VISUAL MERCHANDISING
Got Flowers?
8 supremely simple ways to keep it fresh, build a brand story, and bump up sales with visual merchandising
research shows that shoppers are more willing to pay a higher price for a product from a well-merchandised environment. Enough said. It’s clear that a smart visual merchandising strategy can easily help bump up your sales.
There is not one “right way” to merchandise product, but there are guidelines that can help optical retailers present frames and lenses in a pleasing manner that sells. Here are eight of those strategies that deliver the goods.
WHATEVER YOU DO, DO IT.
The biggest trend in visual merchandising for optical is that IT MATTERS. The store is more important than ever. With so much that can be done online, physical retail’s differentiators need to be explored and capitalized on. Find your feature (a product, a doctor, a category, a color) and pull it together to create displays.
Quick Tip: A bouquet of real, beautiful flowers can be a simple, stunning, and lovely way to merchandise a display.
KEEP IT FRESH.
Visual merchandising’s success relies heavily on its freshness. The coolest display in the world gets old and becomes invisible after the third or fourth time shoppers experience it. Eyewear customers are typically on a slow cycle—they may be in your space only once a year. In this case, displays don’t necessarily need to be rethought but perhaps relocated.
Quick Tip: A display of “funny glasses” starts as a feature then moves to a place on the “regular” wall, then to the waiting area, etc.
FOCUS ON THE 3s.
Three is the number that captures attention, and holds it for enough time to absorb a message. Particularly with products that are small and detailed, like frames, displaying just one may not be strong enough to build a story. Odd numbers are more dynamic and interesting than even numbers.
Quick Tip: The 3s can be personalized by color, repetition, scale, etc.
KEEP IT CLEAN.
Just as overcrowded stores can create stress and anxiety, the same is true for displays. An overwhelming choice is not a selling point. You can have the best selection in town, but make the choice to display a selection of the best of the best.
Quick Tip: If you create some space around your more distinctive or expensive frames, customers will instantly know they cost more.
AML AT VEW
Don’t miss Anne Marie Luthro’s keynote presentation at Vision Expo West, “The HOW? Behind the WOW! at Retail,” Sept. 16, 8:30-9:30 a.m. Eyecare Business is proud to be the media sponsor of this session. See visionexpowest.com for more info.
KEEP IT VISUAL.
Keep words and phrases short and simple—if you need them at all. If shoppers need more detailed information, they’ll ask for assistance. Props, photos, and graphics are more compelling than words. But these things should exist only to tell the display’s story.
Quick Tip: “Bigger is better” can also typify a successful principle of visual merchandising. Props, photos, and graphics that support the product and the story can work well when oversized to establish them as characters.
The Mirror Never Lies.
In fact, it’s the most important part of the shopping process. It’s the make-or-break moment. Employ lots of mirrors in your optical.
KEEP IT OBVIOUS.
From the store’s decompression zone (where the shopper transitions from outside to inside), sight lines should be clear to the store’s feature focus point. This is most easily done with color. Warm colors, such as orange, red, and yellow, can imbue a sense of excitement that can pull a shopper in a pointed direction.
Quick Tip: Warm colors “pop” while cool blues and greens recede, pushing customers away.
KEEP IT FAMILIAR.
Don’t forget that people actually shop from these displays. Those “exciting” colors that pull shoppers in aren’t necessarily the ones that help them shop the products in depth. Once you’ve thrilled them as they enter, mission shoppers (task-oriented) want a sense of familiarity, calmness, and order to their shopping process. Cool colors (green and blue) can provide a calming effect in the main shopping area.
Quick Tip: The hot-pink frame that pops at the front of the store can be repeated in a subtler way at the full selection with a frame of hot pink and a background of blue/gray. People are excited by the hot colors but may end up buying the neutrals or cool tones. Use the warms to attract, but have the total color selection nearby.
SELL IT.
While the display is all about the product, it needs to be all about the shopper when it comes to touching and trying the product. Any display that has frames should also have a mirror to facilitate trying the product. This creates an emotional connection that supports purchase making.
Quick Tip: Incorporate more mirrors. Always. Everywhere. The mirror is the most important part of the shopping process. It’s the make-or-break moment. Handheld mirrors, full-length mirrors, mirrors big enough to reflect more than one shopper at once, and mirrors small enough to allow one shopper a quiet, confidential experience all work.
—Anne Marie Luthro
Anne Marie Luthro is principal of AML Insights, a shopper insights and retail strategy firm in Portland, OR. Her extensive client list includes L’Oreal, Victoria’s Secret, Walmart, Oakley, and ESPN.