How to Increase Sales in Your Retail Grocery Store

Increase Grocery Store Sales This Summer

Summer is the perfect time to implement special in-store promotions at your grocery store. With longer days that mean more leisure time, shoppers are often less rushed and more open to spending that time searching for the right products and deals.

Take advantage of this relaxed attitude by offering discounts on in-demand items, but also get creative with unexpected in-store marketing ideas to tailor to today’s shopper who is more interested in experiences now than ever before.

Supermarket Advertising with Eye-Catching Displays

Any discussion of grocery store marketing would be incomplete without mentioning endcaps and point-of-sale displays. Catching customer attention throughout the store and at checkout is essential to encouraging impulse buys.

Try some of these strategies to increase sales:

• Group commonly purchased items together in one convenient place. An endcap near the bread aisle can hold ketchup, mustard, and relish for customers who are purchasing buns for hot dogs and burgers.
• Another endcap can be dedicated to décor for outdoor parties such as Fourth of July barbecues or graduation parties. Display colorful disposable tablecloths with plastic silverware, plates, and napkins, and any other seasonal decorations your store offers.
• Near your checkout lines, place a large checklist asking, “Did you remember…?” and list commonly overlooked but thoughtful items for summer cookouts like centerpieces or games for kids, which you can have available as guests approach the registers.
• Do you have an artistically talented employee? If so, ask him or her to create fun, handmade signage for your seasonal displays. This will emphasize the human side of your store and customers will associate the signage with local individuals, rather than with mass-produced banners. This can work even if your store is a large chain.

Grocery Store Promotional Events Can Generate Loyalty

You can go beyond these ordinary grocery industry marketing ideas, though, to delight your customers. When customers know they not only get good value from your store but that they can also expect a fun experience tailored to their needs when they visit, they will come to look forward to grocery trips.

As we all are aware, the trend toward desiring experiences is only getting stronger. According to 2017 a Colliers report, “For retailers, thinking beyond traditional retail practices to focus on offering true experiences can help strengthen customer traffic and other critical metrics….The evidence shows that where retail locations put these things in place – especially in terms of mixing non-retail offerings with retail – shoppers respond positively in the frequency of visits, the amount of time per visit and spend per visit.”

This is certainly true for grocery shoppers, 53% of whom use more retailers in 2016 than they did in 2011, according to the report. With your customers seeking out more locations to get what they need, it’s important that your store provide additional value. One way to do so is to host fun events.

Hosting In-Store Promotion Events This Summer

In-store promotion events take a bit of effort, but their payoff can be significant in terms of both sales and customer satisfaction.

Instead of the usual cart with free samples of one item, create a mock summer barbecue in your store. This will be easiest to implement if you have a Sweet Shop Setup, which gives you a natural location within your store for the event.

Think Visually

Use décor that you sell to showcase how customers can create the perfect ambiance in their own backyard. If your store sells outdoor furniture, this is a great way to display that as well.

Offer samples of different types of hot dogs, which you can display on a roller grill for visual appeal. Have condiments available, along with sides and some specialty items like gourmet popcorn from your sweet shop in red, white, and blue, or in local school colors.

Make Purchasing Easy

Because people often feel the need to reciprocate when offered free samples, you’re likely to sell plenty of the items you display. Be sure to have them on hand for purchase next to each sample station to make it easy for customers to grab and go.

Using these grocery store ideas, you can go from being simply a food store to a place “of inspiration where shoppers connect with brands.”*

*http://www.colliers.com/-/media/files/marketresearch/unitedstates/2017-research-reports/2017-retail-spotlight-report-globaldata-part2-us-colliers.pdf