Three tips for more effective merchandising
While there is no substitute for basic sales skills, it’s important to remember that a well-merchandised store can help the sales process and even do a lot of the selling for you. Here are three tips that can help.
1 Location, location, location
Where is the most effective place to put your mask/snorkel/fins display? Is it at the front of the store, the back of the store or somewhere in the middle?
Many experts say you should put it at the back of the store. Why? This will be most customers’ first purchase. By putting this display at the back of the store, new customers will have to walk past all the other cool toys you have for sale. Hopefully, you will have these items displayed in such a way that they provoke curiosity and inspire future sales.
2 Never the same
Successful department and specialty stores such as Best Buy know the importance of keeping displays fresh. They will regularly rearrange existing displays and create new ones. They will even rearrange entire departments.
This is often necessary to accommodate new merchandise or retire discontinued items. But even when it is not, avoiding the impression that your store never changes can keep customers coming back just to see what’s new.
When was the last time you gave your store a much-needed makeover?
3 Front and center
Studies show that customers are less likely to buy from shelves that look picked over than from shelves that look freshly stocked. This is why experts recommend that you “front” your shelves. That is, you move the remaining stock to the front of the shelf as items sell so that it looks like you just re-stocked these items.
Which of these tips are you following?