This is a contributor’s blogpost …

 

If you have a physical store in 2017, you may find it hard to compete. Most people shop online and the high street is no longer the place to go to find a deal. The result is an inevitable drop in sales, a decline which may put your business at risk. Obviously, the key is to give lead generation and sales a shot in the arm to boost revenue and profit. However, it isn’t as easy as it sounds on paper. So, if you are struggling to make the transformation, the following may come in handy. These are the best ways to take in-store sales off life support.

 

Create A Buzz

The one thing all stores rely on is a buzz as it creates an atmosphere that piques consumer’s curiosity. Of course, most businesses can’t just decide they are going to start one because it depends on word of mouth. Quite simply, the more people that talk about the brand, the more people will check out the store. Still, you can get the ball rolling. To do this, you need to sponsor an event or get involved with the community. Or, you can make the press aware of what is going on in-store and get free advertising.

 

Photo Courtesy of Paull Young via Flickr

 

Internal Advertising

One mistake store owners make is to reduce advertising once people walk through the door. What they do is invest tons of resources in online marketing and only online marketing. For starters, this is silly because offline also has a role to play in any modern strategy. More than that, your digital presence isn’t very noticeable in-store. When they are in the shop, they are more focused on what is around them. Because of this, you can use stand up pouch packages to drill the message home. Another great trick is to stencil the company name onto bags.

 

Rethink Pricing

When it comes to pricing, some stores like to charge the highest amount possible, whereas others go lower. In your case, you shouldn’t concentrate on greater or smaller. Instead, you should think about the perfect price to get people to buy more once they are inside. For example, anything that is lower than the average makes customers react negatively. You may think it seems like a bargain, yet they believe that it’s a con. On the flip side, they won’t pay over the odds if they can find it cheaper elsewhere. It’s a delicate balancing act and one many stores get wrong.

 

Photo Courtesy of Alan O’Rourke via Flickr

 

Up Sell

Upselling is the tactic of offering discount products while at the counter. Supermarkets are great at it as they format the cheapest products until the end. When a customer goes to the checkout area, they see it and think, why not?!’ Sure, it may not be a lot of money, yet it all adds up if every customer acts the same way. With that in mind, don’t be afraid to ask customers whether they would like anything extra. It’s amazing how easy it is to convince people when they are in the buying mood.

And, those that don’t care can only say no, so it’s NO big deal.