Tell me about a time you used data to understand a customer or shopper behavior pattern. How did you go about it?

Situation

In my Marketing Management class, we were tasked to help a small sari-sari store in our barangay increase sales of a new snack product. I decided to observe and survey customers to understand their buying habits.

Task

My task was to identify key shopper behavior patterns that could explain low trial of the product, and propose an intervention.

Action

I observed shopper traffic during peak hours for one week, noting how customers browsed and what they bought. I also conducted short exit interviews with 30 shoppers, asking why they did or did not try the new snack. I organized the data in a spreadsheet, categorizing responses into themes like price sensitivity, brand familiarity, and impulse triggers. Then I cross-referenced with transaction data the store owner provided to see which products were often bought together.

Result

I discovered that shoppers who bought cold drinks were more likely to pick up snacks, but the new snack was placed on a low shelf out of sight. I recommended moving it next to the chilled drinks cooler. After the store owner implemented this, the snack's weekly sales increased by 40% within two weeks.