How Does Instacart Work?
What is Instacart?
Instacart is an on-demand grocery delivery company that has revolutionized the way customers shop for groceries. They offer an intuitive digital platform that facilitates home deliveries of groceries and home essentials.
So how does Instacart work?
Well, the concept is simple. All you have to do is go to their website or application, search for the products you want, and get it delivered right at your doorstep within a timespan of 1-2 hours. Sounds easy, right?
It is the perfect solution for a busy lifestyle. Due to this convenience, ease, and simplicity, Instacart has witnessed exponential growth in the past few years. As of today, Instacart provides marketing services across all the metropolitan areas in the 50 states in the U.S and 9 provinces in Canada (currently unavailable in Quebec)
The Instacart advertising strategy
Instacart’s advertising goal begins with reaching customers and converting them from traditional food shopping to a life of digital commerce, but hungry customers aren’t the only audience. Personal shoppers are also a crucial part of the market — without them, it’s impossible to complete grocery deliveries! Every time Instacart expands into a new region, it must develop sustainable baselines for each group simultaneously. If there aren’t enough shoppers, customers will use alternatives. Without enough customers, shoppers find work elsewhere.
Promoting food delivery to each audience requires three key steps:
- Determine which cities/towns/communities are receptive to online grocery orders.
- Research the market demographics of customers and shoppers within a region.
- Design ad creative that will attract and convert these demographics.
Understanding Instacart customers and shoppers
Instacart, like other online grocery services, can only promote itself to audiences if it understands their needs. What factors convince customers to submit an online order instead of entering the digital store? What age groups are most likely to start work as a personal shopper? While this answer will vary by region, Instacart’s statistics do reveal some general trends to keep in mind:
- 80% of Instacart customers are women
- 50% are between the ages of 25-44, while 30% are aged 55-75
- 60% live one mile or less from a grocery store
- 40% are parents, while 15% are retired.
Pros and Cons of Instacart
There are various pros and cons to using the Instacart platform to buy your groceries. They are as follows:
Pros
- Convenience
Instacart is the most convenient way to get all your daily groceries and home essentials.
Within a few clicks and taps on your device, you can get everything you need without stepping outside your house. Well, if we leave the technical part aside, my answer to the question “how does Instacart work?” would be “with ease, speed, and convenience!”
- Updated Stock
Remember searching for a particular product in every aisle of stores and supermarkets only to find it has been sold out? Well, that’s not the case with Instacart. In case a store does not have your desired marketing product, you can always search for it across the application and find the store that has it.
- More Options
Instacart is not just limited to supermarkets. The application provides you the option to buy products from stores, including the local and regional ones.
- Communication
The application allows its users to communicate with the shoppers if there are any issues or special exceptions.
Cons
- Inability to Choose the Produce
When it comes to fresh and organic produce, you cannot choose the items yourself. As a result, you may receive fruits and vegetables that are smaller in size or slightly over-ripe.
- Prices Vary
Prices tend to vary from the in-store prices sometimes. The reason behind this price variation is not apparent yet.
- Additional Costs
Apart from the product’s cost, you need to pay for the delivery and service charge.