Make A Plan For Sales Success: November 1 marks the start of the holiday shopping season, so now is the time to start preparing for the holiday retail season. Decide which promotions you wish to do for the holidays. Coupons, raffles, and special events are a great way to get traffic to your store. Make sure advertisements are not confusing or a burden to the customer. The last thing you want is for customers to become frustrated or turned off because they didn’t understand the process. Remember, word of mouth marketing is one of your most powerful assets. Make sure your customers leave your store as raving fans.- Give Them Everything You’ve got: Put all of your available stock out on the sales floor. However, no one likes to shop in an unorganized, cluttered store. Order additional shelving units, free-standing racks, dump displays and impulse tables to keep things neat and organized. Having attractive displays also increase sales, place displays or fixtures with your newest items at the front of the store, and then your sale items, then any clearance toward the rear of the shop.
Expert Tip: Use a round display rack that can hold a variety of new stock. Place these racks at the front of the store, so anyone entering will see this merchandise. And because most customers like to buy what they can easily touch and see, round racks allow them to browse quickly through merchandise and make selections.
- Make Your Store Stand Out: Create eye-catching and impressive window displays using bold signage and bright colors to attract foot traffic into your shop. Also, decorate the inside of your store for the holidays. Make it fun and exciting. Both of these efforts will put everyone in the holiday shopping spirit; capture what your store is about and decorate with that in mind.
- Get The Word Out: Use your social media accounts, email lists, and other paid advertising to announce upcoming sales. Make sure that everything you put out is visually pleasing, simple in design, and doesn’t try to convey too much information. Always, always, always end your messages with an explicit but subtle call to action; what exactly do you want the customer to do once they’ve seen your ad, email, or post. And always remind them of when, how and why they should contact you. The last thing you want to do is confuse the customer, so keep everything simple.
- Make Your Store An Experience: Set yourself apart from the competition by offering to gift-wrap purchases. Customers love to feel special and will appreciate this time-saving benefit you’re providing them. Decide if you’d like to offer this as a free service (Who doesn’t like Free!) or for a small fee. If you do offer gift wrapping, make sure your staff is up for the challenge and that it doesn’t consume too much of everyone’s time.
- Don’t Get Caught Short: Giving gift cards are an increasingly popular holiday gift option. Retail experts estimate that 50% of all gift cards purchased go unredeemed, so gift cards
are like money in your pocket. Stock your store with gift certificates, gift cards and holders, holiday bags, wrap and ribbon. Also, ensure you have the right gift card displays to showcase these items, as well as adequate signage so customers can quickly locate them. - The Right People Can Make All The Difference: This is especially true during the holiday season. First, hire an adequate number of holiday staff. Keeping customers waiting for help or in long checkout lines increases the likelihood they might leave the store without purchasing. When hiring, look for people who will represent your business in the best possible way. Customers always remember rude and unhelpful employees. Most importantly, ensure they’re well trained and also cross-train them to handle other functions, so they can step in during busy times.
- No One Likes a Scrooge: Always have holiday music playing in your store. Music is an important piece of creating a warm and inviting atmosphere in your store. Your music should not be too loud or overpowering; keep it soft and subtle. Pleasant scents have also been proven to put shoppers in a better mood, so consider adding cinnamon or evergreen scents to the air during this time.
It’s never too early for retailers to start planning for holiday sales. Don’t miss a single opportunity this year. In fact, the earlier you plan, the better position you’ll be in to make this season possibly your best holiday sales year ever!
Get a jump on the rush. Order all of your holiday stock and fixtures now, so you’re ready for the start of the holiday season. Not sure of what you need? Call an expert! We’re here to help – Call us today at 800-999-0771 or Visit us at SpecialtyStoreServices.com and let a Specialty Store Services representative go over your options and make suggestions. It’s just that easy.