Marina Voloshyna, Head of CRM METRO Cash&Carry Ukraine: "We are managing 570,000 clients in Viber-chatbot based on Corezoid"

Marina Voloshyna, Head of CRM METRO Cash&Carry Ukraine

Marina, how did you start your career in METRO?

I came to METRO from such a beautiful sphere as the cosmetic business. Until 2017, I worked at Yves Rocher for 5 years. I had a feeling that I wanted to change something in my career, and I gladly joined the METRO team.

What were your first impressions working in METRO?

In just a few weeks I needed to develop and approve a new CRM strategy. The first thing we did was the update of the features of the Viber bot, which we built on Corezoid. We achieved good results. Today issuing METRO card in a Viber bot is the most popular registration method among B2C clients. And this is despite the fact that we did not do any enhanced communication to promote the chatbot. We simply put information about the chatbot in METRO shopping centers.

METRO chatbot in Viber

Today issuing METRO card in a Viber bot is the most popular registration method among B2C clients

What were the main goals of the new CRM strategy that you launched?

We focused on analyzing the customer base and working with segments. It became clear that if a person made one purchase in METRO, he still cannot be called a “client” of METRO. It could very well have been just one random purchase. Our task was to make sure that people make a second purchase and become regular customers.

Our task was to make sure that people make a second purchase and become regular customers

Have you achieved this goal?

Yes. Using Corezoid we adjusted the communication rules during customer’s life cycle and significantly increased the conversion into repeat purchases at METRO. The true relationship with the client starts after the second purchase. We have updated the design and functionality of the Viber bot, added purchase history, wishlists, and promotions. My friend recently told m e: “Now I can go to METRO carrying only my smartphone. I have both payment cards and a METRO card in my phone. I no longer need to carry any plastic with me." We also started building a loyalty program in METRO Cash & Carry based on Corezoid.

Using Corezoid we adjusted the communication rules during customer’s life cycle and significantly increased the conversion into repeat purchases at METRO We also started building a loyalty program in METRO Cash & Carry based on Corezoid

METRO Cash & Carry is a German company headquartered in Dusseldorf. Do you feel “German” corporate culture here in Ukraine?

Rather, there is an atmosphere of work in the international environment. METRO does not seek to create any kind of “German” or “French” corporate culture. Rather, it is about creating an “international community”. For example, our previous CEO Tino Zeiske is a German who worked for a long time in China, in Japan, then he came to Ukraine. Can we say that he carries a purely German culture? No. He is already such a man of the world.

How does METRO HQ influence the decision-making in IT?

METRO has many corporate IT solutions. In some countries 90% of METRO clients are in HoReCa space, while in others – it is only 30%. And it is difficult to make a universal IT solution for all business segments. Also we need to account for the differences in legislation and compliance rules. Therefore, we are either given a flexible corporate-wide solution where we can customize our parameters or we are allowed to work with local IT vendors. Both approaches have their pros and cons. For example, to work with cash registers, we use not the 1C, but the internal METRO corporate solution. This solution is very secure and our IT team is proud of it. However, we were not able to integrate it with external software for loyalty programs. I think this is generally such a dilemma of the digital age: You have to find a balance between convenience and safety.

I think this is generally such a dilemma of the digital age: You have to find a balance between convenience and safety.

Have You launched the loyalty program eventually?

Yes. We have created in-house our own processing system for the segmenting of the clients every quarter, and the application of discounts and distributing bonus points.

How did METRO HQ react to the launch?

All international companies have a decision-making process in terms of IT. You need to queue up to get the technology you need. This queue is usually based on turnover, business priorities, etc. Unfortunately, in terms of priorities, Ukraine often finds itself somewhere in the middle or in the tail. In this case we addressed the HQ and said: "We know how to build a loyalty system on our own, locally." And the reply was: “Ok. Go and build it.”

Corezoid helped us a lot to build a loyalty program

Corezoid helped us a lot to build a loyalty program. All global companies have the pain of system integrations. When building a loyalty program, you touch many systems at once.

For example, you need to take into account the customer's turnover, parse the receipts and apply different rules to regular and excise goods. METRO customers with the highest status in the loyalty program have access to a special covered parking area. And this parking lot has its own access system. And there is also the METRO- owned delivery site https://shop.metro.ua/ua/.

And this is a challenge for any corporation: how to make all these systems talk to each other, if they have to interact within one business process of a loyalty program? And I can say that without Corezoid we would not have solved such integration problems. We used Corezoid as the integration platform for METRO. Corezoid collected data from corporate systems and made necessary synchronisations with systems of external partners.

Tell us about success-stories in the CRM field?

At some point, in addition to providing personalized discounts, we decided to introduce elements of gamification. When playing quizzes and other games, customers had to make an effort to get their discount. This approach worked. The conversion differed from the standard one by 4 (!) times. This is the economy of emotions in action.

The conversion differed from the standard one by 4 (!) times

What was the quiz about?

We launched a quiz to test the knowledge of our own METRO trademarks. METRO brands have an interesting geography. Even I did not know everything, for example, about coffee, in which countries it grows, where it is further processed. But after completing the quiz, you already understood how perfectly selected and high-quality products we have in METRO.

Please, tell us about your team?

I have a great team. It is young and active. Our CRM division has 4 departments. There is a department that works with the client base and develops algorithms for client segmentation. We often do promo-campaigns with METRO suppliers. Sometimes METRO Partner says: “I am launching a new product, and I want you to inform all the people who are already loyal to our brand”. Definitely, we are happy to plan such CRM activities.

METRO Cash&Carry CRM Department team

CRM is all about 2 things: tell the client that we know him and show the client that we love him. So we need to be able to tell people the right things at the right time.

Are there any interesting segments that you can mention?

We have a very interesting segment that crystallized even better during the pandemic. These are the culinary fans. Sometimes our clients publish such delicious Instagram stories! I remember recently there was a post about avocado frozen in cubes. By the way, we ourselves at METRO maintain an active Instagram account with 141,000 subscribers.

We try to digitize the customer journey as much as possible

Another group in my team works on the loyalty program. We try to digitize the customer journey as much as possible. These people are also using Corezoid to develop the Viber chatbot and manage communication in the customer lifecycle.

The fourth department in the CRM is responsible for market research, data exchange with Nielsen. At METRO we study everything: from brand image to perception of us at the price level. Before COVID-19, we allocated 90% of the budget for the scheduled research and 10% for ad-hoc requests. But needless to say that during the pandemic, it all turned into 50/50. Half of the surveys we do are ad-hoc, since no one knows where the pandemic will lead us.

In which direction are You improving the CRM in METRO now?

We can see the significant growth in online sales this year. There are interesting trends that we’d like to research in more detail to better understand the portrait of online buyers.

How many people at METRO are currently working with Corezoid?

Not as much as we would like. I think up to 10 people.

Do you have any interesting hobbies, pets?

I have a little toy poodle Lolita. She even has her own Instagram account. We initially selected a dog according to certain criteria. She had to be small, smart, and leave no fur in the house. Not many breeds fit these criteria. Toy poodles are popular in Asia, there is a boom for this breed. And in Ukraine toy poodles are rare. When we go out for a walk, everyone says: "What a beautiful puppy!" Lolita weighs 2.5 kg, but she is no longer a puppy, in fact.

Lolita toy poodle

My hobby for the next 2 years is getting a master's degree and learning the textbooks :) Last year I started studying at the Institute of Postgraduate Education of T.G.Shevchenko to get my degree in psychology. Now I am writing my course paper, which will later become a diploma. The topic of my research is how to organize psychological support for employees. The issue of emotional burnout at work is now very relevant all over the world.

Would you recommend a few books or films?

I can recommend the book “I want. I Can. I must." by Marina Melia, who is a couch and a consultant. The language of the book is simple and beautiful. It has 200 pages, but it’s easy to read over the weekend.

“I want. I Can. I must." by Marina Melia

In my childhood, I was strongly influenced by the book “Timur and His Team”. This is a book about noble values, especially when it comes to team building.

Juliette Binoche, French actress

Talking about cinema, I like European movies, in particular, the films with Juliette Binoche. Also I admire Isabelle Huppert. She is almost 70 years old, but her recent roles are amazing. I am interested from the point of view of psychology, what a life she should be living in order to be such an interesting person in movies.