IN THE NEWS THIS WEEK: Woolworths welcomes you to the “Cart Wash”

After the year that was, we hate to admit our inner clean freaks have emerged! This week one of Australia’s leading grocery stores have rolled out a new initiative to combat COVID-19 that has us all excited!  On trial in their Oran Park store, Woolworths have launched a trolley disinfectant machine as part of their COVID safe plan that sanitises customers trolleys and leaves them COVID free in only 2 seconds!

The leading supermarket chain began testing out the new invention earlier this month in a bid to boost customers experience and will closely monitor feedback over the next few weeks before introducing the new initiative to other stores across the country.

So far, the fun and effective system has been a hit amongst customers with a TIkTok showcasing the new machine going viral. Some customers however have expressed concern that the introduction of the new sanitising machine may imply less of a need to follow the COVID safe steps already in place.

As a PR agency we understand just how quickly brands scrambled to react to the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure customer safety aligned with customer satisfaction especially essential services like leading supermarkets. Although the threat of community transmission of COVID-19 has decreased significantly, it is important for brands to realise we are not yet completely out of the  woods and therefore need to consider what practices can be implemented to maintain customer satisfaction.

New and inventive ideas like the ‘cart wash’ machine demonstrates how brands are continuing to craft new and inventive ideas to maintain customer satisfaction like never before. From a PR  perspective, Woolworths latest initiative is an incredibly smart move showcasing forward thinking and will pave the way for other brands to follow suit.

By Grace Drummond – PR & Influencer Assistant at InsideOut PR