Triggering the Buying Impulse

People like to think they’re impervious to advertising and marketing.  But the truth of the matter is that most consumers can be reached via some simple triggers.

Triggering the buying impulse is intimately connected with the same thought process which leads people to pretend they’re not conditioned to respond to certain triggers.  They want to be “special”.  They want to be “in the know” and they want to feel as though they’ve obtained something everyone wants, but doesn’t have.

And that’s the key to understanding consumer behavior – people want to feel they’re first in line and know something others don’t.  Successful marketing triggers work from that knowledge and it’s highly effective.

Let’s talk about triggering the buying impulse by following some simple guidelines, outlined below.

The free gift.

They say there’s no free lunch, so what’s better than offering consumers something free with their purchase?  People love to break the rules and the time-honored rule about the “free lunch” is the reason a free gift can trigger impulse buys.

Online giant, Amazon, uses this technique.  When a product is selected, the “free gift” offer will pop up.  Also in play is bundling, which offers additional items at reduced cost.  If you’re an omnichannel retailer, applying this model to your online merchandising can bump your revenue by 10-20% and that’s not peanuts.

Needful things.

Everyone needs socks.  That’s a given (especially right now, as winter closes in).  Offering these and other needful things at a discount easily compels impulse buys.

Shoppers need them.  You need to move them.  Featuring items necessary to your shoppers at a reduced price is an excellent way to clear out inventory that’s taking up space in storage.

Don’t miss out!

Time-limited offers appeal to the psychological tendency to not want to miss out on something important.  Urgency, coupled with a limited supply of what your featuring appeals to this tendency.

Add to those qualities a high value to the consumer (whether monetary or psychological) and you have a winning item that will trigger impulse buys.

Popular?  Sale!

You’re already tracking your best-selling products, so putting them on sale is a baby step toward increased sales revenue, driven by impulse buying.

Omnichannel retailers have the jump on this tip for triggering the impulse buy.  Your social media platforms, shopping app and even Beacon technology can be used to alert consumers that their favorite products are on sale.  That alone can get them into the store and purchasing what you’ve got on offer.

Clip Strip Corp.

As an innovator in retail POP display products, Clip Strip Corp. has been creating and manufacturing superior supports for retailers since 1980.

That’s almost 40 years of experience bringing retailers quality accessories and display supports.  With that experience comes a desire to make life more profitable for retailers by offering them the display options they need for success in an intensely competitive market.

Because we’re leaders in the market, we’re always coming up with something new.  That’s how we got our start and why we’re still in business after almost 40 years.

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Brick-and-Mortar Stores Aren’t Fading Away. They’re Transforming.

We’re living in a consumer’s market.  When shifts occur in the retail sector, they’re usually driven by a combination of forces, but right now it’s the consumer who’s determining who succeeds and who doesn’t.

The rise of online retail has presented traditional retailers with a profound challenge.  But here’s the thing – they’re meeting that challenge with bold innovation and consumer-facing efforts which are revolutionizing the sector.

Brick-and-mortar stores aren’t fading away.  They’re transforming by providing immersive consumer experiences which are highly personalized and driven by the shoppers who visit their stores.

Tailor-made retail.

Part of the transformation of traditional retail resides in its embrace of the same channel that’s occasioned the disruption to begin with – the internet.  Brick-and-mortar stores are learning to create the same personalization, but in a 3D way, that the online retailers do for their visitors.

Consumers are demanding a retail experience which speaks directly to them and what they want from their shopping experiences.  And for those who claim that price point is everything, they should know that consumers will spend more for an experience that caters to them.

40% of shoppers say they’ve paid more for an item because they received highly-personalized service in the store they bought it from.  A slightly higher percentage of consumers say they return to stores which offer them this.

Online shopping gives consumers an element of control which is guided by vendors, but driven by the buyer.  Traditional retail can follow that lead, by adding amenities and features which give their shoppers the sense that it’s all about them.

Finally, omnichannel marketing means that customers can shop online, come into the store to pick up their purchase and shop, while they’re at it.  But the pros in brick-and-mortar are going even further.

Innovation is transformation.

The major players in retail are some of the most innovative in terms of ensuring they don’t fade away.  Department store giant, Nordstrom, has introduced new outlets which feature no product.

That’s right.  No product.

Instead, Nordstrom’s invites customers to come in for a styling session, with a personal fashion advisor.  Following a consultation, clothes are ordered and brought in, while the customer enjoys a drink.  It’s this type of transformative innovation which is keeping brick-and-mortars in the game, by putting consumers in the driver’s seat.

American Eagle has changed its strategy by making its stores student-friendly spaces which allow them to come in and wash their clothes, study and hang out.  They might not buy anything that minute, but while they’re there, you know they’re making a wish list.

As you can see, brick-and-mortar stores aren’t fading away.  They’re transforming to put the customer at the center of the retail experience in a way that’s innovative and intelligent.  They’re answering the challenge from online channels in ways which are re-shaping the future of traditional retail and its continuing health in the market.

To survive, we’ve always had to adapt.  Brick-and-mortar stores are doing just that – adapting and transforming.

Contact Clip Strip Corp. for exceptional retail POP display supports.

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Get the Most Out of Your Retail Store this Holiday Season with Visual Merchandising

Christmas is retail Ground Zero.  This is where the rubber meets the road for retailers, with 30% of their annual income deriving from the Holiday shopping season.

That means you need to pull out the stops and give it everything you’ve got.  One way to achieve the desired effect (record sales) is visual merchandising.  While the term may cause the faint of heart to blanch, you’re a retailer.  You’re in a sector which is not for the faint of heart to begin with, so fear not.

You’ve got this.

To get the most out of your retail store this Holiday Season with visual merchandising, there are some simple, cost-effective rules to follow.  These are basic rules.  You don’t have to be an artistic genius to make them work.

Bring the color.

Because it’s the Holiday Season, the first colors to come to mind are red, green and white.  That’s all very well and good, but you can use other colors to create an arresting and beautiful display.

Stick to two colors.  That’s the most effective strategy for using color in your visual merchandising efforts.  Try hues not traditionally associated with the season.  Lose the green and red, replacing them peacock blue, or magenta.  Paired with white, these create tension and contrast which catches the eye.

Storytelling is powerful.

Your front window is the most traditional site to tell your shoppers and potential customers a story.  That story is about the Holiday Season, your products and your brand.  All these elements can work together to create a surprising tale which translates into sales.

Maybe your story is about Holiday stockings, hung with care.  Your products are the gifts stuffed in them and your brand logo adorns them all.   Or maybe your story is about Santa Claus’s cookies, left on the kitchen table for him to enjoy, in thanks for his Christmas Eve efforts.  Those cookies may be gourmet biscotti, or they may even be soaps in the shape of cupcakes.

But the story’s the thing.  Tell it without words and allow shoppers to walk into the tale you’re telling.

Create a focus.

Visual merchandising demands a thoughtful approach.  Don’t overwhelm your shoppers with too much of a good thing.

Creating a hotspot which draws the eyes of your shoppers is a tactic which can increase sales by almost 230%.  It’s effective.

Santa’s cookies or cupcakes (your products) are the focus of your display – not the table.  What’s in the stockings is the focus – not the stockings themselves.  When using visual merchandising during the Holiday Season, get your products seen in a whimsical way which speaks to the magic of this time of year.

You can get the most out of your retail stores this Holiday Season with visual marketing when you approach it as one of your customers.  What do they want to see?  Visual merchandising is for them, so think like them for great results.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leader in high quality retail POP display supports.

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Winter Display Ideas to Fall in Love With

Winter is coming.  It’s already feeling like it out there, but it begins officially on December 21 this year.  Winter display ideas to fall in love with and share with your customers can be fun.

There are so many ways to create beautiful winter displays without breaking the bank.  For this post, we’ll focus on cost-effective solutions.  We’ll also look at ways to achieve the effect you’re going for without driving yourself crazy.

Everyday items and unusual choices.

Winter displays are as easy as everyday items you might find around the house.  Cotton balls, for example.  String varying sizes of these on fishing line and create a snow storm in your window.

Scout around the dollar store and you’ll probably find plenty of fodder for your winter display genius.  Go to the arts and crafts aisle and look for white feathers.  Now, look for glitter glue.  Use the same fishing line you did for the cotton ball snowstorm to hang them and you have a surprising effect which is outside-the-box.

Secondhand shops are another great source of inspiration.  Often, you’ll find old doilies nobody wants here, bundled for a very small price.  Buy them!  Now adhere them to your window in the shape of a Christmas tree or snowman and voila, you’re a visual merchandising superstar.

Consider yourself crafty, or have kids who are?  Decoupage snowflakes are a folksy alternative to secondhand store doilies.  If your kids make them, that’s another wrinkle to your efforts – telling your customers about it.  Your kids might also want to help with constructing paper garlands, or popcorn and cranberry ones.

With a little imagination, the sky’s the limit.

Use words.

Your winter display can become even more fun, with the addition of a chalk board.  Write the words to seasonal songs in fancy script on the board, decorating it with a doily or two.  “Baby it’s cold outside”, or “the weather outside is frightful”, becomes an entertaining display element.

Even standard merchandising supports (as found in the trusty dollar store – yes, we love that place) like pre-printed “open” and “sale” signs can be customized to create another dimension to your in-store merchandising.  Adorn them with LED lights in the shape of icicles or stars and create something from next-to-nothing.

Create a world.

Your window is an opportunity to create a branded environment for your products.  Using simple materials, you can make magic from basic items.  Consider an enchanted winter forest, lit by twinkling LED lights.  The trees are bare branches, which can be found just about anywhere, lying on the ground, doing nothing.  5 to 10 of these make a small forest.  Arrange them around your merchandise, displayed in mounds of packing popcorn to imitate snow.

Back to the secondhand store.  Create a scene of a vintage Christmas using period ornaments that older people will recognize as those of their childhood.  This is especially effective if that’s your target demographic, or if you’re a toy shop frequented by doting grandparents.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leader in innovative retail POP supports.

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How to Reduce the Negative Effects of Slow-Moving Inventory

Every retailer needs to meet the retail challenge and that challenge is more evident in inventory management than in any other facet of retail sales.

Balancing the need for an inventory that keeps people coming in to buy and interested, with stocking top selling items is no mean feat.  Your fast-moving products usually account for about 20% of what’s in your stockroom.  The other 80% requires a watchful eye.

Let’s talk about how to reduce the negative effects of slow-moving inventory, to keep your stockroom dynamic.

Tracking is key.

We don’t have to tell you that keeping track of what’s in the back room is key to effectively managing inventory.  But allocating staff time to do so is a challenge.

Knowing what’s not moving is key to this project.  Once you’re aware of that factor, you can start with periodic checks to ensure you’re on the right track, where slow-moving product is concerned.

Once an underperforming stock item is identified, your job is to figure out how to reduce the effect of having it on the shelf.  Are you going to re-market it as something desirable, with an innovative campaign to move it?  Or are you going to recycle it as a gift to loyal shoppers, or as a co-op promotion?

Having strategies in place to move inventory that’s not moving itself is key to maintaining space for that 20% of top-selling inventory.  Perhaps it’s time to introduce automation that helps you see problems coming without having to resort to complex inventory regimes.

Key moments to move it and how.

Excess stock becomes most evident at the end of seasons and at the beginning of the year.  These are crucial times for you to act to reduce their impact on storage space and cash flow.

Even if you need to move these items at major discount, having the cash from those sales is more beneficial than stocking them at a loss.

If stock has been lying around for over 3 months, you don’t want it around anymore.  It’s time for a sales event, or a special offer.  Clearance sales are an ideal way to get that stock out of the back room, converting it into cash.

Following a season like summer, move those bikinis, shorts and sunglasses with an end-of-season sale.  Use social media to spread the news.  If you run a loyalty program for your diehard customer base, let them know first.  Offer discounts for Facebook shares and watch your store fill up with people ready to buy excess stock.

Creativity and process is how you reduce the negative effects of slow-moving inventory.  Excess stock happens to every entrepreneur who ever went into retail.  It doesn’t matter how carefully you plan, it’s just a part of the brick-and-mortar life!

Clip Strip Corp. is a leading provider of retail POP display supports for retailers like you.  Our innovative products allow you to use every inch of floor space you have, to move product efficiently and create a professional, customer-friendly environment.  Contact us.

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Why You Need More Than Just Images to Sell Your Products

While it’s said that a picture’s worth 1,000 words, in the online world imagery isn’t enough.  Great quality pictures of your products are certainly part of the mix, as online culture is highly visual.  All the same, if you’re relying on images to sell your products, you’re not doing all you can to drive the people looking at those pictures to your store.

Written content is a key strategy for marketing what you’re selling and some of that concerns rich product descriptions.  This is a content marketing strategy you need to know about and employ.  Here’s our take on why you need more than just images to sell your products.

SEO – your best friend.

Search Engine Optimization is your best online friend.  It’s how people find you on Google and other search engines.  The “optimization” part happens when you write keywords into your text to ensure you have a respectable ranking, making you easy to find.

If you don’t understand SEO well, calling on the services of someone who does to write your copy is a great idea.  Many retailers miss this part of the online puzzle, but it’s so crucial to understand, if you want potential customers to know you’re there.

Images can’t do that.  SEO can and using often-searched keywords connected to the products you’re describing is how you get there.

All your products should be featured with descriptions.  Even a brief product description can drive traffic to your page and subsequently, shoppers to your store.

Words matter.

Online marketing is dependent on words.  Images are important, because they get attention, but they don’t drive traffic.  Only words can do that.  Many retailers are convinced that photographs are the most important element of their websites, but that’s not the case.

Successful online marketing considers the value of words – something retailers hoping to have a robust online presence that’s visible by merit of its search engine rankings, need to embrace.

If your current website doesn’t feature text descriptions to go with all those arresting images, your results are going to be underwhelming, to say the least.  Get those descriptions up, written with SEO in mind and watch your page visits (and sales) soar.

SEO plus.

Visuals only tell part of the story.  Because shoppers online can’t have a tactile experience of the item displayed, they need more information about it.  What does it feel like?  Are the shoes made of “supple leather”?  Is the camera case “sturdy and practical”?

Your product descriptions can make a tremendous difference in online conversions, providing customers with the information they need to make a buying decision.

Is it time to give your online presence the SEO and informational ballast of written descriptions?  Oh yes, it is!  Online retailers who invest in adding product descriptions to their online presence will reap tremendous benefits in terms of sales by adding this crucial feature.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leading-edge innovator in retail POP display support products.  Contact us to find out more.

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Does Price Matter? Why Price Comparison Shopping Isn’t the End of Retail

Despite claims that the retail sky is falling, traditional retail continues to account for most consumer purchases.  And there’s plenty of reason for that.

Sure, consumers are comparing prices online.  Their mobile devices allow them to walk into your outlet, look at the prices of your products and conduct an online search to ensure that your price point is in line with competitors’.

But that’s not the end of the world.

This post explores the importance of price points and why you may have an edge, even if the price of your items may not be the lowest.

Content counts.

While consumers are conducting price checks, they’re also using their trusty mobiles to research the content of products, location of manufacture and other considerations increasingly important to the modern consumer.

Nobody wants to contribute to sweatshop labor and nobody wants to eat something which contains mystery ingredients they can’t pronounce.  Consumers now are looking at more than price.  They also want to know that what they’re buying is ethically produced, nutritionally sound and of a quality that merits buying it.

Product reviews.

Something else today’s savvy consumer wants to know about products is what their fellow consumers think of them.  Online reviews have incredible clout when it comes to customer conversion.

Reviews read online are the “word of mouth” of the 21^st Century.  Regardless of what you’re selling, your customers want to know about the experiences of other shoppers.  In fact, positive reviews have been found to be the most important factor influencing conversions.

Keeping that mind is crucial to your success and something you should always be aware of.  That means tracking online reviews of the products you’re selling, as well as reviews of your outlet.  In today’s market, those reviews drive a great many sales.

So, does price matter?

Sure, it does!  But it doesn’t matter as much as many would have you believe.  While consumers continue to be price conscious and certainly perform comparisons, price is only the third most important deciding factor in consumer purchases.

Reviews are the primary driver of consumer conversions, with product content coming second and finally, price.

Today’s market realities are smashing conventional wisdom about consumer behavior and decision-making.  An awareness of what really matters to your shoppers is how you’re going to succeed, moving forward.  Once again, the Trifecta of 21^st Century Consumer Conversion is organized in terms of importance, like this:

• Consumer reviews
• Product content
• Price

Shoppers are willing to pay a little more for products which respond to their need for ethically-produced products and products of a high quality, conforming to their preferences.  They care what other people think and take reviews so seriously, that this is the number one deciding factor driving conversation.

Bringing up the rear is price.  While price still matters to consumers, reviews and content are front of mind in their purchasing decisions.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leader in retail POP display supports which create sales floor consistency and a premium consumer experience.

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8 Practical Ways Brick and Mortar Stores Can Compete With Amazon

Amazon is the elephant squatting in the corner of every brick and mortar retailer’s store.  Sure, it’s a big, iconic online retailer.  But confronting that Amazon elephant is not as tough as you think.  Here are 8 practical ways brick and mortar stores can compete with Amazon and grab their market share.

1. Online visibility.

This is a big one.  When consumers search products online, Amazon is always going to come up at the top of the results.  But you can combat that effect with effective SEO (search engine optimization) that pushes you up in the search engine rankings.  Select popular products and ensure that product descriptions include keywords which mirror the ones Amazon is using.

2. Exceptional service.

Personalized, warm service is something Amazon can’t give its customers.  You can, though.  Training your staff to be at their very best for everyone who comes in is a retailer’s most pressing need.  Your sales staff is your edge.

3. Customer experience.

Make a visit to your store a reward for your customers.  Create an environment that’s branded, unique and pleasant, ensuring that customers arrive to discover an immersive experience that makes the trip worth it.

4. Emphasize convenience.

Shoppers conducting online searches for local products need to see that it’s convenient to shop at your location.  Emphasize features like abundant street parking, and an easy to find outlet.  Amazon isn’t all that convenient if you’re looking for something you need immediately.

5. Leverage your online presence.

If you’re not set up to do e-commerce (which is not compulsory in terms of competition), your online presence should be leveraged to drive business to your store.  Everything you can do to enhance that presence and make people want to visit you is well worth your time.  That means keeping your site active and attractive.

6. In-store events.

A sub-set of customer experience, in-store events provide added value for your shoppers.  Demonstrations, fashion shows and tutorials about products you know your customers love, when held regularly, create buzz and generate interest.  Use social media to keep your shoppers up to date and in the know.

7. Live presence.

A static website which doesn’t cover all your in-store product isn’t good enough anymore.  To compete with Amazon, you need to keep your website and social media channels fresh.  Your online catalogue should be up to the minute and include announcements and descriptions of new products.  It’s worth your time to invest in this.

8. Get mobile.

The rise of the mobile device means that your website needs to be compatible for these users.  When they log on, they should see a website adapted to their needs.  To remain competitive and to pull in potential customers using mobile devices, it’s imperative that your online presence conforms to the needs of this market.  Hire someone to get it done and reap enormous benefits.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leading-edge provider of retail POP display supports. Our outstanding products bring professionalism and consistency to your in-store customer experience.

The post 8 Practical Ways Brick and Mortar Stores Can Compete With Amazon appeared first on POP FUEL.

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Reasons Why a Buyer Says “Yes” to One Product Over Another

When you’re trying to get your products on chain store shelves, one of the most important things to keep in mind is that buyers are looking to fulfill customer demand.  Customer demand drives sales.  Giving shoppers what they want is what buyers are in the business of doing.

Market demand is one of the key drivers behind the “thumbs up” or “thumbs down” your products are going to get from buyers, so being aware of what their customers want is your first indication of how well your pitch is going to go.  It will also tell you what the shape and tone of your pitch should be.

Reasons why a buyer says “yes” to one product over another are primarily based on market forces.  But here are some specific clues to help you get where you want to go.

Is this product going to make money?

As stated above, customer demand drives sales.  Your buyer is going to look at your product and determine its sales potential.  You’re going to convince the buyer (hopefully) that your product will sell like crazy and fatten the bottom line.

Buyers aren’t capricious.  They are studied professionals who are keenly aware of what’s going on in the market.  They know their customers.  They know their chain’s sales figures and all the markers connected to those figures.

When they encounter something new, they’re going to have a sense about how well it’s going to do at their outlet because they’re in the business of knowing what’s going to sell and what isn’t.  They’re pros.  That’s your context and your challenge.

The next big thing.

Buyers are continually on the look out for the “next big thing”.  They want to take advantage of product trends, because if they don’t, the share of the market their chain might otherwise have commanded is gone.

Just like that.

So, approaching buyers with the attitude that your product is indeed innovative, fresh and desirable from a consumer standpoint is a key part of your pitch.  If you’re trying to get to “yes”, convincing the buyer that your product is an opportunity they shouldn’t pass up is your way in the door.

Ready to rock.

Going into a buyer meeting with the raw product isn’t going to work.  Buyers want to see that your product is ready to put on the shelves.  Your packaging game should be good to go, right down to the bar code.  Anything that’s going to slow down the product’s entry to the chain’s shelves is going to be a roadblock to the “yes” you’re hoping to hear.  So, get your packaging, pricing and shipping ducks in a row and impress upon the buyer that you’re ready to deliver today.

The reasons why a buyer says “yes” to one product over another are numerous.  Some reasons are even personal.  A bad day?  Could be!

But this post covers the fundamental reasons buyers choose some products over others.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leader in premium display supports.  Contact us.

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Disruptive Retail Trends to Watch In 2018

The world changes and to stay at the top of our games, we all need to change with it.  Inflexibility is what leads some to be left behind, wondering what happened.

One of the best things you can do for your retail business (and one of the least demanding) is to be open to the change that’s happening all around and which is going to impact your business sooner or later, whether you want to acknowledge it or not.

At Clip Strip Corp. we submit that awareness is better than being in the dark, so we’d like to share these disruptive retail trends to watch in 2018, in the interest of giving retailers a heads up on the future.

Forewarned is fore armed.

The on-demand economy.

The mobile economy is an on-demand economy and this is the single most important thing you need to know, moving into 2018.

Consumers want immediate gratification and mobile portals allow it.  The seduction of the immediate provision of services and goods (Uber and eBay, just for starters) is obvious and it’s a growing sector, attracting huge response from consumers.

How huge?  How about more than 22 million consumers and almost $58 billion in spending?  That’s how huge.

Experience is everything.

In tandem with the on-demand economy is the experience economy.  This directly impacts the way brick-and-mortar retailers do business.  Customers, when they venture out of their homes, desire a unique experience that rewards their efforts.

As a retailer, your job is to offer your shoppers service which goes beyond the traditional.  Sited in your sales floor staff, the experience of personalized shopping which recognizes customers as valued guests in your outlet is key.

The union of two worlds.

Your store is in the brick-and-mortar world, but that doesn’t mean technology can’t be part of it.  In fact, bringing technology onto your sales floor signals customers that you’re answering a need.  You’re acknowledging the current environment and the demands of shoppers, while doing so.

In-store technology is an opportunity for you to create a union of the two worlds in retail currently colliding – online and real-world retail.  That’s what online retail giant, Amazon has been up to and it’s working.

Get mobile.

Being mobile-friendly is no longer an option – it’s an imperative.  As a retailer, you need to ensure that your online presence fosters relationships with this enormous market of potential and existing customers.

That means ensuring that the digital customer journey is a smooth one.  Catering to mobile customers means configuring your online presence to their needs.  More and more consumers are connecting via mobile and there is no choice for retailers but to respond with enhanced access.

These disruptive retail trends to watch in 2018 are where we believe retailers can find the way forward.  Acknowledging them and being proactive about anticipating their impact is how you can strengthen your market position by keeping your customers happy.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leader in premium retail POP display supports.  Contact us to find out more.

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source http://clipstrip.com/pop-fuel/disruptive-retail-trends-to-watch-in-2018/

The Dollar Daze: Catering to Value Shoppers

These days, the phrase “value shoppers” describes a large market looking for ways to cut corners to make the monthly budget.  Dollar store retailers are always seeking strategies to meet their market’s demands for value, while retaining the best possible margins.

National brands, combined with novelties and items which might otherwise be less accessible, are the stock in trade of the dollar giants.  Consumers at these outlets are looking to stretch their dollars and for a location in which they can apply their buying power, especially when it comes to food.

They don’t care if what you’re offering is the latest craze, organic, or exotic.  They want value and that’s about all.

Necessity more than novelty.

A key motivator of dollar chain store shoppers is the availability of necessities for a much more reasonable price than what’s offered at the grocery store.  At a grocery store, shoppers will find a wider variety of any given product on offer.  They will not, however, find the everyday value they do at the dollar chain.

Dollar chains strive to provide their customers (many of whom are living on fixed incomes, with very small grocery budgets) to the best range of food products they can because they know they’re filling a need.  Instead of offering a vast array of breakfast cereals, for example, they’ll offer one or two in value-sized packaging.

This explains the trend in dollar stores toward expanded food aisles.  Buying in large quantities, dollar chains can maintain steady inventories to meet the demands of the value shopper and to continuously provide what they’re coming in for.

A growing channel.

The dollar store is the fastest growing retail channel in the market.  Every year, their rates of growth have increased.  They now command more robust growth than conventional grocery stores by an average 2.5%.

What’s more, dollar store growth is projected to reach an annual rate of over 6.5% by the year 2020.  What this is telling us is that reduced consumer buying power is propelling a trend toward value which shows no signs of slowing down.

The traditional retailer’s challenge.

What all this means is that traditional grocery retailers are compelled to respond.  Diversifying inventory to meet the needs of shoppers with low and fixed incomes is a priority, if they’re going to compete with the growing, adapting dollar store giants.

Increasingly, these outlets are adding coolers and “market” sections featuring perishable and frozen items.  Dollar outlets are being re-visioned as primary sources of groceries, instead of supplemental ones that fill the affordability gap.

Traditional grocery retailers, currently, are focusing on consumer demand for products which offer enhanced health benefits – fresh, organic and local are the watchwords of grocery chains now.  On the dollar side, customers are seeking value that gets dinner on the table for as little money as possible.

To reach this market, traditional grocery outlets will need to adapt by offering similar affordability for shoppers with limited buying power.

Clip Strip Corp. is the leader in retail POP display supports.  Contact us.

The post The Dollar Daze: Catering to Value Shoppers appeared first on POP FUEL.

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3 Retail Management Tips From Michael Kors Closing Stores

Last month, the Michael Kors fashion brand announced it would be closing 15% of its retail outlets.  Following a huge surge in consumer demand driven by the designer’s presence on the Project Runway television franchise, expansion of the brand was aggressive, followed by a demand through that drove the decision to close 125 outlets over the coming 2 years.

Releasing an IPO in 2011, following the success of his entry to the retail market in 2004, Kors followed with an aggressive expansion that featured 800 outlets of the chain, cross-country.  Based on a trend toward luxury handbags, the brand would soon see the trend collapse and, as a result, mounted an effort to move stock which had rapidly become excessive in the market.

This post offers 3 retail management tips from Michael Kors closing stores.

From scarcity to glut.

The Michael Kors brand took advantage of a spike in consumer interest, riding a wave that had an inevitable “best before” date.  It’s anyone’s guess, when gauging consumer tendencies, when supply will outpace demand, especially in terms of a mega-hot market driven by media celebrity.

But conservatism and a steady hand are always in order, in terms of inventory on hand.  This was not the case at Kors.  Market optimism drove the brand to over-extend, resulting in the need to offer luxury goods (associated with scarcity) at a tremendous discount.  Suddenly, Kors was affordable, a reality which undermined the brand message.

The lesson is to be aware of changes in demand and about what your consumers are buying.  Watching trends for downturns is a key ingredient in maintaining only the stock you know you can sell at a profit.

Here today, gone tomorrow.

One day, it’s a bubble-hemmed dress.  The next, it’s a Michael Kors handbag.  Trends come and go.  What flew off the shelves yesterday may gather dust, today.

Watching the market and what competitors are doing (and selling) is key to understanding when the time has come to abandon the trend ship.  Consumers are notoriously fickle and trends can dissipate quickly.  A cautionary note is that Michael Kors’ discounted items, once they were no longer mega-hot, were suddenly ubiquitous.

At one point, his formerly “must have” items were seen to be occupying fully ¼ of the sales floor at retailer Bloomingdale’s designer discount outlets.  That’s not the look MK was going for.

Experience. Experience. Experience.

Location. Location. Location.  This was once the mantra of retailers.  Today, it’s consumer experience.  A huge part of the consumer’s in-store experience resides in your sales floor staff.  The quality of your people is what moves your product in a physical retail set up.

Finding staff who understand the importance of face-to-face interactions in the consumer journey is key to maintaining retail health today.  It’s the “X” factor that differentiates brick-and-mortar retail from the online challenge.  Your people are the movers and shakers of your brand, offering unique, personalized consumer interactions that move product.

Clip Strip Corp. is the leader in retail POP display supports.  Contact us.

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How to Get Retail Shoppers to Make Unexpected Purchases In Your Store

Most of us believe that retailers are in the business of giving people what they want.  While that’s true to a degree, retail outlets also offer something altogether more lyrical – desire.

Desire is that special place just beyond need or want.  People will always purchase what they need, but when the mood strikes them, their desires take flight and they buy things to fulfill those desires.  The trick is in anticipating consumer desire in a way that compels unexpected purchases.

How to get shoppers to make unexpected purchases in your store is where retailers need to go – beyond what’s needed or even wanted.  In this post, we’re going to review some smarts ways to address shopper desire over need.

The delight factor.

Shoppers come in three distinct varieties.  The first is the efficient shopper.  They want to get in there and get out with what they came for as quickly as possible.  This shopper is on a mission.  The second type may be somewhat focused, but isn’t entirely opposed to an unplanned purchase.  The third type (and the shopper you’re most interested in) actively seeks the delight factor in the consumer journey.

It’s this third variety of shopper who’s looking to be delighted when out in the commercial world.  They want to be surprised by new purchasing opportunities which speak to their desires.  They want to be delighted by encounters with products they can’t go home without.

Beyond the mundane.

Daily reality is mundane and so the retail experience has, until recently, played to that.  People increasingly want their consumer experiences to offer something beyond the every day.  How to get shoppers to make unexpected purchases in your store entails going on a mission to transcend the mundane.

Thinking outside the retail box is a matter of breaking with old strategies.  Placing all the women’s dresses together in one place grouped by size may make sense, but does that transcend the mundane?

Hardly!

Go ahead.  Break the mold.  Group items whimsically, creating opportunities for consumers to see that dress with those shoes, or that jacket.  The dress purchase may well become a footwear/jacket purchase.

Tweak your displays is a savvy way to encourage consumers to make unexpected purchases.  Draw attention to items you want your customers to know about by assembling creative displays which speak to their desires.  The sky’s the limit when you let your imagination meet your customers where they stand.

Make it fun.

Your customers enjoy a whole new level of experience with demonstrations, workshops on to use products (cameras, phones, computers), or impromptu fashion shows.  Hold a pop-up fashion show with your sales floor staff as the models, surprising customers with an interactive experience and a new way of seeing what’s in store.

Offer something memorable.  This introduces the crucial element of delight which drives unexpected purchases.

Clip Strip Corp. is the POP display leader, offering retailers like you premium POP supports that help you up the delight factor.  Contact us to discover high quality POP display products.

The post How to Get Retail Shoppers to Make Unexpected Purchases In Your Store appeared first on POP FUEL.

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How Your Merchandising Can Influence Customer Sales

If you’re a brick-and-mortar retailer and you’re paying attention to what’s going on out there, you’re probably thinking the end is near.

But nothing could be further from the truth.

Just because online outlets have entered the market with incredible success and just because shoppers like the convenience of shopping in their PJs, doesn’t mean your doors are about to close.

You may be one of the retailers who believes that cutting back on merchandising is the solution to staying afloat.

If so, you’re wrong.

The truth is that merchandising is part of what sets your real-world store apart.  It’s where the rubber meets the road, in terms of driving sales by influencing the customer.

Let’s examine how your merchandising can influence customers sales and keep your balance sheet in the black.

Forging emotional connections.

While it’s certainly true that consumers are turning to online shopping more often these days, it’s not true that they’ve stopped shopping in brick-and-mortar outlets.  But what differentiates the two experiences?

One of the key differences is the emotional connection.  That can’t be had online.  The merchandise can’t be experienced in the same way in an online outlet as it can in your store.

When shoppers come in your front door, they need to sense, immediately, that they’re in an outlet that does things a little differently.  The most effective way to achieve that is by forging emotional connections between them and your products via merchandising.

Focal points.

Employing visual merchandising effectively means you need to focus in the way you want your customers to focus.  That means creating displays which visually limit available options and create product focal points.

Displays should be limited to several key pieces, but also employ a strong color scheme.  A unifying color helps customers see the product more clearly and thus, connect with it.

What’s your message?

Before creating your displays, ask yourself what your message is to your shoppers.  Is it back-to-school backpacks, or is it women’s fashion and spring flowers?

To understand the message customers are hoping to receive in-store, talk to them.  Ask them at the till.  Find out why they were attracted to whatever it is they’re purchasing.  Now, use your displays to tell a story that other customers will find as compelling as the customers you just spoke to.

Your story board.

Depending on the message you’re sending, the items in your display (while limited), should relate to one another, telling a clear story.  For back to school back packs, a blackboard may feature.  You can use it for further messaging, possibly hanging a back pack from it.  Other display items might be notebooks and pens.  Props may include an apple for the teacher.

Whatever your display’s message is, that message is forwarded by the story board you’ve created, in which you’ve built relationships between items, all geared toward influencing purchasing decisions.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leader in in-store POP display supports.  We take merchandising to another level with premium POP products that help you influence customer sales.  Contact us.

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Reasons Supplier Diversity Is Awesome

As a retailer, you no doubt cleave to anchor suppliers you’re loyal to.  That’s great.  You need that kind of stability to continue offering your loyal customers what they come in to buy.

But there’s a downside to continually calling on the same handful of suppliers and that downside is stagnancy.  It’s also predictability.  Too much of the same thing can get boring, even if it’s there because consumers want it.

But what if you could switch things up by adding other suppliers to the mix?  Following are some key reasons supplier diversity is awesome.

Shaking it up.

The consumer universe is largely driven by demand, but one of those demands is for choice. There is a dizzying array of every product you can think of out there, but many products compete based on the same markers for success.  For example – If Product A is successful, surely a re-jigged version will be equally or even more successful, right?  But there’s only so many Product A knock offs the market will bear.

Turning to smaller, niche suppliers has the effect of offering authenticity (a trademark of craft brands).  Smaller suppliers, working from leaner frameworks, are more likely to offer a genuinely original spin on a time-honored brand’s product that’s fresh.

Access to the exotic.

Another benefit of supplier diversity is access to the exotic.  Many suppliers today stake their claim in previously untraveled territory.  Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, for example, offered consumers ice cream that went beyond the average, veering into the exotic and seldom seen.

The exotic offers consumers a trip abroad for the price of the product, or perhaps a new way of doing something – like cleaning.  The rise of “pet friendly” non-toxic brands, rooted in contemporary consumer demand for environmentally friendly products is one example.  This is real choice and an opportunity for shoppers to assert their commitment to living more earth-friendly lives.

Keeping your customers engaged.

Another one of the key reasons supplier diversity is awesome is that it tells your shoppers that you care about keeping them engaged.  Coming in to your outlet and discovering something they not only hadn’t seen there before, but which also isn’t widely available, is a winning strategy to keep them interested.

You answer demand indirectly, because what shoppers want now is freshness and access on the sales floor.  They want to be confronted by new flavors, scents and methods of doing what they do every day.  Supplier diversity is one way of bringing them what they’re interested in seeing (even if they might not have known they wanted to).

Ultimately, supplier diversity keeps your inventory contemporary.  It signals your customers that you’re aware of changes in the marketplace and that you’re plugged into sources that bring them something new.

Clip Strip Corp. brings retailers like you the very best in retail POP display supports.  We’re on the leading edge of in-store merchandising, so you can stay on the leading edge of your market.  Contact us to discover a world of innovative POP supports for your store.

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Tips on How to Win Your Next Chain Store Buyer Meeting

You know your product is the “next big thing”.  You can feel it your bones.  But before you take the big boxes by storm, you need to survive the buyer meetings.

As you obsess about meeting with buyers, your palms sweat.  You dread the idea of the shark tank and all the sharks in it, all too ready to say “no”.

But guess what?  You can get through it.  With a little forethought and careful planning, you’re going to feel as ready as you’ve ever felt for anything.  Following are some tips on how to win your next chain store buyer meeting, get your product in the door and make it a household name that flies off the shelves.

Vendor portals.

All the large chains have them and you need to explore them because, at vendor portals, you’ll find out exactly what buyers are looking for.

Conduct a search for the chain you’re going to be meeting with, adding the word “vendor”.  You’ll find a whole new perspective on your potential partner.  The information that you’ll have access to through vendor portals will demonstrate to buyers that you’re serious about working with the chain.  Let them know you mean business by combing through the portal.

On-the-ground research.

One of the most important preparation tools at your disposal is a simple one – go to the nearest outlet and look around.  Take notes.  Buyers are going to ask you when your last visit to their brick-and-mortar was and what you thought.

Be sure to look at the outlet from the perspective of your “next big thing” product.  Ask yourself how your product is filling a niche in the store’s offerings and why it’s going to answer consumer need.  You’ll sound like a serious, diligent partner if you’re ready and able to provide fresh perspective that the buyer’s interested in hearing.

What’s in it for them?

The only reason any chain is going to be interested in what you’re selling is that it’s going to make them money.  That means you need to go into your buyer meeting prepared to make a fiscal case for your product in the context of the outlet you’re pitching.

Even if your product isn’t on anyone’s shelves yet, you’ll have fresh insight after a visit to the chain’s outlet.  You’ll know exactly where your product fits into the buyer’s scheme of things.  On reflection, giving a chain the first crack at it offers numerous opportunities.

You’re giving buyers something new and fresh.  It’s not offered anywhere else and that’s an attractive proposition, with the right pitch from you.  If you’re already selling, be ready with a one-pager on how well your product is doing elsewhere.  What’s in it for them is that your product is going to bring in money by being attractive to the chain’s customers.

These tips on how to win your next chain store buyer meeting get a professional boost with display supports from Clip Strip Corp.  Contact us to find out more.

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Supplier relationship management: 5 ways to build strong bonds with vendors

All relationships are a two-way street.  When you’re in retail, your relationships with vendors are just as important your relationships with customers, so it pays to build strong bonds with them.  Those bonds keep your shelves stocked, so you can do business at full throttle.

Here are 5 ways retailers can build strong bonds with vendors.

Finding the right vendors can seem daunting if you’re new to it, or if you’ve had less than stellar experiences with suppliers you’re seeking to replace.  But there are some easy ways to find them.

Expositions bring you face-to-face with major suppliers, so make a point of attending these occasionally, even if you’re not in the market.  You’ll be in step with current trends and see what’s new in the world of vendors.

Check out publications specific to your type of retail.  You’ll see advertisements from suppliers in their pages and again, keep abreast of what’s new.

2. Check out the competition.

Some relationships just aren’t meant to be and that’s OK.  You can find the right supplier by checking out the competition, if things go south with your current vendor.

Doing your homework can lead you to excellent resources.  Knowing about them is great, even if your current vendor relationship is going well.  It never hurts to have an alternative up your sleeve.  In fact, it makes good business sense.

3. Multi-sourcing.

You’ve been dealing with a vendor for many years and that’s great, but diversification is a proven strategy to ensure your inventory is nimble, fresh and offering your customers what they want.

Sourcing product from multiple suppliers creates a healthy network, protecting you from the possibility of empty shelves when you’re least expecting (or wanting) that to happen.  Building relationships starts with reaching out, so that’s another key function of attending trade events.

4. A mutually advantageous agreement.

Any agreement you enter into with a vendor should be specific to the relationship.  That means avoiding the boilerplate effect.  Keeping your wording specific may take a little more time, but it ensures that the agreement works for both of you and doesn’t miss anything one or both of you will regret later.

Ask questions in the negotiation process.  Be sure you’re covering all the bases and that you know exactly where you stand before signing your vendor agreement.  Going into a contractual relationship with your eyes wide open is always the best look for you.

5. Constant contact.

If you’re only talking to your suppliers when you need something, that’s hardly the basis for a healthy relationship.  Checking in with your vendors to see what they’re up to is always a great idea.  This is where the real relationship building happens.

Regular communication also precludes misunderstandings on the part of suppliers about your needs.  Being as precise as possible about what you’re expecting in terms of product movement helps vendors plan and serve you better.  Regular, casual communication reinforces the relationship.

Contact Clip Strip Corp. for leading edge retail POP display merchandising components.

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4 totally preventable causes of stockouts (and how to prevent them)

Stockouts are every retailer’s worst nightmare.  Particularly with popular, fast-selling products, stockouts can leave customers feeling disappointed – even betrayed.

Running out of inventory, especially during a sales event or promotion, can damage customer relationships and stress out retailers.  Customer service fixes can be helpful, but there’s a cost to those, especially when you need to placate a customer with something special.

Following are 4 totally preventable causes of stockouts (and how to prevent them).

1. Not holding back a buffer.

A buffer is what smart retailers create to avoid running out of a wildly popular item.  Creating a buffer for those happy moments when your stock is ticking down, means customers don’t know it’s there, because it’s in the stockroom – not on the floor.

The buffer can serve as a welcome surprise for preferred customers, offering them another layer of personalization, with a “just because you’re you” edge.

2. Manual entry errors.

The days of manual inventory tracking are over.  It’s time-consuming and prone to errors.  A much better solution is software that helps you keep accurate records.

Point of Sale software that’s synchronized to an inventory management tool is one of the most effective ways to keep track of what you’ve got in the stockroom.  Keeping tabs on what these electronic tools are telling you is the best way to avoid stockouts.

3. Missing the boat.

Many retailers know this one well.  Because they didn’t anticipate OOS (out of stock) scenarios, they experienced the dreaded stockout.

OOS trends can be tracked using your inventory management software.  This will alert you to days of the week you’re most likely to face a stockout and other patterns that can help you avoid it happening.  With access to this information, you can order new stock to arrive before stockouts have a chance to happen.

When you’re regularly auditing your inventory and understanding trends, you’ll never miss the boat again.

4. Inadequate training.

Investing in effective staff training is the last of our 4 totally preventable causes of stockout.  When employees aren’t adequately trained in inventory management procedures, they’re bound to make costly mistakes.

Your staff is one of your business’s most potent resources.  They’re where your customers have their experiences of your outlet in the face-to-face interactions which distinguish retail from online purchasing.  That means they represent a resource that’s well worth the investment in time and money.

Your stockroom may be adequately stocked and your software working perfectly.  Those factors don’t compensate for staff who don’t restock shelves when they’re empty, or know how to read data.  Training your staff about the importance of managing inventory to avoid stockouts is crucial.

Part of that training is impressing on sales floor staff the high cost of stockouts and how they impact your relationships with customers.  You’re offering them an education in retail marketing which is deeply valuable and one which will stand them in good stead for the future.

Clip Strip Corp. is the leader in exceptional retail display product merchandising components.  Visit us to discover quality.

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Prep your store for the summer with our essential checklist

The weather is warm, the days are long and families are on vacation.  Many people love to browse through stores like yours while vacationing, so you’ll need to be ready to greet new customers.

It’s time to prep your store for the summer with our essential checklist.   These simple tips can make the most of summer business.

Boost your staff.

Especially if your brick and mortar store is in an area which routinely hosts high summer traffic, it’s a good idea to be ready with more staff.

If you normally hire students over the summer, re-hire those who’ve been with you in the past.  This saves you valuable training time and returns a familiar face to your outlet your customers will be happy to see.

A line up at the cash register isn’t what happy vacationers want to see, so make sure you have enough floor staff on hand to prevent that from happening.

Make sure your staff is trained in the seasonal realities of making out of town visitors feel welcome.  Asking where they’re from and if they’re enjoying their visit is a great way to roll out the retail red carpet.

Market to the season.

If you haven’t already, it’s time to get out the calendar and start planning for events like Labor Day, as well as local highlights.

Schedule promotions which speak to your customers, offering specials at key times and planning events like sidewalk sales around them.  Bust out the balloons and lemonade and make your promotional events fun experiences.

Being ready for the events as they come means you can focus on keeping your customers happy.  Offering value-added events enlivens your community, while drawing shoppers who may never have visited you before.

Summertime merchandising.

Your store window displays should spell “summer” now, in letters 10 feet high.  Highlight seasonal events.  If your area has a country fair, fill your window with a display that evokes that vibe.

Remember to include products which appeal to vacationers.  Small souvenir items, travel essentials, summer clothing and sunglasses all fit the bill.  These can also make an appearance in a prominent POP display inside, or as part of a summer essentials display feature.

Your windows are the first thing shoppers see, so keep them summertime specific.  Just add beach balls, shells, colorful beach towels and a big, yellow sun to put your products in seasonal context.

Summer is an opportunity for many retailers.  If we’re being honest, summer is a beloved season that many people spend the rest of the year dreaming of and looking forward to.  Make your summer season special for customers and prosperous for you, with these simple tips.

Prep you store for the summer with our essential checklist and bring the best of summer to your customers, whether stalwarts or visitors.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leader in quality retail POP display merchandising components.  Our innovative line of products support your store with outstanding options that move product and create a seamless, professionalized customer experience.  Visit us for more!

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Clever ways retailers can maximize profit on everything they sell

To get started, I’m going to assume that you’re not in retail for the sake of your health.  You’re in retail because you want to make a profit from selling your goods.

Of course, you are!

There are some clever ways retailers can maximize profit on everything they sell and I’m willing to bet you’d like to know what those are.  So, let’s get started.

Lower your price points.

When you can lower your price points without impacting the bottom line, you’re maximizing your profit potential.

Talking to vendors about ways to do this effectively is a solid approach.  Buying in large lots (for quick-selling items), and consolidating purchases, creates more buying power that you can pass on to your customers as savings.

When negotiating with your vendors, make sure they know you’re checking in with competitors.  This strategy very often leads to existing vendors being more willing to budge on pricing.

…or raise your price points.

While this may seem counter-intuitive, it’s important to consider the idea that you may not be charging enough for your products to enjoy a healthy margin.

Look at your numbers and find a balance between consumer-friendly pricing and the health of your business.  Also, consider your local economy and how that might determine your customers’ true sensitivity to pricing.

Your competition is another key for determining whether your price points are serving your bottom line.  If they’re charging significantly more than you are (or significantly less), this factor should inform your decision on whether to drop pricing or raise it.

If your customers visit you regularly because you’re offering them a superior customer experience, you’ll be much more able to up your pricing.  Over half of consumers polled were willing to pay more for excellent customer service and in-store experience.

Automation.

While it’s important to defend the retail edge in terms of face-to-face interactions which add value, automation may be the answer to some of your in-store functions.

Data entry is one area you can reduce labor and save money.  Sales data needn’t be manually entered when you have the right kind of Point of Sale and accounting software.  Synchronized to work together, these two systems can be automated to end the drudgery associated with this function.

Inventory management can also be automated, saving you and your staff huge rafts of time.  That’s time you can spend on displays and customer service.

Personalization.

Today’s consumer is strongly motivated by personalized retail experiences.  Creating targeted discounts for loyal customers is another way to maximize profit on everything you sell.

Some customers won’t need a tremendous discount to act on your offer.  Others need a significant discount to compel a purchase.  Knowing your customers and being in tune with their buying habits is key to effectively targeting discounts and offers.

Global discounts are sometimes effective, but personalization is a trend in retail that should be driving how you’re presenting them to customers.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leader in retail POP display merchandising components.  Find out what’s in store.

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Keeping your inventory fresh: product display options retailers can tap into

Your retail store has loyal customers who return year after year.  Either you have what they’re looking for, you’re convenient for them, or you’re a habit.

Keeping your inventory fresh is the best way to keep loyal customers coming back and pique the interest of new customers.  When repeat shoppers come into your brick and mortar outlet, they should be encountering new products.  That doesn’t mean you need to completely turn over your inventory.  It means you layer fresh interest at every opportunity and feature it with eye-catching displays.

And eye-catching displays mean sales and space in the stockroom for new entries to your product line.  But it also means presenting older product in new ways that re-vision it as more exciting and interesting to your customers.

This post explores keeping your inventory fresh with product display options retailers can tap into to keep product moving.

Re-inventing your sales floor.

Retailers know that most consumers walk into a retail outlet expecting to find certain products in the same place they always have.  There’s nothing wrong with that.  Your job is to find new ways to present products which renovate their visibility and ability to draw the shopper’s eye.

Re-inventing your sales floor is an ongoing effort.  Like your windows, in-store displays can move items which may have been languishing, as well as present new items.  Placing older inventory in a display featuring new offerings presents them in an entirely new light.

As your customers experience your new product, they see the older product with new eyes and in an entirely new perspective.

The element of surprise.

Surprising your customers creates an experience for them.  When they come in, seeing something new (or something old, presented as something new, or next to something new) is a pleasant jolt which can compel sales.

Incorporate objects into your displays which add visual interest.  These might be family photos in a summer camping gear display, or old buoys from a nearby lake.  These are visually surprising elements which invite your customers to experience something new, even if the products you’re displaying have been around for awhile.

Start a conversation.

A surprising or non-traditional element in your displays can be your opportunity to start a conversation.  Maybe what’s for sale in that display isn’t what your customer’s after, but the fact they’re drawn to it is an opening you shouldn’t allow to close without making a connection.

This is your chance to find out what the customer wants and needs.  You’re taking an opportunity to strengthen and build a connection to shoppers who’ve taken an interest in the display and that’s one of the most powerful tools in a retailer’s toolkit – strong customer relationships.

At Clip Strip Corp., we bring retailers the leading edge in retail POP display merchandising components.  Our outstanding product line helps you keep your inventory fresh by highlighting your store’s products with consistency and professionalism that drive sales.

Contact us.  Find out more about keeping your inventory fresh.

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Shopping trends for 2017 that are already here!

In recent years, the impact of mobile culture has infiltrated the retail sector.  Shoppers want a premium customer experience, but they want more than that.

Shopping trends for 2017 that are already here will surprise you with their diversity and innovation.  They’re trends retailers should be taking note of to stay competitive in an ever-changing environment.

All about the experience.

Every sector of commerce, from travel to luxury brands and core retail shopping, has been impacted by the experience economy.  As the world around us changes, people are becoming increasingly aware of the value of experiences.

For retailers, this means thinking outside the box.  When shoppers come into retail store, they want to discover something they can’t anywhere else.  Whether that’s a harpist playing 90s pop tunes, or a stylist offering makeovers, or a discussion of fashion trends, your shoppers want an experience that’s unforgettable and singular.

Above all, adding elements of surprise and delight to your retail experience makes your store a destination.  Going beyond the idea of purchasing objects, experience-based retailing means going three-dimensional to offer your shoppers added value.

Longing for connection.

The big box store has lost its allure.  Today, shoppers want to feel they’re part of something.  Independent retailers are seeing a spike in sales due to this effect and its magic ingredient is creating a sense of connection.

Reaching out to your customers means knowing them.  Some of that involves building up online communities around your brand that offer shoppers a window into your products and services.  That can mean adding your customers to a select area of your website, where they’ll find out about promotions before others.

It can also mean creating events that revolve around your customer base – a fashion show that addresses them personally, a community event they can participate in, or a unique opportunity to connect with you and your business on a personal level.

Main Street, with its mom and pops may be long gone, but the longing for connection has re-surfaced.  Retailers are called upon to answer that longing with opportunities to bring your customers into a circle of mutual benefit.

Social shopping.

Until this year, shopping online has had one barrier – it failed to deliver on the modern imperative of instant gratification.  But that barrier is rapidly being overcome, as retailers find new ways to get their online offerings directly to shoppers, without delay.

In New York City, this has been pioneered.  Partnering with ground delivery services, online retailers can place purchases into consumer hands on the same day.  That’s good news for consumers, but brick and mortar retailers can benefit too, when their social media and website ducks are all in a tidy row, ready to go.

Experience, connection and social shopping are three major shopping trends in 2017 that are already here. The question is, how are you going to deploy them?

Contact Clip Strip Corp. to find out how we can professionalize your retail outlet by bringing it crisp clarity and consistency with leading edge POP display supports.

The post Shopping trends for 2017 that are already here! appeared first on POP FUEL.

source http://clipstrip.com/pop-fuel/shopping-trends-for-2017-that-are-already-here/

Move it out! How to sell what is not selling.

The best laid plans of mice and retailers don’t always turn out the way they’re supposed to.  Inventory you may have believed would prove popular with customers languishes on your shelves.  It takes up space.  It represents money you could be deploying elsewhere.

It needs to move!

When your product is moving at the speed of “glacier”, your need to switch it up.  How to sell what is not selling is a matter of applying some retailer savvy to your stubbornly languishing stock to move it out.

Putting a bow on it.

Pricing slow-moving merchandise to make it more attractive to consumers is a balancing act.  You need to ask yourself how important it is to keep your stock looking fresh and up-to-date.  But that must be carefully balanced with your return on investment for the inventory.

To move it out, you need to put a bow on it, offering it at a price point that draws consumer interest.  You can just the slash the price, but there are more creative ways to make that inventory look its best to potential buyers.

One of them is offering your languishing product in a bundle with a hotter piece of merchandise.  Creating an offer for two or more items which includes the slow-moving merchandise can see it fly out the door.

Create a Point of Sale display, for the “feature of the week”.  Coach your sales staff to sell your slow-mover based on the urgency of the offer and the benefits of the product.  Impressing on the customer that the offer is limited may be all takes to move it out.

Positioning.

Sometimes products aren’t selling because they’re in the wrong place.  Re-positioning your slow-moving merchandise to another area of the store (eye level shelf, for example), can raise consumer awareness.

But your front window is your best friend when it comes to positioning items that aren’t selling.  Placing your slow-moving merchandise in an attractive window display can be highly effective, drawing the attention of your customers to the item that’s now front and center.

Remember to check in with customers who ultimately buy the product because of your re-positioning efforts.  You need to know that changing the location of the item has influenced the decision to buy.  This is a process which allows you to tweak your display marketing according to consumer responses.

Clip Strip Corp. – Power at the POP.

Clip Stip Corp.’s range of Point of Purchase supports take your retail outlet to a whole new level, enhancing the customer experience with professionalism.  We’re the leaders in POP.

When you’re ready to move it out, our POP retail display line brings you innovative signage and display accessories that provide power at the POP.  Our products are also an affordable way to professionalize your outlet and bring consistency to your in-store experience.

Adding Clip Strip Corp.’s extensive line of quality POP signage and display supports marries your marketing strategies to innovative solutions for your brick and mortar store.  Contact us to find out more.

The post Move it out! How to sell what is not selling. appeared first on POP FUEL.

source http://clipstrip.com/pop-fuel/move-it-out-how-to-sell-what-is-not-selling/

How to Attract a Younger, Mobile-Savvy Audience to Your Shop or Site.

Unless you’ve been living in a cave, you will have a noticed that the relationship between people and phones has changed.  Everywhere you go, heads are bowed before the omnipresent mobile device, as people text, surf, communicate – and shop.

The rise of mobile devices is an opportunity for retailers.  Their immediacy and portability make them an advent which must be acknowledged by everyone hoping to thrive in the new reality.

The key thought to keep in mind when considering how to attract a younger, mobile-savvy audience to your shop or site, is that 60% of all online activity now comes from mobile devices.

That’s a vast pool of potential consumers you can’t afford not to reach out to and that pool is overwhelmingly young and looking for retail experiences that address their interests directly.

Mobilize your website.

If your website isn’t mobile-friendly, you need to get it there sooner than later.  Mobile users encountering an online store that doesn’t conform to their needs will move on immediately – most likely never to return.

Responsiveness to mobile users can easily be tested.  Pick up your phone and go to your site.  Is it easy to read?  Does it look “right”?  If not, your website needs immediate reform to reach out to that 60% of the market you’re missing out on.

The KISS rule (keep it simple, stupid) applies.  Millennials want information that’s readily accessible.  They don’t want to dig for what they’re looking for.  Feature key content on your home page.  Tell your story succinctly.

Engage with social media.

Your social media presence should invite Millennials with fresh, value-added content that draws them into your brand experience.  That means good visual content, every day.  Stale feeds lose user interest.

You don’t need to spread yourself across the vastness of social media.  That can reduce your impact.  Instead, choose the platforms that make the most sense for your brand in terms of outreach to mobile users.  Instagram is a key platform for photo-sharing, but if you’re marketing to women, you should know that most daily Pinterest users are women.

Keep your content relatable, friendly and engaging.  Mobile-savvy users want to be appealed to by original, compelling content that invites them to experience something of value.  Stress openness and engage with your users whenever you have the opportunity.

Clip Strip Corp. – POP for a new generation.

Clip Strip Corp. is the leader in innovative Point of Purchase displays and supports.  We bring you consistency, professionalism and a premium retail experience for your customers.

When you’re thinking about how to attract a younger, mobile-savvy audience to your shop or site, you want your merchandise to POP for a new generation.

Meshing your in-store experience with a refined outreach to young, mobile-savvy users is seamless with the display pros at Clip Strip Corp.  You create the outreach, we create the on-site display know-how that engages with your shoppers.

Contact us to discover leading edge retail merchandising tools that bring a fresh approach to in-store marketing.

The post How to Attract a Younger, Mobile-Savvy Audience to Your Shop or Site. appeared first on POP FUEL.

source http://clipstrip.com/pop-fuel/how-to-attract-a-younger-mobile-savvy-audience-to-your-shop-or-site/

When did you last make a major floor move?

If you felt a little sheepish reading the title of this blog, then we’re going to guess it was quite awhile ago.  But here’s the thing – shoppers don’t just come into your store to buy.  They come in to enjoy the experience of being there.

A stale sales floor discourages repeat custom.  Blunt?  Perhaps, but it’s also true.  Your customers may love your products.  They may enjoy coming to your store.  But when they come in, they want to see something new; something they haven’t seen or maybe haven’t noticed before.

Keeping on your retailer toes means keeping your floor fresh and interesting.  Let’s review some of the ways you can achieve that.

Signage improves sales.

When men go shopping, they tend to be on a mission.  They want an efficient experience that gets them what they need and out of the store as quickly as possible.  For this reason, they depend on clear, directive signage to achieve their mission.

Women, on the other hand, read signs, but they’re much more interested in the overall experience and the potential it holds for discovery.  Offering them signage is a way to alert them to offers they may not know about, new products and promotions.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leader in POP signage that creates a consistent, professional look for your sales floor, while offering shoppers clarity and needed information.  Almost 3/4s of purchase decisions are made on the sales floor, so signage which is clear and consistent with your brand supports those on-floor decisions.

Planning and themes.

“When did you last make a major floor move?”, is a question intended to shake up your approach to your store’s sales floor.  Part of that shake up should be in the planning, itself.

Creating a calendar incorporating seasonal events, promotions and major merchandising themes is one way you can keep your displays fresh and engaging.  Seasonal themes are a given, but other thematic devices should also be used, according to what you’re selling.

If it’s women’s clothing, then create a theme based on a major fashion trend.  If it’s toys, create a theme based a type or manufacturer of toys, with the focal point being a product you know can move, when featured dramatically.

Make planning a habit when creating your in-store displays and unleash your creativity in ways that will not only make your store a fun place to visit, but a preferred place to purchase.

Clip Strip Corp. – POP goes your floor.

Clip Strip Corp. is a leader in innovative, quality Point of Purchase signage and display supports for retailers like you.  Your customer experience improves when you keep your sales floor teeming with interest.  But Clip Strip gives you what you need to refine that experience even further.

We bring your retail store consistency and professionalism with leading edge retail merchandising tools that create exceptional consumer experiences, helping you build your customer base and improve your sales figures.

Contact us to find out how we can make your sales floor POP.

The post When did you last make a major floor move? appeared first on POP FUEL.

source http://clipstrip.com/pop-fuel/when-did-you-last-make-a-major-floor-move/