The retail life: How to make your store appeal to customers

When it comes to retail, one of the most important things is ensuring that your actual store appeals to prospective customers.

Here are some tips on how to make your store appeal to customers – and how to keep them coming back…

Improve the outside

First and foremost, you need to make sure that the outside of your store is appealing. This includes investing in excellent signage. One good rule of thumb is that if you can name a font when you see it, you shouldn’t use it on a sign. Other than that, you just need to make sure that it’s clear and that it’s easy to tell what your retail space is all about. Make sure that the outside of your store is clean – for instance, hire pressure washing services to make sure any driveways look good. Finally, you should take a good look at your windows. These should always be up to date, displaying your best merchandise in an attractive way. You should change your displays every couple of weeks to entice new customers in, and you should make sure that you keep the inside of your windows clean – you don’t want any dead flies in there! You should also make sure that you keep it well stocked. If there are any spaces, fill them immediately.

Train your staff

The number one thing that a physical store has over an internet store is customer service, so this is something that it’s worth investing plenty of time and money in. Hire people who love your product and make sure that they are knowledgeable about it. Then make sure that you pay them well, so that they keep working for you for an extended period of time. This will ensure that they build up great relationships with your regular customers that will keep them coming back.

What about the layout?

The layout of the store needs to make sense. It should flow carefully – put some small items next to the tills so that customers waiting there can pick them up and potentially buy them. Make sure that the kids’ area is decorated as such and that there’s plenty of space throughout the store for parents to negotiate buggies and pushchairs and for people using wheelchairs to navigate through the aisles easily. You should make sure, as far as possible, that there aren’t any hidden and secluded areas of the store where it would be easy for people to shoplift. Train your staff in how to handle situations like that and make sure they remember that their safety is much more important than someone stealing a few items from the store.

Make it local

Finally, it’s best to make sure that your store celebrates your local area. If you work in a bookstore you might make a display of books set in your area, or you might invite local authors in to launch their new books. If you work in a clothes store, why not invite local designers to sell their wares with you? It’s important to give your store the feeling of a local retail experience rather than a vast chain. 

Making your store appeal to customers isn’t too hard – if you follow these tips you’ll be busy in no time.