Carrot Tags’ pick-to-light feature reduces fulfillment time from retail staff, while also minimizing time spent issuing refunds, asking for help or finding replacements and in-store congestion, according to the company.
Once an Instacart shopper selects an item from the Instacart Shopper app, the corresponding ESL will flash to help find the item more efficiently.
“We know that more and more people are shopping online, and that number is only expected to increase. But a large portion of people still shop in-store or prefer a blend of the two experiences,” David McIntosh, chief connected stores officer, Instacart told FoodNavigator-USA.
Convenience continues to shape consumers’ shopping habits with 87% of shoppers reporting they rely on their mobile devices for their online grocery haul, according to data from Xstak. The global online grocery market size is expected to reach $2.15 billion by 2030 at a compound annual growth rate of 25.3% from 2022 to 2030, according to GlobeNewswire.
Instacart’s retail partner, Schnucks, reported a 1% improvement for e-commerce shoppers using Carrot Tags over a six-month pilot program, “which leads to higher e-commerce order quality and customer satisfaction,” McIntosh said.
ALDI also rolled out Carrot Tags and applauded the technology as a solution to help “Instacart shoppers be more independent when fulfilling online orders,” giving store associates more time to spend on store operations and customer service, according to the retailer’s VP Scott Patton.
Instacart’s software suite is designed to help improve omni-channel shopping
As part of Instacart’s Connected Stores product suite, Carrot Tags integrate with Instacart’s other in-store technologies like its AI-powered Caper Carts that uses sensors to instantly identify items placed in the cart and add it to a running total on the cart’s screen during a user’s shopping experience. The suite is “designed to help grocers build connected, seamless and personalized experiences for customers,” McIntosh explained.
He continued, “The beauty of Instacart’s Connected Store offerings is how they can all work together to create an omni-channel shopping experience, which increases opportunities for retailers. Our Connected Store offerings all have standalone benefits, but when retailers invest in multiple of our in-store solutions, the technology seamlessly connects together for even more benefits when used together.”
The suite’s integration with its other products means that grocers can scale the software to their operations.
“Building these tech offerings can require resources that may be costly or are not easily accessible to retailers. We help remove these roadblocks for grocers by taking the legwork out of creating something from scratch and making it easy for grocery retailers to seamlessly integrate into their stores and existing technologies,” McIntosh said.
Instacart predicts that its pick-to-light capabilities can extend to shoppers using the app in In-Store mode to provide quick and easy shopping, including promotional and seasonal items, McIntosh said.
“We have also found that Carrot Tags are helpful for store associates, especially when seasonal items are introduced, there is a store layout reset, or a need to identify an item quicker among products with similar packaging, like bagged salads or spices,” he added.