When was the last time you entered a shop? It could be a grocery, a concept store, or a boutique. Can you remember the interior of the shop? How were the items displayed? What were the displayed items? If you can picture that one particular store you have in mind, what made it stand out among the other boutiques you had visited? Was it because of the vibrant colours it used? Was it the blinding lighting fixture? Was it the peculiar arrangement of the item displays? If you can remember it vividly, then that store had done an excellent job with its visual merchandising displays.

Visual merchandising displays have been long used in many commercial establishments, be it a retail store or apop-up store in Singapore. It is an effective marketing tool for physical stores even before e-commerce has become more prevalent. Yet, despite the advent of online shopping, visual merchandising continues to thrive and evolve.

A Brief Introduction To Visual Merchandising

Ordinary consumers think there are no reasons why restaurant owners chose to paint their restaurant walls muted red or why pop-up store owners in Singapore install track lights in their stores instead of the usual ceiling lights. In visual merchandising, all the tiniest details in the store, from the dominant colours to the arrangement of furniture, are all well thought off. There are reasons behind visual merchandising displays. And their main objective? To make you buy their merchandise.

What is visual merchandising?

Visual merchandising refers to a marketing strategy or practice that utilises the store’s overall appearance to engage customers and boost sales.

They improve and modify the store’s colours, displays, lightings, sounds, and floor plans, among others, to attract shoppers and make the shop stand out among its competitors.

Visual merchandising displays are like the main course meal of a five Michelin-star restaurant. Before you taste the meal, you eat the visual presentation of the food with your eyes first. Visual merchandising displays are the food presentation, while food taste and texture are the customer service and the quality of the items.

What are the objectives of visual merchandising?

●    Attract people

Visual merchandising starts from the store’s windows. Have you ever wondered why clothing store mannequins are displayed by the window? They are used to attract passersby by providing a sneak peek of what is available inside the store.

Visual merchandising must be engaging and captivating. It should lure consumers inside the store. There are many tools to include in the merchandising display and pop up store designs. It could be the colours, the display itself, lighting, and even the entire environment.

Your visual merchandising displays are certainly not intriguing if you can’t make a passerby stop in their tracks.

●    Increase sales

Once you have lured the people inside your store, the next objective of yourvisual merchandising displays is to convert them into sales by making your products desirable.

Not only should yourvisual merchandising displays be aesthetically pleasing, but they also must showcase the qualities and best assets of your items.

It should make a significant impact on your customer’s purchase decision even without the help of your salesperson. It can be done by using engaging and innovative technology.

●    Reflect brand identity

If your brand champions convenience and innovation, it should reflect on your service, quality of products, and visual merchandising. Imagine selling cutting edge smartphones, yet the entire atmosphere of your store, from the old and murky interior to the snail-paced purchasing process, do not equate to what your brand advocates.

Believe it or not, your store’s visual merchandising displayscommunicate your brand to the customers. It also applies tobrand activation events.

●    Recall value

The introduction of this article asked you to name a shop where you could vividly remember the interior designs. If you were able to conjure one in your memory and even were able to name that particular store, then that shop did an excellent job on the fourth objective: recall value.

The recall value refers to the long-lasting impact of the business on its customers. Several factors contribute to customers’ recollection. It could be the experience; letting them try the product first hand or watching demos of the product. It could be the store’s impeccable interiors. It could also be the music playing or the pop up store designs.

Now that you know what visual merchandising is and its objectives, one question remains: what are the secrets behind effective visual merchandising displays?

The Elements of Visual Merchandising

Colour

There is a psychology behind colours. Many restaurants and fast-food chains use the red colour as it stimulates appetite.

Colours evoke emotions. They attract your eyes and lead them where they want you to be, make products pop, set your mood, and communicate hidden messages.

Landscaping and layout

The shelves and islands used in yourvisual merchandising displaysdictate the hierarchy of the products, the exposure of merchandise, and the traffic flow of the customers.

Your furniture says a lot about the character of your brand, too. High fashion and sophisticated brands opt for circular or curved-edge fittings for their sleeker and cleaner look. It also keeps the traffic flowing.

Focal point

The focal point is the emphasised area in the store where all eyes should land. The focal point’s objective is to highlight your hottest item.

When creating a focal point, ensure the aesthetic side–its designs and decors–must not outshine your highlighted item.

Light

Like colours, lights can set the mood in the store, highlight a product, create discreet leading lines, and communicate brand identity.

For example, gadget stores and brands are often illuminated by bright white lights. Meanwhile, jewellery stores lean towards accent lights and a dimly lit ambience. Lights also play a vital role in brand activationevents.

Story

The story gives a deeper engagement to your customers and visceral meaning to the brand. You can communicate your tale through your choices of visual merchandising design, the music you play, and the entire character of your shop.

Takeaway

We sometimes underestimate the power of visual cues in the consumption of goods. But in reality, these visual cues drastically influence consumer behaviour. It is why business owners capitalise on visual merchandising.

Do you want to utilise your visual merchandising displays, too? Dezign Format is for you. Visit Dezign Format today.