With all the hoopla over impulse sales (65% of all sales are impulse-driven), many retailers seem to have gone hog wild with in-queue merchandising, as if an impulse shopper is some sort of robot that picks up anything and everything on their way to the register. Others seem to have ignored the impulse phenomena altogether. Still others are making mistakes that undermine their efforts to improve the customer experience and drive those last minute profit builders. In line merchandising, as with all other areas of retail merchandising, requires careful planning and consideration. Too much of a good thing is still too much. Not enough means lost sales. Innovative displays, product selection, price points…endless details go into driving those impulse sales! What choices must a retailer make in order to extract maximum value from merchandising in the waiting line? In working with some of the biggest (and smallest) names in the retail industry we have gained great insight into what works when it comes to in-queue merchandising. Notably, we’ve also compiled an interesting list of things that don’t work…
Here are our top 10 mistakes to avoid when it comes to in-queue merchandising:
1. Too Much Merchandising
As mentioned, too much of a good thing is still too much. The lure of impulse sales is enough to drive any retailer to want to stuff the line with merchandise. Whoa, Nelly! Find the right balance and recognize that sometimes, less is more. It will take some experimentation but all customers have their limits. Find where your customers draw the line and don’t cross it.
2. Too-Tall Merchandising Racks
Piling it high might sound like a good retail strategy but no customer wants to feel like they’re “stuck in line.” We’ve come across retailers who are using too-tall gondolas in the queue and their line literally starts to look like a tunnel or maybe even a trap. Talk about too much!
3. Merchandising on the Turns
If your waiting line includes “turns,” meaning it wraps around in serpentine fashion, and especially if your customers bring their shopping carts into the line, take note of this merchandising no-no: Placing merchandising racks or displays on the turns will inevitably lead to knock-overs, crushes, damages, and the person who does the damage will feel embarrassed, scramble to pick up the pieces, and before you know it you’ve got an embarrassed customer, a backed-up line, and not-so-happy customers who are waiting behind it all. (Don’t go there.)
4. Not Enough Space to Get By
This is a mistake that can happen to the best of them. You have your line all planned out, your stanchions are in place, your cash registers are ready, and then… your merchandising racks come in and suddenly your lane lines aren’t quite as wide as they used to be and customers find themselves squeezing through with their carts, baskets, or simple handful of products to get past the merchandising displays and through the queue. The obvious point is, merchandising narrows the lane so be sure to account for racks, displays, tables, etc. when planning the space you'll allocate to your queue.
5. Neglecting the Perimeter of the Queue
A queue doesn’t exist in a box. It exists within the entirety of the retail environment. And more often than not, a well-defined waiting line will have well-defined areas on the outside of the queue that people must walk past or around to get to the head of your line. Don’t forget to use the perimeter of the queue for merchandising and take advantage of the foot traffic.
6. Lack of Signage in the Queue
Yes, that is a great-looking pen, bottle of nail polish, necklace, journal, or whatever, but if customers don’t know what it is, what it costs, or some other compelling reason to buy it’s not leaving the store. Signage is the simple and functional solution that lets people know instantly what the merchandise is and what it costs. It can literally be as simple as "Toothpaste: $1.99" or as clever and informative as you’d like. The important part is to make it clear.
7. No Merchandising on the “Short Cut” Line
Many stores have a busy period and a slow period. With retractable belt stanchions (common waiting line dividers) the line may be shortened by simply adjusting a belt connection or retracting it altogether to create a shortcut to the head of the line. During busy periods, the line can be made longer again by pulling the belt out to its original position. The mistake happens when retailers fail to consider the placement of merchandise on the shortcut version of their line. When you shorten up the line is your merchandising left hanging? If all of your merchandise exists in the "long" line configuration you'll miss out on opportunities to capture impulse sales when the line is shorter.
8. No Clear Clue to the Queue
Customers won’t get in line in the first place if they don’t know where it is. And don’t think they’re going to hunt it down for long. The most clearly identifiable clue to the queue is the presence of a belted stanchion at the entrance of the line. When people see this they naturally think "the line starts here." Marry stanchions with post-top signage or tall banners and you’ll find fewer frustrations and more people waiting in line.
9. Not enough merchandising
In contrast to mistake #1, we'll remind you that 65%, yes, 65% of sales are bought on impulse. The queue is a great place to make one last impulse sale happen. In-queue merchandising facilitates this sales process but it also serves another important purpose: keeping people occupied in the queue. Waiting in line is no fun. Merchandising can keep people busy as they consider your products, discover something new, or fill their carts with something they just can’t live without. And that makes for a shorter perceived wait time and overall happier customer.
10. Neglecting to think beyond merchandising
A waiting line is good for more than just merchandising. It offers you the perfect time and place for directional signage, advertising, and corporate branding—each of which lends to the customer experience in its own way. Directional signage in the queue can keep people happier by making wait times known and the checkout process clear. Advertising and corporate branding can be brought into the queue with digital signage, customized belts, or branded merchandising racks, or even by using in-line tables to display literature for email special signups or store credit cards. The point is, the value of a waiting line is made through merchandising alone. Now that you know a few practices to avoid, it’s time to discover some real world solutions. Here at Lavi we offer a great selection of queuing solutions, in-line merchandising systems, and more to help you create a better customer experience and increase sales at checkout. We invite you to request a sales call or learn more by downloading our latest free guide, The Art & Science of Queuing.
