Visual Merchandising Mistakes

The five most common mistakes retailers make during the festive season are:

1.    Not planning promotions carefully or coordinating the placement and promotion of product.
2.    Using the same sales proposition as other retailers rather than promoting the store’s points of difference.
3.    Not renewing, rotating and refreshing the look and placement of product throughout the campaign.
4.    Failing to realise that retailers are in the business of making it easy for customers during the festive season by overcomplicating their offer and the visual merchandising approach.
5.    Relying too heavily on the shopping centre’s festive season promotions and not maximising the promotional and marketing opportunities in store. Make the most of the festive season by heavily promoting your business while the traffic flow is strong as opposed to saving the marketing spend for lower performing trading periods.

Australian Retailers Association Retail Institute trainer and consultant Sue Anderson reported in the ARA Retailer Magazine www.retail.org.au