Friendly service tops everything else.

The top-rank for friendly deli service suggests a hunger to personalize at least this one part of the supermarket. It also suggests nostalgia for what delis were before they became part of supermarkets, and wishful expectations triggered by episodes of Seinfeld or NYPD that featured a friendly deli. It reminded this writer of a funny holiday book that sold out in all the stores that carried it in our area last December. How Murray (as in Murray's Deli) Saved Christmas is about jolly and friendly Murray who runs the deli at which Santa eats too much, too often (so Murray is responsible for Santa's tummy). On a Christmas Eve when Santa has an accident, Murray is persuaded to fill in for Santa. Murray is chosen because he's jolly like Santa, he knows how to deliver, and the deli is closed for the holiday! The problems start when he can't remember the reindeer names.

The fact that Murray from the deli is assumed to be a jolly, people person is what's important here. The appetite for friendly deli people is at the very top of the chart. Could supermarket delis be the place to meet and greet? Could multi-tasking deli clerks be encouraged to offer the kinds of personal conversation that we associate with hairdressers, barbers, and bartenders, who listen while they cut or pour? Should customers be encouraged to place their orders and come back to pick them up -- just so they get two chances to meet and greet other customers? One of our shoppers writes:

* The deli counter experience should be fun. There should be personality and theatre. What I see is anything but fun. And it's not that it's sterile, either!

That comment reflects a report showing that 86% of today's shoppers prefer to spend their money on enriching experiences rather than possessions, up from 65% in 1991. (Consumer Spending & Attitudes presented by Yankelovich at last month's Advertising Research conference.) It takes me back to childhood memories of visits to a deli in Camden, NJ, the only store visits I always wanted to make (besides visits to the candy store that dipped ice cream cones, and yes, I was a chubby kid.) Our deli was always busy. The staff was always stressed but still happy to see and greet us. There was always at least one other family we knew standing at the counter. Everything we took home to eat was delicious. Unless it was a holiday time, dinner that came from the deli was the tastiest dinner we had at home all week. Something of the store was inside each of the white packages with black-crayoned numbers. My deli nostalgia may be shared by millions of consumers who seek good eating and good feeling experiences from their deli even if they've never been to one in New York or New Jersey.

At last month's FMI conference, the staid New England Consulting Group described the supermarket deli as "The Final Frontier" for the following reasons:

* Large and growing

* Disproportionately profitable

* Still evolving

* Delivers on top consumer needs

* Plays in both food-at-home and away-from -home

* One of the few places left in the store with personal contact

* Most importantly, can be the best driver of supermarket destination.

These reasons are supported by what consumers told us they want and resonate with feelings about how today compares to yesterday. Food retailers might consider ways to bridge the old deli world and the new, as Coca Cola's contour plastic bottle bridges the original bottle with today's technology. One idea is to supply deli clerks with black markers they can use to initial the packages of meat that they have sliced to order, or the entrees and salads they have weighed to order. (Check it out with your associates and customers -- they just might find it cozy and personal.)