Delving into memories, one can recall the complete absence of marketing in the parents’ and grandparents’ youth. In those days word of mouth was the deciding factor in selling products, for example, a friend bought something, liked it, and told friends and family about this store or seller. In addition, people were limited to only those shops and services that were in their area, because they either had to go far or were too lazy to go to the neighboring ones. Digital marketing only came to life with the advent of the Internet, and before the Internet, people’s experiences and proximity were the deciding factors. If people relied on other people’s experiences earlier, now people are more inclined to create their own experiences. If people used to have only cash or checks for payment and usually went to the store instead of ordering online, now it is all optimized for the buyer’s needs.
The Internet gave opportunities for high-quality marketing, it gave room for activity and destroyed any borders. In 2-3 weeks, we can receive a parcel from any continent and country, do not worry about payment, because it is already configured on the brand’s website, and calmly enjoy shopping. New standards give rise to new questions and challenges. On the one hand, now you can sell anywhere in the world and become famous not only in your city but also beyond. On the other hand, attracting the client’s attention has become much more burdensome. Companies should start rethinking their strategies and focus on what they can give customers to improve their experience. To reveal the brand’s potential, retail advertising appears on the scene, which keeps pace with time and development, and therefore the brand.
Retail Advertising: What Is the Meaning?
If earlier people considered recommendations from friends as advertising, now retail advertising has taken various forms, such as postcards, e-mails, signs, billboards, banners, advertising on social networks, TV advertising, etc. In other words, retail advertising is the use of all available methods of advertising to promote your brand and services on all platforms. The purpose of retail advertising is to reveal all the benefits, advantages, and strengths of your brand. You need a high-quality retail advertising strategy focused on the buyer’s needs to present yourself in front of the customer in a good light.
The features of retail advertising are special offers and all kinds of attraction of the client to the urgent purchase of your services, for example, promotions in clothing stores to buy 4 sweaters for the price of 3; a student discount on a gym membership that will be valid only if purchased this month; discount on subscriptions to streaming services, pay a lower price per month if you buy a subscription for a year at once, etc. This type of offer slows down the buyer and makes them want to take advantage immediately because people like to save and think such offers help them save and invest in their future. Perhaps these products were unnecessary for them, but they act on the human brain, which allows our retail advertising to work.
Retail Advertising: Strategies
Creating a strategy is easy, but it will be challenging. Retail advertising has its specifics, like any other advertising, and therefore it must be followed to create a truly influential strategy.
Essential elements of a Retail Advertising Strategy:
Target market and audience. These elements are the basis of the fundamentals. To get your product pitch right, you have to target the right audience and the right market. Messages that do not fit the audience will push you back and make it difficult to move in development and attract buyers. Consider your prospects’ demographics, interests, pain points, purchase histories, and habits before launching a target.
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Various channels of promotion. Promotion through only one channel may not be effective, but it will be more interesting to use different channels that are dissimilar to each other. First, you will be heard everywhere, it plays an important role in the purchase, because the buyer is more likely to turn to a brand he has heard of. Secondly, it will help to reach a larger category of customers. For example, a banner at the entrance to the city. You know that at least 1,000 cars enter the city daily, and therefore your advertisement will be in their field of vision. It can also be advertising integration with influencers on the Internet, Internet mailing to e-mails, or advertising on TV.
Special Offers. People love freebies, so they are always interested in where to save money. If one well-known brand has a subscription price of $100, and your special temporary offer is $50, then even if you are a little-known brand, most people will come to you. Advertising promotional offers will increase the customer’s desire to buy your product, even if he never needed it.
Advertising design. The design of your advertisement should not just attract attention, but sink into the soul and remain in the potential client’s memory. Use such colors as red, blue, yellow, white, and green for the potential buyer to perceive information better. Pay attention to fonts and images, they should correspond to what is written and demonstrate your service. Remember the rule of the golden mean and do not overdo it with brightness. Advertising should be pleasing to the eye.
Personalization. Advertising is now becoming more and more personalized. For example, when looking for a swimming pool, we will then come across advertisements for swimming caps, swimwear, inflatable circles, and even boats. Meta has long implemented user consent for personalized ads, so you should also work on personalization through market analysis and collect customer data.
Immediacy. Advertising must directly appeal to the buyer and call him to action. Replace the slogans if they sound uncertain or are unclear about who they are addressing. The slogan should include clarity, and brevity, address the buyer, and be memorable.
Disclosure of borders. Since the availability of the service is often a determining factor, you should work on this and it is not about the prices. We are talking about the favorable location of your store or establishment, we are talking about delivery, online ordering, and the ability to buy your product from a distance. An equally important role is played by the store’s layout, at the entrance there should be the most necessary for customers, what they can potentially come for. As a rule, this can be calculated according to the specialization of your store, for example, for a pharmacy it can be a rack with over-the-counter medicines, for cosmetic stores hygiene products, etc. Delivery and online shopping will help you reach a larger category of customers and work even in a foreign market.
The tone of voice. Set the right tone of communication with customers. This tone should reflect you and attract customers. For example, beauty salons can use a more friendly, sisterly, and gentle tone of communication with customers, and banks – a more reliable, stable, and less verbose tone. This can be seen even in advertisements on TV, and it even spreads on the brand’s social networks. The tone will be your business card and what the client will remember about you.
In conclusion, the strategy of retail advertising should be with a deep analysis of both its market and its customers and also focus on visuals, making sure that it attracts customers’ attention and makes them come back again and again. The strategy should sit in the customer’s mind and guide his thoughts during the purchase decision. Only by following the essential elements of the retail advertising strategy will your business be prosperous and recognizable.
Retail Marketing: Degrees and Levels
Retail advertising is complex, so after creating the necessary strategy, all managers will focus more on the managerial aspects. According to established principles, the Retail Marketing Complex typically consists of six broad decision-making levels, including product decisions, place decisions, promotion, price, personnel, and presentation decisions. Although the retail complex was built on the marketing complexes, it was still modified according to customers’s needs.
These levels were created to offer products in a way that would encourage customers to buy them, often through understanding consumer behavior, using promotional tactics, and selecting appropriate product placements. Let’s briefly consider them for a general understanding.
Level 1: Product decisions
The store’s assortment is the basis for attracting sales because no one will come to a bakery without bread. The owners of retail stores choose their assortment according to the population’s needs and the relevance of the products. The target market has a significant influence on the assortment, its layering, categories, and breadth. Assortment decisions depend on trends, customer preferences, and store format, for example, Dior bags are unlikely to be found in rural stores, but essentials can be found.
Level 2: Place decisions
The location of the business plays a significant role because it affects the brand’s accessibility. Unless you are a well-promoted business, few people will come to you at the end of the earth. Owners calculate commercial zones and areas of their influence on profit, for example, the central areas of the city are ideal for banks, restaurants, or beauty salons. Historical sites, parks, and high-traffic areas are also good locations, as are secluded spots that still attract tourists. The presence of parking spaces, children’s centers or playgrounds nearby, or a bus stop is also important.
Level 3: Pricing strategy and tactics
Retail owners cannot focus on one price strategy – it is best to approach it comprehensively. A revenue-oriented pricing strategy will help you maximize profits, while customer-oriented pricing will attract more customers. Value-based pricing tactics can also be used, as they link price to the perceived value of the product and can include discounts, everyday low prices (EDLP), and loss leaders, which aim to drive more traffic to the store.
Level 4: Promotional activities
All means of advertising and marketing strategies lead to the customer’s awareness of the the product’a value and are aimed at stimulating the purchase. The combination of traditional advertising methods such as advertising banners, flyers, and outdoor advertising along with digital advertising, integration, and TV advertising helps the brand to appeal to different audiences and increase awareness.
Level 5: Personnel
It often happens that we know everything about the brand, we ordered it on the Internet, and we recommended it to all our friends, but when we came to the offline store, we were disappointed. The reason may be unfriendly staff, whose incompetent actions discourage the desire to buy something. Then the likelihood that we will return to that store decreases. Therefore, the task of the owner of a retail trade is to select high-quality personnel who know how to perform their work, understand your brand’s values, and earn the customers’ trust and respect. Obviously, an effective staff increases our profits and customer engagement.
Level 6: Presentation
No one will come to a shabby store against their will, it is rather an exception to the rules or an urgent necessity. Clients, especially the younger generation, need aesthetics, or even some zest. Often people are interested in restaurants only because of their interior and not because of their cuisine. People care about where they are and what surrounds them, and with the age of Instagram, this also affects their content. Ways of displaying products, atmosphere, visual components, signs, lighting, and interior – these are all factors attracting the client’s visual attention. All of these can significantly influence purchasing decisions, and the goal is to create an environment that is consistent with the brand image and encourages impulse purchases.
Retail Marketing: Plan
We have already covered all the strategies and retail marketing, so it is a nick of time to build a plan. It is consequential to remember that the plan must be systematic and repeated, it is impossible to create one plan once and for all – it must be repeated once again. To create a great retail marketing plan, you should follow next steps:
- Target audience and market
To begin with, you need to understand who you are working with and who you are targeting. First, consider demographic factors such as age, income, and lifestyle. Second, their behavioral habits and reactions. For example, you are an eco company producing bottles from recycled plastic, so your target will be young people who understand the topic of plastic recycling and want to help the planet.
- Positioning in society
At this point, you need to work on understanding your business as a separate unit, what values it carries, who it gathers around you, and how your brand differs from competitors. Think about what your services’ value and products are and what you offer people. Ask yourself the question – What exactly is the uniqueness of my brand? What makes me different from others? It will also assist you to stand out from your competitors in the market.
- Define your ultimate goal
Every plan has a purpose and this is no exception. Each brand can have its own and it is not as identical as it might seem. Don’t be afraid to modify your goals or think they are impossible. The goal should be clear and directed to your needs. The most vital thing is not to deviate from the goals.
- Use retail marketing strategies
We told you above about all the levels of retail marketing, so this step is directly related to those strategies. You can focus only on the first four because the last two are aimed at building a brand image and are not the main strategies. The formula of the four P’s (product, price, promotion, and place) are leading strategies that will provide you with good effects and results if properly executed.
- Customer Engagement & CRM
In addition to the staff, good visuals, and assortment prices, you should also build an even stronger connection with the customers. It is easy to make your customers return to you if you complete the following points: loyalty card and high-quality after-purchase service. People like to earn bonuses or rewards to spend later. For example, Starbucks has a loyalty program that, when you collect 80 stars, you get a free drink or a reusable cup for free, and their customers use this. After-purchase customer support helps you advance, points out your mistakes in your work, and promotes you in the eyes of the customer. Ask your customers for feedback, conduct surveys, and interact with them as much as possible to gain their trust and goodwill.
- Performance Measurement
When all the manipulations are done, all you have to do is track and measure your progress. Use a variety of tools to analyze your website traffic and track KPIs, reach Instagram and other social networks, count the number of offline customers every day, and monitor your profits. Also, use CRM tools to analyze customer behavior and improve marketing strategies appropriately
Retail Advertising: Channels
Nowadays, there are a lot of channels and ways to conduct retail advertising. Both paid and free, both traditional and digital. They all work, the only difference is that something can work more and something less. No one is safe from the fact that even the most effective method may not work, so we emphasize again the importance of using different channels for retail advertising. So, let’s consider what channels are available to us:
Traditional or offline marketing: Although with the advent of the Internet, people began to order online more often, offline stores are still in great demand. This can be for various reasons – it is better for someone to come and choose in the store feeling the material and quality, or to avoid the delivery cost. To attract more and improve the experience of your offline customers – make sure that your store looks visually attractive, organize interesting events, and free tastings, make discounts on some products exclusively offline, and provide customers with high service. Make your offline establishment a safe place for everyone, so that people want to return there or just stop by to wait out a downpour, as a place where it is pleasant to go, and in the future to buy.
Social Networks marketing: Social networks such as Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok are currently at the peak of their popularity. People look at bloggers, at personalized advertising or targeting, get inspired, learn and buy. When we see something on social networks and we already want to buy it, although we did not think about it. This is how social networks work, which is a big plus for retail companies. Each of the platforms has different functionality, but here is the main one:
- Meta-personalized ads read a user’s activity, purchase history, browser history, and even mentions in conversations, which tailors personalized ads to your desired audience.
- Facebook groups unite communities and de-stress finding a product for a potential customer.
- Instagram Shop allows you to add your products to their marketplace and make it easy for customers to buy.
- TikTok also has a marketplace where you can post your products and sell them in one click. Of the minuses – this function is available only on the territory of the USA.
- Social networks are free, so you can promote yourself just by posting photos, videos, and all the information about your brand, but you have to do it constantly and put effort into it.
Newsletter: Perhaps outdated and annoying, but also a working way to encourage the client to buy. When registering on the sites or when specifying the phone number, connect the newsletter of all important events, news, and discounts that may be of interest to your client. On a day when other stores are closed, remind them that you are open. During summer sales, send an invitation and a personal discount on your purchase. Do whatever it takes to make your client remember you. In this case, the newsletter is effective.
Thought leaders: Direct advertising is often perceived as negative and annoying, so influencers and opinion leaders entered the market to replace it. It is based on their recommendations that thousands of purchases, reposts, and brand reviews are made in the world. One word from an important person can bring your brand to a high level of recognition. And the best thing in this situation is that it will not be a direct advertisement, it will be a recommendation of an important person in the media space. Of course, you have to pay for this recommendation only. You will not be given guarantees of high purchases and coverage, because it is very individual. Finding the right influencer is your main task.
External advertising: Banners, billboards, flyers, and posters will never go out of fashion, because they are a pretty cool way of attracting the client’s attention. They catch the eye, they are bright, and they are in a prominent place – this is all an ideal formula for increasing brand recognition and attracting new customers. Use it wisely, develop a quality design, and pay attention to the message and colors. All these factors play an important role in effective external advertising.
Why Retail Advertising Is Crucial?
When everyone around is talking about it, it’s hard to keep your composure and keep yourself in the whirlwind of other people’s opinions. To form your opinion, you need to think carefully and ask yourself several questions. What exactly does retail advertising give you? Our answer is to increase brand awareness and brand recognition among the desired audience. How exactly can this increase engagement and sales? With the help of promoting the brand on various platforms, both in the traditional form and the digital version. How exactly will this help to outpace the competition? By defining the uniqueness of the brand and revealing hidden talents. So, why retail advertising is crucial? Because of this, we will achieve higher coverage, conduct analysis, attract new customers, work on mistakes, and achieve what cannot be achieved alone.
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