Best practices for food and drink stores

Food is bought often and eaten quickly. Customers who like a product come back for it, which can make the category convert well. But benchmarks disagree widely. Dynamic Yield reports 4.58% globally for food and beverage, while IRP Commerce reports 1.28% for UK and Irish food and drink stores. The kind of store matters more than the category name, since grocery replenishment and gift hampers behave very differently.

Under the EU Food Information Regulation, prepacked food sold at a distance must have all the mandatory food information available before the purchase is completed. That includes the name, ingredients, allergens, net quantity, storage conditions, the business responsible and nutrition information. The best-before or use-by date is the exception and only has to be provided at delivery.

The information can be on the product page or provided through another clearly identified channel at no extra cost, but the product page is where shoppers look. Write it as text, not as a photo of the packaging.

Allergens must be emphasised in the ingredient list, for example in bold, as they are on the packaging. Shoppers with allergies also value filters, such as gluten-free, nut-free or vegan, on category pages. Make sure the filters are kept accurate, because a wrong filter result is a safety problem and not only a sales problem.

Show delivery days and time windows, how chilled and frozen goods are packed and kept cold, what happens if nobody is home, and the minimum order value. For fragile goods such as wine, explain the packaging. A shopper who doubts the product will arrive in good condition will not order it.

Taste cannot be tried online, so describe it concretely. Write “dark chocolate with notes of cherry and roasted nuts, 70% cocoa” rather than “delicious”. Show the product as it looks when served or prepared, as well as in its packaging, and suggest how to use it.

Reviews about taste and freshness matter a great deal here. Ask for them after the customer has had time to try the product.

Customers who like a coffee, tea or snack want to buy it again without searching. Offer one-click reorders, saved shopping lists and optional subscriptions with easy pausing. Remind customers when they are likely to run out.

If you sell alcohol, national rules decide who you may sell to and how you must check age, both at ordering and at delivery. The rules differ between countries, so check those that apply in every market you ship to before you start.