When customers visit That Shore Store in Wildwood, New Jersey, many are drawn to a display in the corner of the shop. An old mail sorting cabinet from the U.S. Postal Service holds mugs and greeting cards. That Shore Store Owner Irene Farrelly also placed a cozy chair stuffed with pillows and blankets next to the display to make customers feel at home.
1. Add dimension.
Retailers can fall into a pit trap of creating flat displays that lack dimension. If a display comes off as flat, customers will likely ignore the add-on products the retailer wants to promote.
Cruz says retailers should consider ways to make displays pop so that they are more aesthetically pleasing. “Sometimes raising displays above to eye level helps,” she says. “Even if it’s small risers or using upcycled items like a crate to raise things up to a person’s eye level, improving displays aesthetically like that could benefit for add-on sales.”
“We use barrels and line them up and wooden containers that balance and make for a real, vintage, old-fashioned feel — a country-store feel that is appealing.” — Jane Frost, Granite Hall Store
“We use barrels and line them up and wooden containers that balance and make for a real, vintage, old-fashioned feel — a country-store feel that is appealing,” she says.
When she grew up, her parents displayed the old mail sorting cabinet in their basement, and she was often mesmerized by that cabinet as a young girl. In addition to the cabinet, she brought in her beloved upside-down Christmas tree to stock holiday decor. “I really try to incorporate displays that were not what you would see when you went into any other store,” Farrelly says. “I love the fact that I brought in stuff from my own personal life to tell people a story.”
2. Group items that complement each other.
Grouping items that complement each other well within shop displays also could help to boost add-on sales. Cruz explains that if a retailer features a charcuterie board on display, the retailer should find complementary products to pair with the board.
Granite Hall features a variety of rooms for customers to browse. Frost says the rooms each have a different focus — one focuses on stationery and greeting cards; another focuses on toys and gifts for kids; and another room features a book nook in a corner. Frost says she prefers that add-on displays match the focus of the room they’re in. 3. Simple signage.
An aesthetically pleasing display might not be enough to encourage customers to take the next step to buy the add-on products. Cruz says retailers should make things as easy as possible for customers by including signage at the display. She says signage should encourage customers to make a purchase or offer unique information about the products to keep them browsing.
Cruz’s shop in Lakewood sells home decor and gifts, with a focus on helping customers refurbish their vintage finds. The shop also sells furniture paint for refurbishing projects.
Cruz says she usually places that checklist within an add-on display in the store. She notes that coastal retailers can have similar informational signage at their displays: Make a beach bag checklist, listing five or six items that customers absolutely must have for the perfect beach bag, and sell those items around the display.
4. Create a bundle.
Retailers should find ways to bundle items within add-on displays, according to Cruz. For instance, a coastal retailer promotes that “perfect beach bag” for customers in the display with all items needed tucked into the bag. Cruz advises against discounting bundled products on display, unless the items had already been on sale or aren’t in season anymore.
“So many store owners have a lot of mindset roadblocks around pricing,” she says. “They feel like if the customer is going to buy four items instead of one, the customer expects to have a discount. That’s not the case. So many times, you can bundle and not discount it one bit. It’s a convenience factor for the customer, the no-brainer that they want more than the discount.” 5. Regularly refresh displays.
Coastal retailers might not have the same customers every other week, but many stores do have loyal customers return semiregularly, even if that means once a month or once every other year. Although the add-on displays may seem fresh to tourists and infrequent customers, they can become stale to returning customers.
Frost periodically moves displays at Granite Hall to make sure the store is easy to navigate and so that the displays catch customers’ eyes better. “So many store owners have a lot of mindset roadblocks around pricing. They feel like if the customer is going to buy four items instead of one, the customer expects to have a discount. That’s not the case.” — Kathy Cruz, The Salvaged Boutique and Savvy Shopkeeper
6. Capitalize on the cash wrap.
Impulse buys sell well at the cash wrap. It’s that last spot a shopper stops when checking out. Cruz suggests promoting some add-on items by the register that might get lost in other parts of the store.
Stick to selling smaller items around the cash wrap to avoid clutter and promote no-brainer impulse purchases, she advises. “It can be popular magnets that sell, or maybe it’s a travel-size sunscreen lotion that’s grab-and-go and easy that they can just pop into their bag.”