Black Friday may be the official kickoff for the holiday shopping season, but Halloween gets the players lining up. By next week, it won’t surprise anyone to see holiday decorations make their way into retail merchandising and marketing efforts.
Whether your spa or massage practice is ready to “roll out the holly,” it’s definitely time to start thinking about retail product promotions for holiday gift giving. Retail sales can make up a significant part of your holiday revenue – or revenue at any time of the year for that matter – and you don’t want to miss out the opportunity to ring up sales.
When it comes to merchandising, make sure you catch the eye of your spa or massage practice customers with displays that are prominent and appealing. A good display needs a focal point or main item or feature you want the customer to see. Maybe your focal point is a sale item or a new product offering. Surround the featured product with complementary ones to encourage additional sales. Just remember less is more. It’s far better to have fewer products arranged in an inviting display that invites your clients to take the time to investigate.
You’ll also want to change displays often even during the holiday season. Your retail displays not only help educate clients, they entertain them. By changing your displays often with holiday themes – by the fire at home, around the table, gift giving, deck the halls and more -- you engage your clients.
Here are some other things to keep in mind about your holiday merchandising:
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Color Counts
Clients are drawn to colors, which also evoke emotion and influence buying decisions. Try grouping items together that have a similar color but different shapes to create a visual theme.
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Lighten Things Up
Lighting not only brings colors to life, it attracts a buyer’s attention. It makes products stand out and enhances colors. Consider spotlights to highlight featured products or back lit displays.
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Make Buying Easy
Don’t restrict retail display areas to a corner of your reception area or off to the entrance of your spa or massage business. Have a number of displays throughout your spa or massage business, including treatment rooms and hallways. Also offer ready-to-go baskets and wrapped items to make it easy for your clients to pick up a gift for others.
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Help On Hand
Be sure to have enough staff on hand to help clients with retail purchases. While your signage throughout the store may help direct clients to retail displays, it won’t help boost sales if staff isn’t available to answer questions.
Max Marketing
Don’t depend on clients walking through the door to gain attention for retail offerings. Update your website to feature some of your holiday retail items and promote items through your social media channels – with gift buying suggestions for each member of the family, friends and business associates.
Conduct an email marketing campaign offering a discount during a certain time period, a buy one/reduced price on a second purchase or a gift with purchase.
The holidays are about giving. Make sure your retail items on are your clients’ holiday shopping list.