Summer can be a lucrative time for retailers of all sorts. The warm weather gets people up and out of their homes, which means they'll be doing less online shopping and visiting more brick-and-mortar locations. If you are hoping to increase foot traffic this season, we have a few tips that could help you along the way:
Turn your staff into "accessory experts"
Apparel merchants can bet that a big chunk of their summer sales will be in the accessory department. Sometimes, choosing accessories like sunglasses, jewelry and headbands can be tricky, particularly for shoppers who show up to your store on their own. You can help these customers by turning a few of your employees into "accessory experts." Choose two or three workers who are the most fashionable, and encourage them to approach shoppers who seem to be having trouble picking out an accessory. Your staff members can make recommendations on which shades work best with customers' face shapes, direct shoppers to your most elegant jewelry displays and give advice on what colors might work best with certain skin tones.
Host a cookout to showcase your grill goods
Do you sell grills, kitchenware or patio furniture? If so, you should put these items front and center during the months of June, July and August. One way to do so is to give live demonstrations of your goods. You can ask one of your employees to step outside for the day to grill up hamburgers, hot dogs and other BBQ treats right outside your storefront. Shoppers who smell the food cooking will likely be drawn over to grab a bite, and once they do, they'll see what sort of patio merchandise you have on hand for all of their cookout needs.
Get your mannequins some sunshine
During the winter season, your store mannequins will do best indoors, but there's no reason you should keep them inside when the weather is nice. Purchasing a few mannequins for sale that you can place right on the sidewalk will get shoppers' attention, thus bringing sales in the door. Adult mannequins in bathing suits or child mannequins in shorts, t-shirts and baseball caps will definitely be a hit. Just be sure to move them inside if the forecast calls for thunderstorms!
