Spring Fever

Up here in Canada, we're going nuts waiting for spring weather to come...

Just to make sure you're in the mood and ready, here's a link to last year's spring inspiration as well as a few more photos. Let's get the creative juices flowing!

10 Days window display from the side at Thread Hill

SuperDry display for Revolution Boutique

Tip of the Week + Bonus

Visual merchandising isn't just about selling more.  It’s about inspiring the customer, giving them ideas, making them feel good, and making their lives easier.

Cloud Nine Pajamas

Proper visual merchandising really is done for the customer and with the customer in mind and that’s the only way it can be truly effective. 

We create displays in order to show customers a whole look, show them trends, and to give them a feeling around the merchandise.  We’re making their time shopping so much easier by pulling everything together for them, so be sure to layer the look right up to give them options and make sure the merchandise is nearby and easy to pick up.

We’re inspiring customers to make their home an oasis, wardrobe beautiful, and gifts incredible.  Placing ad-on items nearby helps them to round out their purchase and pull together the perfect package.

Keep the customer in mind when you’re merchandising your store.  Remember how you’re helping them every time you set up a new display and you will be successful.  After all, they’re why you’re doing what you’re doing, right?

Bonus Tip:

  

It’s time to start formulating a plan to execute your holiday visual merchandising!  Don’t forget to book your helpers to make sure they’ll all be there.

Tip of the Week

Plan your store window changes out on a calendar according to season, holidays, key marketing and promotions, and new shipments.  Be sure to include a change every four to six weeks.

Image: Free People Blog: Summer Store Displays!

Pre-planning all of your window changes allows you to keep an eye out for interesting prop ideas, fixtures, etc.  It gives you time to plan out exciting window displays that entice customers and ensures that you're not changing windows on the fly or in a panic.  That's no fun for anyone!

Have you got questions for Melissa? Check us out on facebook, twitter, Pinterest, the flourish website, or send Melissa an email.

Happy Selling!

Tip of the Week

Take the plastic off!  Customers like to see, feel, and touch and plastic packaging or film impedes their instincts.

Have you ever watched someone browse a store, with their hands on everything?  Have you ever listened to a mom constantly try to remind their kids to "look with your eyes, not with your hands" to no avail?  That's because, instinctively, we need to feel an item before we buy it and that's not just limited to textiles!

The biggest objection I hear to removing packaging is damage.  Removing the plastic from an item can result in a lightly soiled or damaged item, but you are likely to sell far more of it and the items around it.  Selling your display model at a discount is a small price to pay.

Happy selling!

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Have you got questions for Melissa? Check us out on facebook, twitter,Pinterest, the flourish website, or send Melissa an email.

Tip of the Week

Pay attention to how customers shop for certain items.  Do they request items by colour, end use, theme, or purpose?  Merchandise those items accordingly.

For example, most customers would search for a greeting card first based on purpose (such as birthday, anniversary, wedding, etc.) and all other types of merchandising would be secondary.  If you merchandise greeting cards by purpose, you may notice a lift in sales.

Candles, however, are often purchased by colour before anything else.  By merchandising your candles in colour groups, you may see an uplift in sales.

Observe how your customers request items; "Do you have any birthday cards?" or "What do you have in the way of red candles?"  Watch how they peruse and browse.  The idea is to make their shopping experience as easy and barrier free as possible; your help should be a bonus, not a requirement.

Are you left wanting more?  Sign up to have the tip of the week sent directly to your inbox and receive even more info about each tip!  Sign up here.

Have you got questions for Melissa? Check us out on facebook, twitter,Pinterest, the flourish website, or send Melissa an email.

Tip of the Week

Shopping is all about perceived value.  The way you display and merchandise your product can have a large impact on how valuable the customer perceives it to be.  Does your store make your merchandise look valuable?

I'm sure you've heard the term perceived value a few times; it refers to the value a customer assigns to a product or service in their head.  How much do they deem that product to be worth?  When their perceived value is compared to the actual asking price, it can make or break their buying decision.

When items are merchandised or displayed in a way that makes them appear valuable or expensive, the price on the sticker can be less scary to look at and possibly even a relief. If the customer perceives the item of their desire to be a great value, they'll most often buy!


Are you left wanting more?  Sign up to have the tip of the week sent directly to your inbox and receive even more info about each tip!  Sign up here.

Have you got questions for Melissa? Check us out on facebook, twitter,Pinterest, the flourish website, or send Melissa an email.

Tip of the Week

Avoid scattering key items around the store as they can lose their impact and clutter the space.  Grouping merchandise makes it stronger.

I know, it can be so tempting... and sometimes you worry that if you don't have something in a few places, your customers will miss it!  The truth is if you have one here, one over there, one in the back of the store, and one at the front, customers are even more likely to miss it.

Creating a strong presentation with emphasis on key items ensures that they will be visible to customers as they are passing by. 

I hear a lot of people say that it works in their store; that their customers are different.  If that's you, just try grouping a key item and making it the focal point of a display for a few weeks.  You may find that it works even better for you.


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 Have you got questions for Melissa? Check us out on facebook, twitter, Pinterest, the flourish website, or send Melissa an email.

Spring Display Inspiration

Well, here in Edmonton, Canada, the snow is finally starting to melt (again) and we may begin to get our hopes up about spring (maybe).  While nothing is blooming outside, spring is in full swing indoors and I thought I'd provide a little bit of spring inspiration to get your displays blooming! 

These photographs are from a variety of years past, so you'll se several different qualities and while some have seen the likes of Instagram, others have not.  I just wanted to pull out some of my favourites for you to enjoy!


Easter Bunny set at Kingsway

 

 

Easter at Home Outfitters

Easter Gourmet at Elegant Expressions

Spring Dinnerware at Elegant Expressions

 

Vintage Spring at Elegant Expressions

 

 

Spring at Bellies Maternity and Baby

 

 

Lemon & Lime at Elegant Expressions

 

 

Eco Pod at Home |Outfitters

 

 

Tuscan Romance at Elegant Expressions

 

 

Spring at Cloud Nine Pajamas

 

 

Spring in Pink at Elegant Expressions

 

 

KEYLIME Athletic Wear

 

Zen Spring at Elegant Expressions

Tip of the Week

One of the biggest mistakes a retailer can make is thinking they’re on an island where the general rules of shopper behaviour and other common human needs don’t apply.

Unless they have free wifi at the zoo, all of us reading this are human and that is a fact.  Humans have certain behaviours, certain ways we view a space, and certain ways we interact with that space.  This is due to our instincts and the way our brains work. 

While I'm always open to new points of view and new information, many retailers claim that "customers simply don't operate that way in my store."  Consider what could happen if you gave shoppers an opportunity to follow their instincs and natural methods of shopping...  Would your sales increase?  Are you willing to take a chance on that?

Consider how your store is set up and what you can do to help humans in it behave the way they like to behave, and hopefully purchase lots of merchandise!

Happy selling!

Have you got questions for Melissa? Check us out on facebook, twitter, Pinterest, the flourish website, or send Melissa an email.

Tip of the Week

When purchasing for your store, make sure you have a plan.  This could include a financial plan, merchandising plan, theme plan and so-on.

 

This week we have the Alberta Gift Show in Edmonton and if you don't go in with a thought out course of action, it can be overwhelming.  You could wind up blowing your budget, choosing the wrong product mix, or simply getting caught up in all of the excitement. 

Make a plan before you go to any buying show.  Give yourself a budget based on past sales and buying and consider giving yourself a budget by category as well. 

Another thing to think about before choosing your product is the physical space in your store.  What merchandising are you planning for the next few months?  Are there any specific stories or themes?  What holidays and events are coming up?  What exciting things are on your marketing calendar?

Good luck and happy selling... and buying!

Have you got questions for Melissa? Check us out on facebook, twitter, Pinterest, the flourish website, or send Melissa an email.

Tip of the Week

Ready for another tip of the week?  Ready or not, here it comes!

It’s not too early to begin showing off your spring merchandise!  If you have it in stock, get it out where customers can see it.

Spring display by Flourish at Cloud Nine Pajamas

Right now, your main focus may be Valentines Day or sale merchandise, but that doesn't mean you have to hide spring!  Customers will be excited to see something new, fresh, and promising of warmer weather, so get it out of the back room or storage.  It doesn't have to be in the most prominent spot just yet.

Happy selling!

Have you got questions for Melissa? Check us out on facebook, twitter, Pinterest, the flourish website, or send Melissa an email.

Tip of the Week

Yeesh!  We've been out of touch for a little while!  Between the craziness of the holidays and a January wedding, you haven't heard from us much!  Here's a photo from the wedding for fun!

We're back and raring to go now, so here is your tip of the week!

If you don’t have a Valentines display, try pulling together a few things by the till.  If you don’t have Valentines merchandise, be creative to take advantage of the season!

Valentines is a fun holiday during the drags of winter, so be creative and pull together existing merchandise in your store with a simple sign for those who might be looking for a gift or decoration!

This store had no Valentines merchandise on hand, so we build this display!

Have you got questions for Melissa?  Check us out on facebook, twitter, Pinterest, the flourish website, or send Melissa an email.

Tip of the Week

That's right,

Now those of you that follow Flourishing Retailers can see the Flourish Design & Merchandising Tip of the Week as well!

This week's tip:

Remember to breathe and just focus on customer service this week. You'll have plenty of time to regroup and re-merchandise in the new year.

...Or next week... or any other time.  This week (especially Saturday and Sunday) is likely to be the busiest your store will get, so enjoy the chaos, forget about the day to day, and focus on amazing customer service!

Happy Holidays!

Interested in hearing more from Flourish?  Follow us on facebook, twitter, and Pinterest too!

Music and Your Store

An awesome collegue cohort, and client of mine recently emailed me this great question and I just had to share it with all of you!

 

Hi Melissa,

I've been wondering about the relationship between music and shopping for a bit and maybe you can help me. I'm trying to research the relationship between BPM (beats per minute) and retail sales. Whenever I go to the malls all I ever hear is high BPM dance and pop music but I find this irritating  I would assume that all these big chain stores are playing this music because it is proven to increase sales. Maybe it's a stimulant? The one research paper I came across online found that stores that played more relaxed music saw customers that lingered longer in stores and therefore were more likely to purchase more...What do you think?

 

The Answer:

 

I, myself, haven’t read a whole lot of research.  In fact, I don’t think there’s a ton out there.  But I do think that the study you read is among the most accurate.

 

If you choose music that your target market or core customer likes the best, they will linger longer.  It’s also important to have music that doesn’t drive you or your staff members nuts!  If you’re on edge, your customers will sense it. 

 

The truth is a happy customer and a customer who is in tune with the environment buys more, so don’t worry about what the malls are doing because your customers don’t shop there all that much.  The reason we see malls choosing the music they do is that they’re generally trying use top 40 type music to appeal to the masses.  There are also loads of stores in the malls that appeal to teens and young adults and that is the music that they like best.

 

If you really want to focus on choosing music that your customers like best; you could try creating a survey monkey survey (or use a similar software or system) and invite them to complete it or complete it with them at the till!  It could be fun and customers get to feel involved.  Also, I’m sure most branding gurus would say that the music you choose needs to fit with your brand.  If your brand isn’t a teeny bopper, high octane, brand... I wouldn’t worry about pushing the high speed music.

 

Last, but not least, we come to holiday music...  I know it's not everyone's favourite, but it’s an absolute must.  That’s where most of the retail studies pertaining to music have been done and it’s proven to drive sales up quite a bit!  Usually, the chain stores start weaving in the odd quiet holiday song about November first, then after Remembrance day, you’ll hear it every 2^nd or 3^rd song (you may have to make custom CD’s or playlists for your store).  As of December first, it should be all Holiday, all the time!  You will get the odd customer that may complain about it, but even they will be more likely to pick up a couple of Christmas gifts (should that be applicable) because it’ll be top of mind.

 

Here are some links to research I've found!

Association for Consumer Reasearch - Using Store Music for Retail Zoning

Michael Morrison, Monash University - The Power of Music and its Influence

Live Science - 7 Holiday Marketing Tricks Retailers Use

 

And here's a little bit on the Shoppers Drug Mart Holiday music "controversy"

Canadian Retailer Puts Christmas Music on Pause

Shoppers Drug Mart Hits Mute on Christmas Music

 

I gladly welcome all of your questions and comments!  Please add your comments!

Designing the Customer Experience - Capital Ideas

A little while ago, I was flattered to be invited as a panelist to the Capital Ideas event (for the Edmonton Journal) called "How Do I Design a Great Customer Experience?" along with Kirsten Proulx and Jason Suriano!  It was an awesome experience and so much fun, so I wanted to share some of the key takeaways with you!

What's the most important thing you've learned about designing a customer experience?

• The customer experience begins before the customer even enters the store. -Kirsten
• Ensure you greet the customer -Kirsten
• Anything you can do to make shopping easy and exciting for the customer will really enhance their experience -Melissa
• If the product isn't acceptable to my team, then I won't bring it to the end user. -Jason
• I play the role of customer for my team. -Jason
• Tweet: @ABCraftAlert: Customer service starts before your customer even comes in the door - displays, signage, making experience easy to navigate #capitalideas
• Tweet: @Randwulven: #capitalideas If you don't enjoy the experience, why would your customer? @jasonsuriano
• Tweet: @_SoleRevival: Make it easy and enjoyable for people: Put natural "go with" items together on the floor - you said it, Melissa! Great tip. #capitalideas

Examples of a great customer experience

• Teamwork, consistency, branding, and environment help to create a great customer experience.
• Tweet: @ABCraftAlert: Inspire the customer and get them excited about the product. Then mix that with the store owners passion for the product #capitalideas

Dealing with "problematic customers"

• When a customer comes to you with a problem, be grateful that they've provided you with the opportunity to fix that issue. -Melissa
• "I'll often ask my team; so what did we do wrong?" -Jason
• A customer complaint can hurt because it's something you want to do well and take pride in, but I'm glad that the customer acknowledged the problem -Kirsten
• Tweet: @RyanGJMcGregor: Upset clients are not an imposition... They are an opportunity! #capitalideasYEG
• Tweet: @ABCraftAlert: There is no such thing as a bad customer. It's an opportunity to be a problem solver #capitalideas It's bad when you don't hear from them

Applying lessons from past to present

• There are two types of customers in the restaurant industy; the kind that wants you there all the time as a part of the experience and the kind that wants you to be invisible.  That directly applies to what I do now. -Jason

How do you motivate your sales staff?

• Treat your employees the way you want them to treat your customers. -Melissa
• Personally tell your employees that they're doing a great job. -Melissa
• I wouldn't inflict straight commission on my employees. -Kirsten
• The customers generally always come back if you provide them with a great experience. -Kirsten

The "treasure hunt" method of shopping

• The "treasure hunt" method of shopping does not work for everyone. -Melissa
• We have a baby boom in Alberta right now, so be sure to accomodate strollers and busy moms! -Melissa

Measuring the effectiveness of your customer experience tactics

• We watch to see if product sales change when displays change. -Kirsten
• The more sales you can track, the better. What can your POS system do? -Melissa
• Measuring customer responses has gone even more high tech than A-B testing.  We're using the gaming piece as an analytics tool. -Jason

The takeaway - What others had to say

• A "bad" customer is your best customer -Terry
• Responding to complaints online shows that you care -Terry
• Accept who your customer is and go with it -Tema
• Don't make assumptions about your customer, find out what's important to them -Tema
• From a retail standpoint, subtle changes in how you merchandise your products made huge differences at the till -Kyle
• If you have go-with items with a product it makes the shopping experience easier and quick for people -Kyle

Want to see more?  Have a look at some event photos on the Capital Ideas flickr page!  You can also read all of the tweets associated with #CapitalIdeas on the Storify page!  Would you like to hear more from Capital ideas and the panelists on Twitter?  Follow @CapitalIdeasYEG @FlourishDesignM @Henrys_PFT and @jasonsuriano by clicking on their links!