Visual merchandising and store displays go hand in hand when creating an attractive store that will effectively entice customers, engage them with new products, and build brand awareness. Excellent use of retail displays should be visible and draw the attention of passing customers through correct messaging, design, and setup. But how does one design a product display to achieve this?
In this article, we will help you through this daunting process by providing some creative retail display ideas to consider, pros and cons, and which displays work best for each industry. By the end, we hope to provide you with enough information so that you feel confident enough to begin your journey of creating the best displays for your merchandise!
What Are Retail Displays, and Why Are They So Important?
Source: PakFactory
Before we get into the nitty-gritty of the types of displays available and their pros and cons, it’s essential to understand what retail displays are and why they are a must-have for stores of any industry. So, to begin, a retail display is any piece of physical marketing, fixture, or in-store area designed to attract customers, engage them, and showcase or promote merchandise. Think of them like exhibits for your products.
The definition alone should be evidence enough of the importance of store displays. However, to further convince you of this notion, studies show that placing products into specially curated in-store exhibits can increase sales by as high as 478%!
If we read between the lines of the above study, we can glean that product display stands are highly effective tools to attract customers and should be used in stores to drive sales through marketing and promotion. That said, there are many different variations and types of display styles, so it’s essential to understand each option to know which one best suits your needs.
Popular and Creative Retail Display Ideas
Now that you know what a retail display is, we can cover the many options you have at your disposal. Whether you want something for shelving, table tops, windows, or the floor, there are many choices, and PakFactory has a wide selection of custom cardboard displays!
But continuing with the article, let’s look at some popular options in many retail stores.
Point of Purchase Units (POP)/Floor Displays
POP displays are any free-standing in-store presentation that draws the attention of consumers. They exist separate from fixed store installations and offer an opportunity for marketing and merchandising throughout the aisles and pathways of your store, where most purchasing decisions are made.
A standard tray floor display with 3 tiers, arranged in a vertical formation and perfect for displaying a wide range of products.
Multi-tier Shelf Floor Display elevates and highlights its stocked product. It showcases a variety of products on several tiers of shelves arranged in a vertical formation.
A floor display with peg hooks is perfect for retail stores to showcase products that can be hung or displayed on hooks.
Cells/Pocket Floor Display is designed to hold various smaller products in a gridded formation.
Tray Floor Display is a floor display with separated tiered trays, designed to hold products like clothing, footwear, and other flat merchandise.
Dump Bin is an efficient way to make use of floor space. It can provide customers with quick access to a variety of items quickly and easily.
Counter and Tabletop Displays
Tuck Top Snap Lock Bottom Display Box is a cost-effective solution to increase visibility – helping you promote awareness of your brand and drive more sales.
Corrugated Shelf Counter Display is a multi-tier counter top display perfect at checkout for showcasing a variety of products on several tiers of shelves.
But What Display is Best for What Retail Store?
With the many options and styles of retail displays, it can be daunting to decide which one best fits your business. An argument can be made that any type of display is effective for any industry, but that doesn’t help you narrow down your choices.
So to narrow down what might work for your business, let’s look at a few typical retail store sectors and which display we think might complement them.
Grocery/Supermarket
Grocery stores and supermarkets provide a range of food and drink products. Selections often include fresh and packaged foods, beer and wine, pet food, and other essential household products. Typical grocery store displays include dump bins, retail shelving, isle units, and gondola displays.
Convenient Stores
Convenient stores are like mini grocery stores, offering quick trip experiences and providing a selection of basic foods, drinks, and everyday essentials. Since they are smaller and are used as quick stops, effective retail displays might include countertop options at the cashier for impulse buys or shelf stoppers to showcase promotions quickly.
Specialty Stores
These stores carry many brands, styles, or models in a narrow category, ranging from local boutiques to big-name stores. In other words, think of stores like furniture, clothing, books, or electronics stores. Since this category has a wide range of possible merchandise, different displays have varying effectiveness based on your specialty store.
For example, garment racks work best with clothing stores but not for other specialty stores, for obvious reasons. On the other hand, jewelry store displays typically use display cases because of the product’s higher value, but not so much for clothing.
However, two options that are effective for a large variety of specialty stores are window exhibits and immersive displays! Designing window exhibits and immersive displays inside your store to showcase your specialty merchandise is an excellent way to communicate with potential customers and entice them to buy whatever product you offer.
How to Turn a Good Store Display into a Great One
As shown above, many options and considerations exist when deciding what display style you want for your merchandise. Depending on the type of merchandise you have, your customer base, and the level of creativity you want, each style can have varying effectiveness, but the more crucial aspect of store displays is how you use them.
Source: Well Designed Wood and Sonsm by PakFactory
Below we’ve included a few tips and pointers to consider with your merchandise displays.
- Use creative signage. Wall art and other unique tags or signage can quickly grab your shoppers’ attention and encourage people to engage through social media via pictures and posts.
- Pick a good location. Considering the area of placement is one of the most critical parts of determining a successful retail store display. New products and bestsellers should be placed in high-traffic areas, whereas impulse buy or add-on items are excellent near the checkout counter, where the customer is just about to leave.
- Show pricing. Showing the price lets customers know if it is within their price range. If they can’t find it, they may assume the product is too pricey and skip over it, resulting in a loss of sales.
- Change regularly. Changing retail product displays regularly keeps your store looking new and fresh with each visit and helps customers find new products.
- Maintain your displays. Maintenance is equally essential as the design and regular changes of in-store displays. It is crucial to keep them clean, evenly spaced, and organized so customers and access these products without problems.
Pros and Cons of Using Custom Store Displays
Now that you have a deep understanding of all the options and considerations you must make when deciding and designing the perfect store display, it is necessary to cover the advantages and disadvantages of including retail displays in your store.
First, let’s look at the advantages in-store displays have for your business. Retail displays offer a variety of benefits to your business if done creatively and correctly. When done right, retail displays play an integral role in the marketing and merchandising strategy.
As mentioned before, careful design and layout can significantly increase sales and can mean the difference between attracting or losing a customer to competitors. Retail displays should naturally attract customers, build a positive brand impression, and effectively communicate promotions and sales while offering good value for money; good displays cost money but can pay back tenfold!
But on the opposite side of the coin, the need to constantly maintain and update in-store displays requires a lot more time management for planning layouts, increased money investment, and increased staff demands for maintenance and updates to keep up with the constant movement of merchandise, changing of seasons, promotions and sales. However, keeping up with these challenges will enable your business to reap the full benefits!
Put Your Best Face Forward With Store Displays
Store displays play a crucial role in any business’s visual marketing and merchandising strategy. With a better understanding of how these displays attract customers and the limitless options you have at your disposal, we hope to have provided enough information so that you are confident to take the next step forward.
If you are ready to take the next step or have more questions about custom display stands, please contact us or request a quote now. PakFactory specialists are always prepared and eager to help in your journey!
