Rival Supermarkets Gamble on Lottery Advertising Gambit to Attract Shoppers
If it’s true that “Alpha Beta shoppers are luckier,” can it also be true that “More shoppers will win in the new state lottery at Safeway than at any other food store in California?”
The rival chains’ advertising claims that each produces more state lottery winners than any other are the latest salvos in the supermarket wars.
Since the California Lottery began Oct. 3, grocers have had a new product to promote--lottery tickets. And they have been doing so with a vengeance.
Ralphs Supermarkets calls itself “the most convenient place to play the lottery.” Vons is “Your California Lottery Connection.” And Hughes Markets is “Headquarters for Lottery Tickets.”
Some markets have also given away free lottery tickets with the purchase of a six-pack of soda. And Alpha Beta has been offering a free ticket with a store coupon and $10 worth of groceries.
‘Their New Bingo’
Lottery officials said they are not surprised at the supermarkets’ intense reaction to the lottery. “It’s their new bingo,” said James Braxton, the lottery’s Anaheim-based regional manager.
But some of the markets’ claims have raised the eyebrows of competitors and lottery officials as well.
“I don’t see how they can say that!” lottery marketing executive David Leachman said of the Alpha Beta and Safeway claims that each has more winners.
Lottery officials said they have not calculated which ticket outlet has had the most winners and don’t believe any market has evidence to prove that it has the most.
Although he has no plans to pursue a deceptive-advertising complaint, lottery security chief Lew Ritter called some of the markets’ claims “just plain puffing--puffing in advertising.”
And Jack Ackroyd, director of advertising for Hughes Markets Inc., maintains that the Alpha Beta and Safeway claims are “somewhat deceptive.”
‘The Odds Are the Odds’
“It’s my personal observation that they’re attempting to con or coerce people into their stores under the misperception that they would have a better chance at the odds,” Ackroyd said. “That’s not true. The odds are the odds.”
Bonnie Lewis, public relations manager for the Southern California division of Safeway Stores, said that the chain did not intend to mislead anyone. “We buy more tickets (than any other market). Consequently there are more guaranteed winners,” she said.
“Do you think I’m telling a falsehood?” another Safeway executive challenged. But while he defended Safeway’s ad, the executive added that he had ordered it rewritten. After claiming first that “more shoppers will win . . .” at Safeway, the latest ad claims that “more shoppers could win.”
Why change the ad? “My philosophy is I’m not going to let myself get caught in a wringer on something I don’t know is true,” the Safeway official explained.
Bill Wade, marketing manager for Alpha Beta, also defended his markets’ claims. “We have the number of outlets, 251 outlets (so) we have more winners than anyone else,” he said.
Profits Doubtful
Although they have heavily promoted lottery tickets, many supermarket executives said they doubt that selling them will be profitable.
‘We feel there’s been a trade-off, in some cases, of food dollars used for lottery tickets,” said Al Gray, group vice president for store operations at Ralphs.
“We don’t think it’s a plus, particularly at the 5% commission” that markets must pay to the state Lottery Commission, Gray said. “It does not cover expenses.”
Gray said that there was “a possibility that we (Ralphs) might get out” of the lottery business altogether.
Lucky Markets isn’t terribly enthralled with the lottery business, either. “We have taken the lottery as almost a non-event,” said Chris McLain, vice president and corporate secretary.
“I don’t like to use the words ‘a necessary evil,’ ” he said. But “we’re not promoting it (to) the extent others are. We haven’t had games in the stores for almost 20 years--no bingo, no stamps. It’s just against our philosophy because someone pays for those in terms of higher prices.”
Perceived as Incomplete
Still, no market is ready to drop the lottery yet.
“At this time, a market might be perceived as to be an incomplete market if they didn’t have lottery tickets,” said Stuart Rosenthal, senior vice president of merchandising and marketing at Vons.
Still, some executives predicted “less and less hype” about the lottery once customers get used to the idea that their supermarket will stock the tickets.
