Using supermarket Loyalty card data to explore exported yam marketing performance and prospects in the UK

Stakeholders operating within the yam export market lack shopper insights to formulate effective marketing and supply chain management strategies. This paper aims to show how supermarket loyalty card data on yam shoppers in the UK can be analysed to objectively assess marketing performance and prospects through year-on-year comparison of key marketing measures and regression. The results demonstrate the huge marketing potential that actual supermarket yam shopper behaviour brings to inform current marketing performance of exported yam and future export marketing strategies. Evidence from the study suggest that sales value of supermarket yam over 104 weeks ending 16 th December 2013, increased by 15.27%, but sales volume and number of customers buying yam declined by 5.54% and 8.97% respectively. Whilst the results of the regression suggest that the number of customers buying yam is the key factor contributing to the volume of sales of yam, average price per tuber and number of distribution outlets were not salient factors. However, the value of yam sales was positively influenced by average retail price of yam at 1% level. The results of this study are of interest to both global south yam export market academics, yam supply chain stakeholders and managers tasked with promoting exports of food products to international markets in Europe and Northern America.