography in describing wine on the labeling to best improve their knowledge of wine (Source).

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Result: Below are a few comments on the idea comprised by my team based on Jonathan’s feedback:

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  • Yellow Hat (Positive commentary)

    • Incorporating symbols, visuals, and icons would help promote wine sales at Sam’s Club through education.

    • Allows trying different wines based on personalized wine sheets.

    • Guides customers visually on what they might like.

  • Black Hat (Critical commentary)

    • Difficult to implement and standardize.

  • Green Hat (Revision commentary)

    • What if this concept is tested with Tastry within the Sam’s Club app?

The Future...

My team sent over a finalized slide deck (link to slide deck) with solutions and ideas that we agreed had potential for revolutionizing the wine section for members. We discussed them with Jonathan, and he plans to take some of them to show to his boss. I enjoyed working vigorously with Jonathan and Sam’s Club with my team.

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Additional Links...

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