PF Weekly grab a brew #40: Are we dependent on the internet?

Being Lazy Could Be The New Convenience 

I was reading Yahoo this morning about Amazon Fresh and how they could trickle into Canada with online grocery shopping and delivery like they do in the USA and that giant grocers should be worried because their fixed costs are high and any decrease in traffic could send some retailers out of business.

I can completely understand how that would happen because grocers rely on customers to get in their car, walk, take the bus, scooter, motorcycle or any other means of transportation to visit their store each week to check off the items on their grocery list and spend their hard-earned money in their stores.

It’s at that time when a customer walks through the door that the retailer has the power of marketing at their finger tips.

They hope to reel you in with low-priced specials and load you up with high-priced products that might not have been on your list but you easily were manipulated by sight or even smell to add that extra cost to your grocery budget for that shopping trip.

If such a service like Amazon Fresh delivery is brought in there will be the challenge to market these up-sells to the customer via internet in hopes of making the revenue above and beyond the loss leader sales that typically grace the covers of our weekly flyers and drag us into the grocery store.

If we were to buy our groceries online or hire a personal grocery shopping service which we talked about in a previous grocery game challenge post we know that there are pros and cons to this service.

Ordering groceries online is great for those people with disabilities, seniors who don’t drive or don’t want to, congested areas like Toronto or Vancouver where parking is at a premium and for people who are on the go 24/7 and can’t fit in personal grocery shopping into their daily or weekly routine.

Annie a CBB fan left this comment on Facebook

My grandma moved off the farm to a little house in a small town. Being as she had severe osteoporosis (she couldn’t stand up straight), she would phone the grocery store with her list and they would deliver it to her.

Whenever I visited, I would buy something she’d never had before so she could try it and add it to her list if she liked it. I did this with kiwi, golden kiwi, Santa Claus melon, “instant” eggnog (a dry product in a tin, mmmm).

When we don’t want to cook what do we do? We order pizza or Chinese take-out for delivery. Ordering convenience is going to get easier and easier for all of us.

Who likes to grocery shop in the winter? Not me but I do it anyways. There are going to be people who would rather stay home by the fireplace all warm and cozy rather than venture out into the cold so winter might be a prime time for this service.

My best friend hates grocery shopping with a passion and although I’m encouraging him to shop more and eat out less for some people who work odd hours like him and he is a single father the last thing he wants to do is grocery shop so this service might draw him in.

It’s true grocery service delivery has been available in the UK for a while now and my sister who hates to cook and grocery shop for that matter uses a delivery service for her groceries every week. She orders her groceries online and they get delivered to her doorstep and she doesn’t have to step foot into the grocery store.

Although they live in a small village in the UK they have a small convenience type store that sells a selection of convenience boxed type foods, milk, etc and that is where she would typically shop.

I know it’s rubbish but don’t ask me where my passion for cooking comes from and her lack of begins but she has recently made changes to her life and is working out and eating healthy.

Planning, cooking and eating heart healthy begins with you although buying the food is only part of the process.

Since she found out about this service in her eyes she is saving money because she no longer buys over-inflated prices for boxed items she can throw in the oven she can now order them online, but she has more variety lol. That and she can actually order fruits and vegetables.

The reality is she’s not leaving home, not even to go up to the local shop.

It’s not far to drive into the city, maybe 20 minutes or so but it does take time, gas and wear and tear on the car so she will opt for this service as will many other people.

Nicola a CBB fan who lives in Canada and is from the UK had this to say…

I like to see what I buy. We did however use the online shop in the UK for Tesco but it wasn’t the same as you would always get something missing or fruit wasn’t good. It cost you £10 for delivery which was good but I did it a couple of times then thought no waste of money and started back shopping myself! This was before we had the kids and two great paying jobs.

I asked Katrina (she writes for CBB) the other day how living in the country affects her life but she said she is not a far drive to the city so it doesn’t bother her so much.

Those who live far into the country may rely on local farmers for their fresh produce, dairy and meats and a small local shop to get what they need.

I guess life for many of us is different depending on where we reside and the dependency with certain things in life may be needed for one reason or another.

Back in the day my father-in-law told me that his parents had a huge farm and that his mom and dad would trade their fruits and vegetables for flour to make bread from neighbours.

Is my sister lazy?

Well I don’t live her life nor do I judge and can’t comment on what her day is like with the kids and her husband but we only have to answer to ourselves and no one else.

It’s your money, spend it as you see fit but if you are not budgeting in these costs or if you are paying for these costs because you simply don’t want to go well that is the price you pay for convenience.

Many people including myself enjoy going into the grocery store to pick out my own fruits and vegetables and to build relationships with the store staff and managers.

There is something about the personal touch of where we buy our food and knowing how its being handled with staff willing to help out when needed and for some of us get greeted by our first name and a smile which for some is worth it’s weight in in-store grocery shopping.

Using a grocery service, you get what you pay for, delivery.

I think the Amazon Fresh service would garner attention but it would cater to an elite crowd of people albeit I don’t suspect that it would take over the grocery market as such because there really are more people who do enjoy going to the grocery store. To be honest who has the money to pay for these services all the time? I don’t but for some it may be all they have.

If I plan my day and I have the time then my time is well spent when we go out  to do chores.

I read one comment on the Yahoo article where the reader said that he/she takes a taxi to get groceries every week and this type of service would be great and save money since taxi’s are not cheap.

From that perspective I would say sure they may get ahead BUT if they are the type who uses coupons or likes to shop for deals they may lose out from that side of the coin.

If a taxi costs you $20 each way to the grocery store the savings might be worth it to you.

There’s always going to be pros and cons but there will always be customers, how many though is what will make or break this service if it does in fact want to succeed in Canada.

 

Internet dependency

 

One reader believes that we are becoming a society that is dependent ont he internet in many ways and really it is true.

How many of you can actually say that you don’t rely on the internet for your daily dose of gossip, entertainment, banking, relationships, careers and so on?

The reality of the matter is that the internet is not going anywhere fast and yes many of us do rely on the internet to kick-start our day because that is the way the world is evolving. We are technologically based and there’s no end in sight, in fact it’s only bound to get worse.

Eventually there will only be generations of computer nerds like you and me who turn on the computer with their cup of coffee rather sitting down with a newspaper to see what’s happening in this world.

Things will change over time and dependency on the internet is off to a raging start, you only have to have a look at all the people walking around with their heads buried in their cell phones.

Whether any type of delivery service to our homes like Amazon Fresh will succeed depends on supply and demand and costs and revenue and for bigger cities this type of service might be a hit but for smaller communities I can’t see it being a fruitful business although they say that all the small change adds up to a big bundle so you never know.

Maybe any inflation in pricing for this service in a bigger city would offset costs supplying to smaller neighbouring communities.

Overall, the internet is our source of all things in life because having the convenience to pay for items online without leaving home can become addictive and eventually for many people the world of the internet will be their life.

Don’t judge others for the services they pay for even if you think they are off their rocker.

Worry about what you are spending and how it affects your bank account and daily living.

If lazy means ordering groceries online so be it because most of us won’t even get off the computer to write a letter the old-fashioned way, with a pen and piece of paper.

Are you dependent on the internet? 

Would you rather buy a newspaper rather than chime in to Yahoo news to find out what’s happening in this world?

Would you rather drive to the bank to get personalized service from your banking representative?  Where do you think we are headed in society?

Top recipe

Every day Food Bloggers from around the world pass by my other love the Free Recipe Depot Facebook page to share a daily recipe which I share with my fans.

I hope you enjoy these Parmesan cream crackers with dip from Dish by Dish as much as I do.

Well, that’s a wrap for this Friday’s grab a brew and I’ll see you here again next week when I do it all over again.

 

 

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