Shake Up Your Store By Generating Fresh Interest In Your Business

The retail market can be a fickle one. One minute you’re on top, riding high as customers flock and the takings go up, but as soon as a new kid arrives on the block, things can start looking difficult for you.

Peaks and troughs are common in retail, so it’s important to find ways to generate an interest in your business and help people come back time and time again. 

Want to shake up your store? Here are some ideas to invigorate your business and get people back through the doors.

Redesign Your Storefront

You don’t have to change your entire business to be able to draw attention, just redesign the front of it. A refreshed storefront can make your store like a whole new place, which could grab the attention of passersby. You’ve got your pick of a lot of different ideas to get seen for your business, including flags and banners, as well as a funky new store sign and window display.

First impressions count when it comes to street traffic. Give your store that all-important curb appeal with some innovative storefront ideas.

Show People That You’re Open

For your store to draw people in, you need to make it look welcoming. From playing music to positioning someone at the front of the store, you need to show that you’re open and ready for business. Opening the doors helps, that eliminates a potential barrier that could stop people coming in. An A-board or similar type of outside sign can also help to signal that you’re open, as well as grab the attention of passersby. Take a look at some cool chalkboard quotes to give you some inspiration - who knows, yours could end up in the next Buzzfeed or Huffpo article!

Tempt Them in with Coffee and Baked Goods

They say that food is the way to a man’s heart, and the same goes for women, children and everyone else. If you can offer some sort of tempting treat, you can tempt people inside. Why not team up with another local business to supply you with some goods to get the exposure for the both of you?

Having a chillout area serving coffee and small food items can also be a great way to make your store more appealing - just like many bookshops and tech stores do. Encourage your customers to hang around a while, you’ll create an excellent community around your store that could lead to some promising results.

Host Regular Events

If you’re looking at ideas that are out of the box, try hosting some events at your store. From blogger and influencer evenings to having live music, guest speakers and more, you can help people get to know your business and develop a connection with it. In-store events are a great way to market your business, and if you’re willing to invest in the promotion and in what you’re offering, you could bring a whole new crowd to your store. Make sure you make it worth your while, provide customers with coupons to spend on their next visit or sign them up to a mailing list- that initial interaction could be the start of a wonderful love affair between a new customer and your store. 

Be Welcoming

Is your store welcoming enough? Then perhaps it’s time to go back to basics with your customer service. By being more welcoming and friendly, you can get the edge over more commercial, larger competitors whose focus is on prices, rather than genuine brand loyalty and customer relationships. From making the layout of your store accessible to all to displaying all of the pricing information where people can easily see it, you’re building a place where customers feel at ease. Make sure your employees receive all of the right customer service training, and encourage them to make real conversation with customers - it not only helps the day go quicker, but it helps shoppers enjoy a more personal experience. 

Put On a Pop-up

Want to draw attention to your store? Organize a pop-up. Your pop-up could be anywhere from inside a mall to a festival or other event - somewhere where there’s a lot of street traffic to help you get seen. Get some inspiration from some successful creative pop-up events that can help give you some ideas of your own. For your pop-up to work you need to make sure you promote it well and give people a reason to remember you. Some freebies always make a good handout that will certainly draw attention wherever you are.

Treat Your Existing Customers Well

While you’ll want to attract new customers to your store, it’s important that you don’t neglect your existing clientele. If you want to be on your customers’ favorite lists, then you need to show them that their custom is valued as much or more than new customers. Establishing trust and loyalty with your customers is important. From providing them with loyalty bonuses to always showing great customer service and aftercare, you can develop those strong connections that can be missing from large corporations. People are really starting to see the value of local stores again, so make the most of the opportunity to be a part of your community.

Pay For a Little Advertising

Have you considered different advertising methods to engage new and existing customers? Spending a little money on some advertising could go a long way. Social media advertising can help you to target local people, generating some great results on a small budget. There are all kinds of ways you can promote your local business so don’t be afraid to get your thinking cap on turn your attention to marketing your business.

The retail industry can be a tricky one, but if you come up with new and fresh ideas to generate some interest, you can turn things around. Start looking at ways to refresh your business and see the impact it could have on your profits.