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In-Store Marketing Strategies That Increase Sales

14 September 2004 · Coutts Retail Communications

In-store marketing turns a passing shopper into a buyer. The strategies below are the ones that consistently move volume when they are executed with discipline.

Cross-merchandising

Placing complementary products together — pasta beside sauce, batteries beside toys — raises basket size by making the next purchase obvious. It works because it removes a step from the shopper's task.

Promotional zoning

Not all floor space is equal. Aisle ends, entrance zones and till points carry different shopper mindsets. Matching the right message to the right zone — discovery at the entrance, impulse at the till — multiplies the effect of the same display.

Sensory cues

Colour, light and even scent shape mood and dwell time. A warm, well-lit feature draws shoppers in and slows them down, and a slower shopper buys more.

Clarity beats clutter

The single most common cause of underperforming in-store marketing is too much competing for attention. Editing is a strategy: fewer, clearer messages nearly always outperform a wall of noise.

Measure, then refine

Live store trials reveal what actually changes behaviour, as opposed to what looks good in a boardroom. Testing a display in real stores before national rollout is the difference between a hunch and a decision. Read more in our insight section, or see the brands we partner with.