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Merchandising in the Digital Age
August 11, 2025
Most people have probably noticed that things at the supermarket needed all the time, such as milk and eggs, are way at the back of the store, forcing shoppers to walk past loads of items before getting those necessities.
Usually at the front of the aisles — on the endcaps — are specially promoted items, not necessarily stuff people are always looking for.
During a family discussion about streaming home pages recently, someone complained about having to wade through lines of product to find the popular titles. I explained it was the classic “endcap effect.” The titles first seen are often those being promoted for financial or other marketing reasons — not necessarily for the best discovery experience.
While I get that merchandising will always be with us, even in the digital content marketplace, I do agree that endless panels of product to wade through make finding what you want to watch or discovering something new to watch annoying.
At the grocery store, decades of merchandising experience have made the shopping experience less intrusive and more visually appealing for the customer. I think the digital content marketplace still has some way to go in creating a browsing experience that balances the desires of both customers and marketers.
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