SUPPLEMENT: Retail & Distribution

WINNER

Client: Tesco Stores

Agency: In-house

Tesco’s Helpline creates a store of valuable information

The Clubcard may have set Tesco on the road to becoming the UK’s number

one food retailer but its Helpline has, if anything, cemented its

relationship with consumers.

It has given it a hotline which transmits shoppers opinions on a wide

variety of subjects: from product quality, product choice, store

facilities and customer service.

Its rivals have spent a mint commissioning research on these topics, yet

Tesco has its customers giving it the information willingly, as part of

a continuing dialogue.

In retailing terms, it gives Tesco the edge in knowing what to stock,

where, and what trends to look out for.

The Freephone Clubcard Helpline has had over a million calls since it

was launched, and it acts as a central point of contact for all sorts of

problems and suggestions.

Some are pure common sense, such as reducing the Clubcard threshold for

over 60s from pounds 10 to pounds 5. Yet without the Helpline, Tesco

would not have registered that many older customers found it difficult

to carry pounds 10 worth of shopping at a time.

If retailing is to evolve, it needs more such schemes.

This article was first published on Marketing