The COVID-19 pandemic has brought heavy blows to entrepreneurs. Small and big businesses alike had to change strategies, look for alternatives, and were forced to deal with problems that have not existed before.
Among the many areas that were drastically affected by the shift are store merchandising and display. The rules for advertisement in pandemic completely changed as many businesses closed their brick and mortar locations or tried their best to limit customer contact with their stores. Many challenges came along with this, from having lower chances of making sales due to lack of customer touchpoints to the challenges of strengthening customer loyalty because of the minimal contact.
Thankfully, there is a silver lining to the situation. Recent months have seen quarantine protocols ease down and businesses start to open again. The only thing left to be done is for business owners to think of the best merchandising strategies to make sure that they are optimized to thrive in the new normal.
Read on below for some helpful tips on advertisement during the pandemic that you can apply:
1. Start with data
A good strategy is always backed up by solid data. The pandemic has changed the way customers consider their purchases and you need to get down to the root of their planning decisions to base your strategies on. Do you have any offerings in your roster that can complement the current needs of your shoppers now that they are still currently being encouraged to stay at home? What are your best-sellers?
Also, you need to consider general safety guidelines before doing anything. What are your city’s mandates for physical stores? How many employees can you hire and customers you can entertain? From here, you can start creating a pandemic-friendly blueprint for your business.
2. Focus on facilities and safety
There are two questions that shoppers ask now before deciding whether they want to go inside a store or not. First, does it offer what I need? Second, do I feel safe enough to actually purchase from there? Surprisingly, both of these are addressed by store design. With people starting to go out more and more now, it’s even more important to apply an advertising pandemic strategy that is both attractive and efficient. Putting your focus on the right facilities and the safety of your employees and customers play a huge role in bringing back foot traffic across your doors again.
For example, while stores used to encourage touch and feel experience before to entice their customers, it is better to shift now to store additions that promote safety like UV disinfectant boxes.
Of course, don’t forget about your employees, too. Make sure that they are well protected by providing them the necessities like face masks and disinfectants to make them feel at ease during operations.
3. Rethink the way you sell
If you want your business to thrive during the pandemic, you need to rethink the way you offer your experience to your customers. While it is a basic strategy before trying to upsell as much as you can by providing many options, you need to prioritize convenience during this time. When doing store displays, curate your best-selling items and lay them out in a way that they are easy to access. You can even create display kiosks that advertise them as essentials for the pandemic if your marketing model can accommodate it.
That doesn’t mean, however, that you need to entirely scrap your other stocks. Professionals advise to put them in a “speed bump” position, like the small kiosks you have on counters that shoppers can easily see and grab from when checking out. Don’t forget to put special retail store signs on them to up their attractiveness for maximum appeal, too.
4. Revise your floor plan and design
One concept you have to keep in mind when redesigning your store is the idea of space. Many businesses who can afford to do it now shift to outdoor selling, but those who can’t can easily make do by doing some rearranging here and there for the sake of social distancing and better air quality. Putting add-ons like distancing stickers will also help a lot and send the message that your business is well-equipped to prioritize the safety of your shoppers.
Installing new normal essentials is also a must. Air purifiers and acrylic shields increase the safety of each shopping experience as well as the confidence of your customers in your business. Don’t forget about sanitizing tools, too. While the pandemic has been advertising the use of cashless transactions to minimize contact, there are still shoppers who mainly use cash when shopping. Simply installing sanitizing spots (the ones operated by foot are the best) on high touch areas like entrances and payment areas can help a lot.
5. Market your strategy
What use is a good redesign if you are not sending the message to your audience? Once you’ve made sure that everything is in place for your new store design, put efforts into advertisements for the pandemic. Place store sign designs or retail store signs that quickly explain the measures you have in hand to keep your business environment safe. Do you sanitize your store and stocks every thirty minutes? Tell your market that to gain their trust.
Despite the changes the pandemic demands, however, it isn’t entirely recommended for businesses to do a total change to their store designs. It isn’t necessary to make major redesigns (like taking down a whole wall, etc.) if you have a solid layout and design strategy in hand. Doing the latter, in fact, can cause more harm to your business in the future when things are, hopefully, more normal.
For now, however, smart store design and advertisement in a pandemic is what’s needed. Be flexible when making changes and don’t be afraid to introduce innovations into your business to promote safety. If you’re looking for the best advertising tools to help you out, you can check out our Brandmaximizers advertising products to help send the right message to your shoppers.
