Competitive conquesting at the shelf, done fairly

Competitive conquesting means placing your message where shoppers are considering a competitor's product, with the aim of winning some of those purchases. At the shelf and the counter, it's one of the most direct forms of retail media. It's also one that calls for care, because the line between a fair comparison and an unfair one is easy to cross.

Done well, conquesting gives shoppers a reason to try something new. Done badly, it invites complaints, legal review and a poor impression of the brand doing it.

What makes conquesting fair?

Truthfulness, first. Any claim about your product, or any comparison with another, must be accurate and supportable. That's a basic principle of advertising law, and the FTC's advertising and marketing guidance is a good starting point for understanding it. Comparative claims deserve especially careful review.

Positive framing, second. The strongest conquesting messages talk about your product: what it offers, why it's worth trying, what the offer is. Messages that attack a competitor tend to backfire, and they raise more legal risk.

Respect for the store, third. Independent store owners carry both brands. A campaign that puts them in the middle of a brand dispute isn't good for anyone. Keep the message about the shopper's choice.

How does conquesting work in store?

Online, conquesting often means bidding on a rival's search terms. In a store, it means reaching shoppers in the places where they buy the category, with a message that gives them a reason to consider your product.

NRS Digital Media campaigns can be activated at the SKU level, by retail channel, by audience index, or by geography down to the zip code. For a conquesting plan, that might mean focusing on stores and markets where your brand has distribution and the category is strong, so the ad and the shelf work together.

The practical requirement is availability. A conquesting ad that persuades a shopper to try your product fails if your product isn't in the store. Check distribution before running.

What creative guardrails should you follow?

Lead with your product. Show the pack clearly, state what's different about it and make the offer, if there is one, easy to understand.

Avoid naming or showing a competitor unless your legal team has reviewed the comparison. A comparative claim that's accurate in one market or one size may not be in another.

Keep it short. Counter screens are seen quickly. One clear reason to try your product works better than a list.

And be ready to substantiate. If you claim something is cheaper, bigger or better in some way, you need evidence that holds for the stores where the ad runs.

How should conquesting be measured?

Against a baseline, like any campaign. The most useful measure is usually your product's sales, or its share of the category, in advertised stores compared with similar stores that weren't advertised.

Watch the category as well. If your share rises because the category grew and you took a proportionate slice, that's different from taking share from a rival. Share of category in advertised versus control stores shows which happened.

Give it time. Shoppers who switch brands may try once and return to their usual choice. A few weeks of data after the campaign shows whether any trial turned into repeat purchases. To discuss a conquesting plan, contact the NRS Digital Media team, and see the NRS Digital Media site for an overview of the network.