Which retailer does not want to achieve more turnover? You too can apply the tips below in your business and see your retail turnover increase. From the customer experience, a unique shopping experience, but also the stimulation of impulse purchases and the renewal of in-store displays. We list all the tips here.
7 tips to increase your retail turnover
- All focus on your customer
Your staff is the face of your store. They talk to your customers and thus automatically establish a bond with the customer. In addition to long waits and crowds, unfriendly staff accounts for 3rd place (38%) in customer annoyances. In addition, they are the ones who actually sell your product. It is therefore smart to invest in your employees. Here are some tips to keep in mind when looking for a new employee.
Go for enthusiasm: if your employee is enthusiastic about the products, they will also radiate this to the customers.
Let the employees scan customers: your employees must be able to find out the pain points of customers, so they can offer/sell the right product.
Emphasize the importance of interaction: employees must actively listen to customers because every customer is different.
You can’t help but be customer-oriented as a retailer. Knowing what your customer wants is the first priority. This also means that you must be able to give customers a good feeling. Customers hate being pressured by pushy salespeople.
Suppose your customer wants something that you don’t sell, you can advise them where they can buy it. The customer will thank you for the help and that way you build trust and lasting customer relationships.
This also applies when a customer comes back for a “return”. A return is a disappointment for both you and the customer because the product did not meet their wishes. Treat your customers as friendly as always. That way they will come back faster for a new purchase.
- A unique shopping experience
Nowadays, a customer no longer wants to be satisfied with a “normal” store. They want a “shopping experience”, so the store has to do more than just sell products. Customers want to be involved with the brand. It is also that shopping experience with which you can distinguish yourself from an online shop.
A unique shopping experience can be created by a unique interior, but also by personal advice, for example. A great example of this is the cosmetics chain Lush. Here you will be immersed in a fragrance experience, but the saleswomen are always ready with advice. You can often use products (unfortunately on hold due to Covid19) or they give demos of the products.
- Stimulate impulse purchases
You can also increase your retail sales by encouraging impulse purchases. The easiest way to encourage impulse purchases is to place cheaper products near the cash register. Unlike in the rest of the store, customers only see the product for a few seconds and decide in those few seconds. If you’re selling candy, gift cards, or accessories, place them near your cash register. A classic example is the candy bars that are at the checkout in a supermarket or gas station. 87% of impulse purchases are also candy purchases. Health products barely make the top 10.
If you are not sure what you can offer as an impulse article, take the following features into account.
Not too expensive: a customer has to think too long about an expensive product, or possibly discuss it with a partner at home. This is therefore not attractive as an impulse article.
Not too difficult: an impulse article may also be a bit too difficult, you must be able to use/consume it immediately without much explanation.
Margins or turnover rate: a high-profit margin is always good, but a high turnover rate is also important. Would you rather sell 3 pieces with 15% profit or 10 pieces with 20%?
- Optimize in-store displays
You can design an in-store display with the necessary creativity but also based on data. Thanks to numerous data tools, you can find out which products are bought together. Then you get to work with the necessary creativity to make the display a beautiful whole.
Here are some more tips for your displays
Less is more: Busy displays often look unkempt and cluttered, plus your customers get overwhelmed by the number of products.
Order is key: give each product its own place, customers find it extremely important to find products quickly.
Hang related products together: a classic example is to arrange trousers and sweaters in complementary colors.
Combine expensive and cheap: we are thinking here of displaying sports clothing in combination with a handy sports bag.
- Reduce waiting times
32% of customers are irritated by queues for the fitting room, so you should take this into account. Some retailers offer the option to try it on and return it home if it is not okay. You can consider this if you notice that there is often a queue at the fitting rooms. Limiting the number of items per fitting is also a possible option to avoid a long queue.
In addition, a queue at the checkout causes irritation among customers. The latter can be compensated by deploying sufficient employees at peak hours at the checkout.
In general, you can limit a customer’s frustration level by following tips.
Calming scents (lavender): spread throughout the store.
Provide distraction, for example, you can provide a video screen.
Tell your customers why they are waiting and how long to wait.
Play music.
6. Online and Offline
Customers often search for products online, even if they plan to buy it in a store anyway. Research shows that omnichannel customers spend on average 3 times more than single-channel shoppers. As a retailer, you must therefore be found online. This can be done through a webshop, but also through Facebook, Instagram, Google, of course, a webshop also increases your retail turnover.
If you don’t sell online or you still want your customers to come to your store, then you also need to be able to attract them to your store. This can be done by organizing events, such as workshops or evening shopping. But you can also provide exclusive offers in your physical store. For example, a gift or an exclusive discount. You can also choose to only offer part of your offer online. What people do want to know is whether what they are looking for is still in stock, so be sure to include stocks on your webshop.
You can also arrange a pick-up in-store, when your customers buy something on your webshop you can give the option for free pick-up in your store. Many customers like this more than paying shipping costs.
- Upselling and Cross Selling
Cross-selling is a similar technique to increase your retail sales. You are trying to sell your customer something that he or she does not actually need. With cross-selling, you are actually going to give a suitable suggestion to the customer. For example, we think of socks with shoes. This is of course an easy example, the best way to find out if your customer needs anything else is to simply ask.
