Why You'll Never Have Time For Merchandising: 10 Daily Actions For Success

Retailers are busy! There are always more things to do in a day than there is time to get them done.

There's stock to replenish, employees to manage and customers to serve. You know you'd like to spend time on merchandising, but who has time? You plan to work on merchandising when it's not so busy. When there are not so many urgent tasks that need your attention.

Right. Let's just face it. That time never comes. There will always be something else that needs your attention.

Don't wait for that mythical 'enough time' for merchandising. Turn merchandising into a daily routine. The best way to do this is to review the store every morning and make a list of all the tasks that need attention.

Separate the list into two categories: tasks to be done today, and tasks to schedule later in the week. Write down all the tasks and assign them to a staff member to complete during the day.

Include these 10 actions in your daily merchandising tasks:

1. Review window displays. As you unlock the front door in the morning, take a look at the windows. How are the products selling? Is there a sold out product that needs to be removed from the display? If there are products in the window that aren't selling, make a note to find out why. Check for dust bunnies and burnt out lightbulbs.

2. Clean glass: Wipe fingerprints, smudges and dust from front doors, display cases and glass counter.

3. Tidy merchandise: Put away merchandise that was put back in the wrong place. Repair hang tabs that are broken or missing. Straighten products that are hanging crooked. Make sure rows and columns of merchandise are straight and orderly.

4. Replenish stock. Fill spaces where merchandise has sold down. If there is more merchandise on lower shelves, and gaps in the middle, move merchandise up. Make note of products that have sold down and need to be re-ordered.

5. Refresh product displays: Make adjustments to displays that are no longer effective. Replace merchandise displays that have sold down, with new displays that have more product. Move slow selling merchandise to more prominent feature areas or focal points.

6. Check lighting. Look for lightbulbs that are burnt out and need to be replaced. Are lights aimed properly? Do they highlight merchandise well?

7. Review 'shops', departments, and fixtures. Take a look at each section of the store. Ask yourself if the merchandise presentation is still effective. When products sell down departments or shops look empty or tired. Decide if you need to do a major move within a department. Schedule it for a slower period within the next week.

8. Review top selling products. What products sold well the previous day? Think about what made those products a hit. Was it the product quality, displays, efforts of sales staff, a special promotion, the placement within the store?

9. Review poorly selling products and returns. Why are these products not successful? Is there a problem with product quality or pricing? Are they placed in the wrong location? Perhaps the customer has questions about the product that isn't being answered. Ask your sales staff and customers for feedback on the product. Move the product to a prominent location, or create an enticing display with detailed product information. If all else fails, mark the product down, and get it out of the store.

10. Clean up the cash desk. The cash wrap area is one of the most important areas of your store. This area leaves a lasting impression of your store. The customer may spend a significant amount of time standing at the cash. Waiting. Waiting for service. Waiting for their purchase to be processed. Make sure this area is tidy and free of non-selling clutter. Try to keep tape dispensers, phones and pen holders below the counter. Remove notes to employees that are visible to the customer. Put away customer holds, papers, binders.

Each of these tasks may only take a few minutes at a time.

Together they make your store customer-ready. Ready to make a great impression!

Why You Need to Sell to Just One Person

Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia.

--Kurt Vonnegut

Retailing is a creative process. Just like writing.

Just like great writers, great retailers sell to just one customer.

Many retailers fall into the trap of thinking something along the lines of "If I market to just one customer, I won't sell enough to buy my family a box of cereal!" Well, maybe you didn't word it exactly like that, but isn't that essentially what you are afraid of?

Once you're in the trap of trying to sell to everyone, you're stuck. You have to figure out how to sell your product to the world.

Now that's a big job!

How are you going to do it? You don't have the money to market to everyone. You don't have enough staff to sell to the world.

You don't even know where to begin. It's overwhelming.

And what about the people who are not interested in what you're selling. Do you want to spend money trying to sell to people who are not interested in your product?

Wouldn't you rather spend your money sending your message to people who are the most likely to buy from you? People who already enjoy products similar to yours?

--

Do you see where I 'm going with this?

When you try to please everyone, you become exhausted. You can't possibly sell to the whole world, or even your whole community.

You wear yourself out trying to be everything to everyone. Your store gets pneumonia. Your business concept becomes weak and sickly.

The remedy is to sell to just one person.

The one who will love your product. The one who will come back over and over.

When you sell to just one person, business decisions becomes easier.

When you buy products, you won't say to yourself, "Somebody might like this." Instead you say, "Sally will love this!" or "I'm not buying that. Sally will hate it!"

When you market your business, you know where Sally lives, so you can send her a note. Or phone her. Call her up and say, "Sally, I just got this new thing you'll love! I was thinking about you when I ordered it!"

Sally realizes that you're not just talking to anyone, you're talking to her. And you know exactly what she loves. When she walks in your store, she feels like her name is written all over the store. From the scent of vanilla in the air to the upholstered chair by the fitting rooms, it is her kind of place.

The best part is that Sally has friends. And family. And co-workers. And neighbours. And many of them like the same things that Sally does.

Sell to Sally.

Not to the world.

Your business will be a lot healthier.

Best of Vancouver Retail

What does beautiful Vancouver have to offer shoppers?

What can we learn by looking at what great retailers do well?

A couple of weeks ago I had the privilege of hosting a couple of guests from Great Harvest Bakery head office in Dillon, MT. We spent the day on a tour of the best Vancouver retail. What a fabulous way to spend the day - visiting stores, talking retail, snacking on the best baking in town, and making new friends.

I learned what a fabulous company Great Harvest has created. Their stores are all franchised, and they have a deep commitment to their store owners, and communities.

We visited the well-known born-in-Vancouver success stories - MEC, Lululemon, Aritizia, and many more examples of retailers who are doing what it takes to deliver what customers want. Our day was jam-packed with stores. Some of them had so much to see we had a hard time leaving to move on to the next one!

Some of the things these retailers do well:

• Tailoring each store to fit the community. Many of these stores are NOT using the cookie-cutter chain approach to store design. They might have many locations, but the best of these retailers are demonstrating to their customers that they are active and involved in their local community. The stores maintain a strong brand and identity, while adapting it in each location to reflect the personality of the neighbourhood.


• Great signage. Shoppers are hungry for information. The best retail examples have strong signage to help customers find what they are looking for - quickly and easily - and make an informed decision.
  


• Good lighting in key areas. Lighting enhances texture and colour. Lighting displays well makes them sparkle, and draws the customer in.


• Positioning displays to attract attention. Displays are used throughout the store - always keeping in mind the customers' point of view. What does the customer see when she walks in the store? Stands next to a table? Waits in line?
  

These are just a few of the many points we noted on our tour. Stay tuned...we may just open up the tour soon so you can join us...and get one of our fabulous swag bags of samples too!

The Great Harvest team with me at the end of our tour, in Coal Harbour:

My new associate, Marie-Claude, (on the left) joined us for the day as well:

Photos courtesy of Kaylee, Great Harvest Bakery.

I hope to see some of you on the Best of Vancouver retail tour soon!

What's Your Biggest Retail Challenge Today?

Here's a question I received this morning in my email:

"I was looking for some additional information on some tips on driving traffic into your store. I do run a textile retail store and am at the cross roads of whether to palm it off or continue..."

I've already responded, but I'd like to hear from you...

• is this the same question that is top of mind for you as a retailer?
• how has your business been affected by the current economy?
• what is happening in your community?
• what is the biggest challenge facing you right now, today?
• what are you doing that is working for you?

Post your thoughts below.

What's New at Inspire...

It's been a bit quiet here for a while, as I work on some new directions for Inspire. Here's what's happening:

Teaching Fashion Retailing for John Casablancas Institute is one of the things I've been enjoying the most over the past few months. It's great to see talented and creative young people who are planning careers as part of the retail industry - whether it is styling, buying, merchandising or owning a store. Now that I've finished the big job of revising the curriculum layout, I will focus on blogging here, and staying in touch with retailers on my Facebook Page, and Twitter. Come on over and say hello!

Focus is the topic of my next retail article that I'll be posting soon. I've working with a fabulous coach, Kathy, over the past year to help me focus the direction of my business. As a result, a new face, Marie-Claude CotŽ, has joined mine. She will be working on merchandising with local retailers in the Vancouver area. You can find out more about her here. (Scroll down the page to read her bio.) Marie-Claude is fabulous to work with. She is starting to work with retail cart and kiosk owners in response to requests from mall leasing managers, and will also work with independent stores.

I was invited this week to participate in the start of an exciting new project with Retail BC. I met these great people - Darren at Lemonade Tactical Marketing, Joseph with NEBS and Gary at Business Advisory Team. We will be creating marketing resources that retailers can use to get more customers now. Help us help you by sharing what you need most right now:

• In today's economy, what do you need most in your business?
  
• What marketing issue keeps you up at night?

Make your voice heard! Post your thoughts below.

Is Your Merchandise Plan Working Backwards?

Do you ever feel overwhelmed when new stock arrives? Where do you put it all?

Maybe you're working backwards, and don't know it.

Does this sound a little bit familiar?

It's time to buy product for the next season. You know how much you want to spend. You know what type of merchandise you need to replenish. You may have a budget to spend for each department.

You go through the catalogues and websites. You compare the suppliers minimum orders with what you think you can sell. You see some new products that you like and think your customers will buy. You make your orders.

Sometime later, boxes begin arriving. You start putting product out on the shelves. More stock is arriving. You realize you'll have to do some major merchandise moves to fit it all in.

Not to mention, how are you going to create a display of some of this merchandise? There are some really great new products, but there aren't enough of them to create a strong impact.


It takes a considerable amount of time to get new merchandise arranged.

You move it here. But you don't like it.

You move it there. It looks better, but now you have a hole over here to fill.

And then there is this stack of merchandise that you still need to find a place for. Well, we'll put it in this corner for now.

There is another way.

What if we turned the process around?

Imagine how much easier it would be if you knew exactly where your stock would go before it arrived.

What if you had a written plan or sketch that showed where to place each item?

What if you didn't have to place the stock at all, but could hand it over to a staff member?

Unrealistic, you say?

It isn't. It just takes some time up front.

Time to plan.

Time to visualize.

In the end you'll save time. And headaches.

Use these 5 steps to reduce your headaches and stress:


1. Make a floor plan.

Draw in all the elements of the store that don't changeÐdoors, walls, pillars, windows, steps, platforms, built in fixtures, electrical outlets. Make copies.

Using one of your floor plan copies, draw in all the movable fixtures, in their current location. Make copies.


2. Determine optimum merchandise levels.

Working with a copy of your fixture plan, go through one department at a time. Decide what types of products can be merchandised on each fixture. Calculate the quantity of merchandise each fixture can hold.

Identify display areas in each department. How much merchandise will be in each display?

Label your plan with all of the types and quantities of merchandise.


3. Order merchandise.

As you choose merchandise, consider the department and fixture that will hold the products. Select quantities, colours and themes based on how the merchandise will coordinate in the store. Think ahead to how the merchandise will look in displays.

Remember - your goal is to create a strong visual impact with each department. Coordinating and complimentary merchandise encourages multiple sales.


4. Create a merchandise plan.

Make labeled sketches of where all the new merchandise will go in the store, and in what quantities. Believe me - when the merchandise arrives, you won't remember exactly what you planned when you ordered. Put your plan on paper.

Don't forget to include your current merchandise in your plan. Where will you move it to make room for the new?

There is no need to be a perfectionist. Don't try to draw the products. A row of bottles is a vertical rectangle. A folded sweater is a horizontal rectangle.

The key to this step is knowing the amount of space each product will require.

Create a clear plan that another person could follow if you weren't there to explain it.


5. Create a display plan.

Determine upcoming events. Decide how often displays will be changed. Identify the key merchandise that will be in each display. Create rough sketches for each display.

When the merchandise arrives, implement your plan.

Better yet, if you have staff, give the plans to them to install. You can go have a cup of coffee and start on plans for next season.


--


Want some help easing your merchandising headaches?

I can help you create floor plans. Email me to find out more.

OR

I can coach you through the merchandise planning process. I am starting a trial coaching program that is only $150 per month for independent retailers.

Want to find out more? Email me for details. No strings, no pressure.

Turn Customer Confusion into Traffic That Flows

Have you ever entered a store, looked around and walked out because it was messy or claustrophobic?

Or been in a store, searching for a product feeling confused or frustrated because you can't find it?

Maybe you returned to a store, in search of your favorite product, only to find the merchandise completely re-arranged.


Customer confusion is a continuum.

If the customer is conscious of feelings of frustration or confusion, the store layout and merchandising are clearly ineffective. At the other end of the continuum, the shopping experience is a joy to the senses. Most shopping experiences are somewhere in between.

Customers won't complain if they are confused. They'll just turn around and walk back out.

Customers will tolerate a mild level of confusion. Maybe even buy an item or two.

But they won't become raving fans. They may not return. They may express their frustration to their friends.

So, what can you do to reduce customer confusion?

Make it easy

An effective store layout is easy for the customer to understand. It has a natural flow and visual cues to help shoppers find their way through the store.
Store departments, or product groupings are clearly separated to guide shoppers to the merchandise they need.

When the shopper enters, there is enough open space for the shopper to slow down her pace, look around and transition into the store. As she slows down she scans the layout for clues to help her find what she needs.

The front area on the right is one of the prime locations in your store. It is a key area for sales, and for establishing the identity of the store. The fixtures and merchandise in this space need to grab people and draw them in.

This section right in front of the door, should entice shoppers with its dynamic display. It should announce that the store is brimming with new and exciting offerings.

Balance new products and basics.

A general rule to use when organizing the store, is to keep major departments and staple items on walls, and in lower traffic areas.

Shoppers want to know that the basics will not move around. They want to find these things easily each time they return. Seasonal and high margin merchandise should be in high traffic areas.

Take a walk in the shoppers' shoes.

It is important to consider what the shopper sees, the 'vistas' from different points in the store. To examine how the layout can be improved, take a look at a large section of the store at a time. One of the best ways to do this is through photos.

For example, what does the customer see at the back of the store, when she comes in the store? Treat that view like a display or a piece of art that you are creating. Is there a strong, appealing focal point? Is there balance and symmetry? Is there anything obstructing the view?

A rule of thumb is to use shorter fixtures towards the front of the store, or department, with taller ones further to the back. The customer is able to take in an overall view of the store, without obstructions. It also keeps the front of the store from feeling closed in. The shorter fixtures lead shoppers into each area.

The back wall also needs a strong focal point. It is another high impact area, or prime location. It needs to be one of the strongest points of the store.

Shoppers want to look around the store and understand the layout in a glance. Creating clear focal points and moving obstructions is one step towards reducing customer confusion.

Plan first.

Before you get all excited and start moving things around, make a plan. On paper. Not in your head. A helpful tool is a planogram.

A planogram is a floor plan of the entire store with fixtures and merchandise placement, including quantities of merchandise. It enables you to work out a layout on paper, making merchandise or fixture moves quicker and easier.

Even if only a small section of the store is moved, it is helpful to plan the move on paper first. A clear plan is easy to delegate to team members. The move becomes more efficient and effective.

A well-planned and organized store will convert your customer confusion to customer enjoyment.

Are You Making Your Customers Work Too Hard?

Joanne has just finished grabbing a quick turkey wrap for lunch. She might have just enough time to run an errand before heading back to work.

Her goal - a new blouse for Friday's presentation. She checks her watch. 32 minutes. It's now or never. She'll be working late on a deadline for the next few days.

Joanne walks briskly past a couple of the mall stores, giving them a quick glance. Not her style.

She walks into a familiar store. She's scored a few good finds here in the past.

It's still early - before the main lunchtime rush. A sales associate has a couple of boxes on the floor, and is hanging new stock. Joanne focuses on skirting around her and the boxes, heading further into the store.

Joanne thinks maybe she'll be lucky and find a good deal on some recent markdowns. At the back of the store, she comes across a sale rounder. Draped over it is an unreconized garment, without a hanger, that a customer must have left behind.

The shelves behind the rack may have once held neat piles of sweaters and knit tops. Now they are a disheveled mess. Who know what's there? Too much trouble to go through it.

Joanne turns and heads back the other way. On her way out of the store, she sees an attractive display of new merchandise on the wall.

A blouse catches her eye. She looks below the display to find one in her size. There are about a 1/2 dozen on the bar. They are not in any recognizable order. Joanne has to examine each tag to discover that none of them are the right size.

Joanne sighs. Once again she turns to leave.

On her way out, she glances at a 4-way rack. Another blouse. Wait a minute - it's the same as the one on the wall. A whole bar full of them. She finds a tag that shows her size. She pulls out the hanger.

Oops! This hanger is not the one with the tag attached to it. The hangers are tangled up. Joanne struggles to get one hanger back onto the crowded rack, and pull out the one she wants.

Got it! Now to try it on.

She scans the room for a sales person. The one at the front is blissfully unaware of her. Still hanging stock. A cashier is on the phone.

Joanne heads to the fitting room, blouse in hand. She tries the first door. Locked.

She glances around. Finally a sales associate emerges from one of the fitting rooms with an armload of hangers.

After a room is unlocked for her, Joanne tries on the blouse and purchases it.

So what's the problem?

The store still made the sale. If you're still selling, you're doing OK. Right?

Mmmm - maybe not.

This story is typical of the stories my retailing students are telling me about their mystery shop projects. In fact, this story would be one of the positive ones. My students are often saying, "The store I visited was a mess. No one helped me. But that was what I expected of that store. So I would go back."

The problem is that these are fashion retailing students. They understand retailing more than many customers. They like shopping. They're willing to work harder to find what they are looking for.

Some customers are like them.

Some customers do not want to work that hard. They want shopping to be enjoyable. Relaxing. They have stress & pressure at work & home. Shopping needs to be easier. It needs to fit into a deadline, or be a way to unwind.

Don't wait until your sales start dropping.

A store that excels will reduce the little complications, or barriers for the customer. Make it easy to shop.

Stores that don't make it easy, are opening the door to the competition. If someone opens a store down the street - an enjoyable, relaxing place to shop; where are your customers going to go?

If your customer learns a similar product can be ordered online, arriving directly to their door, what do you think they will do?

In an economic downturn, which stores are going to keep customers?

No one's perfect.

Your store will sometimes be a wee bit untidy. Sometimes you'll be out of stock.

The secret equation is to have more positive interactions than negative. Customers will forgive a few difficulties if most connections with you are enjoyable, engaging and rewarding.

What's the equation in your store?

A Tale of Two Products - Do You Know What Makes Your Products Sell?

'It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.'

Sally's store sells widgets and woggles. She thought they would both be hot sellers.

Widgets sold like hotcakes. Woggles languished on the shelves. Store sales have not met projections.

What should Sally do? Slash prices on the woggles? Get more widgets?

The lower price will devalue the woggles in the customers' eyes, attracting just the discount shoppers. And slashing prices will cut into margins, making a rough time even rougher.

It could be a necessary tough call, but how can she tell?

The truth is, Sally doesn't know. She doesn't have enough information.

To look ahead, first look back.

Sally needs to look back and find out why the woggles didn't sell. Just as important, she needs to find out why the widgets sold so well.

Again, Sally could go with the easy answers.

Customers liked the widgets. They didn't like the woggles. Sales were down because of low customer confidence. Shoppers were tightening their belts. They only bought one item instead of two.

Sounds good. Sally doesn't have to think too much. There's only one problem.

Those answers are false. Or, could be false, but Sally isn't sure.

Uncovering the truth.

Sally decided to sit down and make a list of all the possible reasons the widgets outsold the woggles. Here's what she came up with:

1. Customer needs or preferences

2. Product problem - quality, design

3. Merchandising effectiveness

4. Pricing problem

5. Sales team effectiveness

6. Product knowledge & communication

7. External issues - economy, competitors

Sally has some work to do. She goes out on her sales floor.

Sally starts talking. Talking to the sales staff. 'What have customers been saying about the widgets and woggles? What do they like?'

She talks to the customers. 'What do you think of these products? How much would you be willing to pay for a product like this?'

Sally takes the products home. She tries them out. She gets her family to try them out. She tells her staff how much she liked them. She encourages them to try them out and tell her what they think.

Sally posts a sign by the cash register. 'Staff pick: Woggles' She watches for changes in sales.

Next week, she changes the sign. Now it reads, 'Woggles: Favorite of Jack, age 5.' She keeps track of which sign performs better.

Sally reviews her merchandising. Where were the woggles positioned? Where were widgets positioned? Sally reverses them.

A new display is created at the front of the store. Sally adds a sign: 'Woggles: a must-have accessory for your widget.'

Sally calls a staff meeting. She trains the sales team about the benefits of the woggles. She adds product information to the woggle shelf tags.

Woggle sales begin to go up. Slow at first, but gradually climbing.

Sally takes a break.

On her break, she reads the paper. She learns that the retail sales are slow this season.

Sally stretches, gets up and takes a walk. She browses through stores in her area. She notices that a competitor has a product similar to the woggle for sale.

She smiles, and goes back to her store. Sally starts planning how she will keep improving her sales of widgets and woggles.

More than widgets and woggles.

Of course, your store is much more complicated. More products. More issues.

It all boils down to the same three steps:

1. Look back

Honestly review past performance. Read department sales reports. Product reports. Most businesses generate a lot of information. Look at the trends.

2. Ask questions

Ask yourself what influenced, or may have influenced, past performance. Talk to your team. Talk to customers. Test your assumptions.

3. Look ahead

Set new goals. Make a plan of action. A multi-faceted plan. Address all the opportunities you have to influence sales, not just the most obvious. Think of merchandising, signage, product information, pricing, training.

Many small changes can make a big difference!

So, we've survived the busiest season of the year!

I hope your sales fulfilled your December dreams. Early news reports say that some retailers did well, others did not quite meet expectations. Here in Canada, polls a couple of weeks ago showed that most shoppers were in a confident mood and planned to spend more than last year.

Whether sales met expectations or not, we are coming up on a time of year that is important for all of us. Once the pace slows down in the new year, we have a chance to reflect. We can evaluate what went well, what we can improve, and make plans for the year ahead.

Share your experience of this holiday season and what you are planning for next year! Leave your comments below.

Next week, I'll be sending out an article on looking back, and looking ahead.

In the meantime, while you have been juggling holiday crowds, I have been working on a recording a new audio program. This program is based on a merchandising seminar I presented a couple of times this fall.

A sneak preview of the program is available now, as a free bonus until early January, with the purchase of Five Merchandising Mistakes Retailers Make.

Here's a synopsis of the new program:

Building Blocks of Merchandising - Audio Seminar

Are you struggling to come up with display ideas? Do you know what elements go into creating dynamic displays?

Merchandise displays are one of the most important tools a retailer has to use to bring customers inside the store. If you are not using this tool effectively, you are losing customers.

Learn the three building blocks of creating effective merchandising in this audio.

http://inspire.bc.ca/merchandising_products.htm

Remember, check it out before early January!

Don't forget to leave your comments below to let me know how the holiday season treated you!