Sales-Boosting Retail Store Tips for the Holiday Season
This year’s holiday season has arrived and early forecasts predict strong sales for retailers. With consumer spending expected to be on the rise, it’s important for retail stores to be adequately prepared to sell, sell, and sell some more.
If your goal is to maximize your sales during the holidays, you will want to optimize your in-store experience as much as possible. In this article, our retail consulting experts provide some valuable sales-boosting retail store tips for the holiday shopping season.
Speed up your Retail Store Checkout
The holiday season is undoubtedly the busiest time of year for retailers. This hustle and bustle inevitably leads to large crowds of people and endless lineups that can be a serious source of frustration for consumers and businesses alike.
In order to avoid congestion that can discourage customers from making a purchase, consider implementing a self-checkout strategy with a mobile POS like Veras Extend. With mobile checkout functionality in your retail store, your employees can ensure that customers who are pressed for time receive the most expedient shopping experience possible.
Stock enough Inventory
The last problem you want to encounter during the sales-intensive holiday season is an out-of-stock product. Retailers that don’t keep enough product in-store during this busy period risk greatly losing out on potential profits.
The most effective way to keep track of your stock is with the help of an inventory management system. This will guarantee that your workforce has clear visibility into your retail store inventory and you have right amount of product when you need it most.
Collect Important Data
Does your point of sale software have the ability to collect valuable customer data such as emails, mailing addresses, transaction histories, phone numbers, etc.? If not, you are missing out on possible repeat sales during the holiday season.
With access to important customer data, you can create mailing lists and target customers for special promotions that will bring them back to your retail store. Furthermore, you can better plan for next year by analyzing this holiday season’s store traffic and purchase patterns.
Create Charming Store Displays
Holiday displays (in-store, window displays, sidewalk) can still have a great impact on your retail store sales around Christmastime. In fact, NDP research has shown that window displays influence purchases approximately 24% of the time.
Don’t be afraid to get creative using lights, seasonal colors, signs and props that promote the festive spirit and, of course, increase your sales.
Conclusion
Rapid checkouts, well-stocked inventory, attractive displays and efficient use of customer data will have you well on your way to a successful holiday shopping season. If you feel those tips aren’t enough, here are a few more quick tips to keep you covered:
- Train your staff to upsell products
- Start a social media campaign
- Keep your most profitable items in clear view
- Offer a gift-wrapping service
- Extend your retail store hours
When planning your retail store for the holiday season, it’s also important to remember that sales don’t stop on Christmas and tend to continue steadily into January, so don’t be too concerned if you started preparing a little bit late. If you want to optimize your store with our retail consulting services, don’t hesitate to contact us today.