How to increase footfall in 5 simple steps.
Is it us – or is the retail market becoming a tough nut to crack? As a retailer it can be cut-throat out there, especially when it comes to beating the competition. With many businesses seeing plenty of foot traffic passing their door each day, what can be done to bring the customers in?
We decided to create a list – here’s our top five tips:
1. Keep It Clean
Imagine picking up a pack of biscuits in a shop and realising that it’s coated in a layer of dust. It’s even worse if the grubbiness is surrounding fresh fruit and veg. It’s obvious to most shop owners that this is going to put people off buying anything, but some don’t realise that more is needed than a quick dust around the custard creams. The floors, windows and external fascia will also need regular cleaning to make your store the gleaming rose in a bunch of thorny competitors.
2. Make Local Focal
Every store has top FMCG brands piled high in every aisle – and so it should. But you shouldn’t ignore Farmer John down the road who wants you to stock his homemade jam (or any other local business for that matter!) because you could be missing a trick. Local people like local produce – either because they know the person behind the product or they like supporting local business. It’s likely that these are the same reasons that customers come to your shop so pass on the goodwill and stock some local product. You’ll probably benefit from it!
3. Simplify
It’s one of those words that sounds a little bit like a Harry Potter spell… but your business will benefit if you simplify. We’re not talking about fractions or any other maths here – we just mean that you should consider the range of products and brands you offer. This is difficult to balance so research is crucial here. What are your best- and worst-selling lines? Which items do your customers value most? Ditch any lines that aren’t significantly boosting business, simplifying your shelves and making the products that matter stand out. Remember though – research is key here!
Another way to simplify is through your displays. It may take a bit of cash but having solid shelving all aligned and looking smart will be pleasing on the eye and give the impression of tidiness which (you guessed it) will draw people in!
4. Deal Or No Deal
There’s really no option but to have at least one promotion or discount on products these days. Everyone has a deal on and our guess is that you’re no exception. So we’re not teaching you to suck eggs. Our piece of advice here is to not just discount stock that is slow selling or expiring sooner than you’d like (although keep doing that!) but to also discount some key products directed straight at your customers. You know what they like to buy and what gets people more excited than their favourite bar of chocolate half price? That’s right – nothing. If you really want to step up your game, a small area dedicated to offers or £1 products usually goes down very well too!
5. Cash In
Let’s make things clear: this isn’t just shameless self-promotion, it’s serious advice. An ATM drives footfall to your store – no question. Here’s a fact: 89% of ATM users of ATM users withdraw cash from an ATM at least once a month. That’s fairly solid proof that people need access to a cash machine. Now imagine how having one inside your business will increase footfall…
What’s more is that these people won’t just stop at cash. You know the situation where you’ve gone into a shop for milk and somehow bought a week’s worth of goodies. Everyone else is the same and people will impulse buy as soon as they spot the good deals you’ve introduced after reading point 4! To talk to us about having an ATM in your business, get in touch here!
So there you have it, the 5 best tips to drive footfall into your store. You may think putting an ATM on the list is just us being cheeky – but we’re serious! One YourCash customer, Alistair Bradbury of Best-one in Manchester, actually told us that he can “easily, conservatively say that the ATM is driving 15-20% of the footfall into the shop” – how can you argue with that?!
If you have a tip that you think will knock any of these out of the top 5, why not tweet it to us @YourCash, we’d love to hear your suggestions!