The HWR - Berlin School of Law and Economics and Narravero are investigating the current user-friendliness of the digital product pass in the wild, i.e. in the supermarket. What sounds dry puts a smile on our faces. Because we are finally asking ourselves the really important questions: How on earth can we influence the completely entrenched shopping routines of all of us in the supermarket?
Elisa puts her finger on the sore spot of sustainable consumption
In the picture you can see 14-year-old Elisa. We took her to Björn Scherhorn's farm for a photo and video shoot. "We" - that was Linus Weistropp from SuperBioMarkt plus team, Malte Syndicus plus team and me, Inga. That was this summer, we created content for the digital product passes that were launched in the first stores here in Münster in June ( Customer Case #3 ).
Elisa is a super reflective girl who questions everything on her own. We didn't need to instruct her to ask deeper questions. Sitting on the sofa, she squeezed the experienced organic farmer to find out how he imagines the consistent change from price-based consumption to value-based consumption. What Björn is doing to achieve this - and where his hands are simply tied. Because Björn can only make sure that he acts well, sustainably and with animal welfare in mind on the farm. In the supermarket, people's brains work the way the (advertising) industry has taught them for decades. And that is partly paradoxical.
Mind Behaviour Gap: Wanting the Good, Buying the Bad
Basically, you know it too: You know that the T-shirt for EUR 6.50 has nothing to do with sustainable production. You know that milk for 60 cents encourages farms to die out. You know... a lot. And you act differently. I do too, my colleagues do too. In marketing, this everyday behavior is called the "mind behavior gap" or "attitude behavior gap." This refers to the gap between our attitude, our desires and our actions.
This phenomenon occurs continuously - and without interruption - especially when buying meat, milk, cheese and other often inexpensive foods. Deborah Shaheen, a student at the HWR in Berlin, now wants to know what exactly the digital product can do to combat this and promote sustainable consumption.
Digital product passport: game changer for sustainable consumption?
Deborah is studying "International Marketing" with Prof. Dr. Dirk-Mario Boltz. I know Mario from my "brand past" in Zurich; we first met at a brand congress in Berlin. That's why I know that this professor is driven by innovative topics.
Deborah's goal in her master's thesis is to find out what concrete influence the Digital Product Passport has (or does not have) on customers' decisions in the German (organic) food sector with regard to sustainable consumption. She also asks the question to what extent consumers trust the information that companies provide about their products. In addition to a multitude of different seals that are intended to provide orientation, consumers are primarily confronted with advertising that is sometimes misleading.
When she wrote to us back then, asking if we would like to get to the bottom of these questions with her, it was immediately clear: there is probably no better place for this than the SuperBioMarkt here in Münster! And Linus Weistropp was immediately willing to open the door so that Deborah could carry out the qualitative study, i.e. interviews, on site with the customers.
SuperBioMarkt as a prime example of transparent communication
SuperBioMarkt AG has been a first mover for decades. Anyone who buys meat or cheese products there should be able to see and find out at a glance where the food comes from.
And this “where from” was now accompanied by a specific “from whom” thanks to the Digital Product Pass!
Who exactly did the animals grow up with? How were they treated, how were they fed? Or how long exactly did they stay on the pasture or in the stable? And yes, what did their end of life look like? All of this is answered by the digital product pass, which is offered for selected products ("beef" and "cheese") at the fresh food counter.
"The digital product pass is still new to us. In my opinion, however, it is a unique opportunity to take the transparency that we already live by to a whole new level. But in the end, it should be well received by our customers and, ideally, have an impact. Therefore, Deborah's request is a great opportunity for us to get an impression of whether we are on the right track with our digital product pass." Linus Weistropp, Marketing Director SuperBioMarkt AG
Sow emotional transparency, reap customer loyalty
The digital product pass is undoubtedly the most emotional, direct way to enter into an interactive dialogue with customers directly and one-to-one. I'll show you a few excerpts from the digital product pass that was hidden "in" the cheese:
Videos, insights, direct comments - the look behind the scenes should make a "wow!" and show customers: "Look! We have nothing to hide!"
At the end of June 2023, Deborah traveled from Berlin to the Münster branch of the SuperBioMarkt on Grevener Strasse, equipped with her interview questions, and spoke to customers and employees of the SuperBioMarkt.
The case study is currently being evaluated. The results should provide initial information on how the digital product pass is "received by consumers" and how companies can use the new transparency tool effectively to credibly communicate their sustainability efforts. And the Narravero development team is naturally eager to find out which levers we can use even better in the future.
Because one thing is clear: we are all only at the beginning of a new, transparent era of communication!
Are you interested in insights and results?
Then contact Inga, who is supporting the study project internally:
Dr. Inga Ellen Kastens