Singing Carts Grab Shoppers’ Attention

What is it about a particular item on a grocery-store shelf that sings “Buy Me” as you walk by?

In the case of a Smith’s Food & Drug Center Inc. store in Murray, Utah, it is new shopping carts being tested through mid-October that actually belt out brief tunes when shoppers pass featured items.

Push past neatly stacked cans of Smith’s brand dog food, for example, and the so-called Klever Kart breaks into “How Much Is That Doggy In The Window” to alert shoppers to a special.

The new cart is a marketing tool for manufacturers looking to increase sales by making their brands stand out in stores, where approximately 70 percent of buying decisions are made, said Paul Begum, president and chief executive officer of Klever Marketing Inc., the Salt Lake City-based developer of the Klever Kart.

“It makes grocery shopping fun,” said Katie Nelson, a Klever Marketing employee who demonstrated the carts. “For those who dread going to the store, it makes the trip a little more interesting.”