Why are we so drawn to walk into certain stores? What makes us walk out of the store with more than we anticipated? The answer is retail merchandising! Everything we see as consumers is strategically set up in store for a reason.  

Retail merchandising attracts customers in a unique way. Properly organized and visually appealing structures gets shoppers engaged by inspiring them to purchase more products than they initially thought they would. This is done with strategies such as the store design, a selection of merchandising strategies to target a specific market,  and the physical and digital marketing of merchandising to customers.

Different Types of Merchandising 

There are many elements that go into retail merchandising that collectively carry out the buying process. There are four elements that relate to retail merchandising: product, retail, visual, digital, and omnichannel.  

Product Merchandising – Mannequins with trendy looks, neat shelving, and an appealing aesthetic all increase the likelihood of purchase. This type of merchandising utilizes promotional strategies to draw more customers into the store and ultimately,  boost product sales. With proper lighting and signage, the display of the products is what drives the customer to try products and drive purchases. Basically, product merchandising is about how you display items to the customer. 

Visual Merchandising – This type of merchandising is exactly what it sounds like. Using visual display techniques to draw in shoppers and drive sales. Visual merchandising encompasses all displays, and floor layouts seen in retail stores. It creates an opportunity to guide the customer towards the product with eye-catching displays. To learn more about, read our article, “What Is Visual Merchandising? A Guide For Winning Over Shoppers At Retail.” 

Digital Merchandising – Digital merchandising is what we experience in everyday life and is within arm’s reach. Through websites, social media campaigns, and email campaigns, digital merchandising carries out all marketing strategies to promote and publicize a brand’s products. Brands are able to create a vast platform with digital merchandising, allowing for overall success and a wide range of audience members. 

Omnichannel Merchandising – This type of merchandising allows shoppers to have a unified shopping experience across all avenues. This is done through e-commerce and third party market places. Whether this be through telephone or email, omnichannel merchandising is centered around the customer rather than the product. 

Why Is Retail Merchandising So Important? 

Merchandising is one of the most important things a company can do to sell their products to consumers. Retail merchandising attracts and encourages the consumer to pick one store over other competitors, helps shoppers navigate a store more easily, allows the shopper to quickly choose between products, and avoids confusion which could ultimately result in lost sales. In conclusion, merchandising allows retailers to attract shoppers and provide them with a seamless shopping experience, leading them to become customers of the store instead of just shoppers. In turn, building brand awareness and driving more sales for the company. 

Beneficial for brands, retailers, and shoppers, retail merchandising is necessary for converting shoppers. By providing visually appealing and accessible retail displays, your products will catch the attention of more shoppers – making them more enticed to make a purchase. Whether we’re revamping your current displays or installing immersive retail displays, the BDS Merchandising team will create exceptional shopping experiences that lead to sales. 

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