The busiest shopping season has recently passed, but there’s no time for retailers to rest. Now, retailers are gearing up for the next significant moment where consumers are in the buying mood—Presidents Day. If you’re looking to sell more product and pocket more profit this holiday, here are 5 ways you can make your Presidents Day sale more effective.
1. Demonstrate and educate.
Before consumers buy most products, they want to see how it looks and test it out in person. They want to know that what they’re paying for is something they’ll like. This is where product demonstrations come into play. Product demonstrations show consumers what they want to see and provide a chance for them to ask one of your employees any further product questions they have. Product demonstrations also increase sales, on the day of the demonstration as well as future sales, especially during that next week. Just ask Bed Bath & Beyond, which saw their demonstration stores sell 650% more units compared to non-demonstration stores as well as 300% more product on days when product demonstrations weren’t done.
If you want to increase sales this Presidents Day, involve the customer in product demonstrations. Let them see, feel and test your product out for themselves, and make sure your demonstrators are equipped to answer any and all consumer questions.
2. Limit the length of your sale.
Today, people have major FOMO (fear of missing out). If you create a sense of urgency with your Presidents Day sale—making it just 1-2 days instead of the whole week like many retailers do—it will better encourage shoppers to buy immediately instead of going home to think about it since they know they have time to do so.
People would rather avoid losing something than gaining something. A Digital Commons study found that retail stores that perceived product scarcity and had limited time sales created psychological effects that increased a shopper’s urgency to buy, among other things. So if you want to get shoppers into your store and out with a bag full of items, advertise your Presidents Day sale as a “limited time offer” or “while supplies last” kind of sale.
3. Take advantage of upselling and add-on sales.
This tactic can and should be used every holiday. It’s an immediate way to increase sales numbers and make your customers more satisfied. And it’s easy to do when you know what you’re doing.
The first step is having good salespeople who know your products backward and forwards. Then, make sure they know how to read customers and approach the upsell as a way to help the customer. If a customer is looking at a beautiful statement necklace, suggest them getting a pair of gorgeous teardrop earrings that match perfectly to complete their killer look. If they’re looking at the first book in a series, tell them they should buy the whole series now because they’ll love the first book so much they’ll just be back in as soon as they finish it to buy the rest.
You should also have certain add-on products at the checkout, or put products you know will be popular and/or ones you’re trying to get rid of in a special Presidents Day package and persuade shoppers to buy the bundled deal instead of just the one product that comes with the bundle.
4. Motivate your salespeople with the right incentives.
If you’re running a clothing, furniture, mattress or electronic business (big Presidents Day sale items and those having salespeople on the floor), motivate your sales folk to increase their sales numbers. Offer them a SPIFF (special pay incentive for fast sales) and set sales goals so they’re more inclined to get the most sales they can this holiday weekend.
Money may work for some, while a gift card to their favorite store might be the right incentive for others. Know your salespeople and use the right motivator to help get your store the sales numbers you want this Presidents Day.
5. Give your products and store some visual vibrancy.
Almost every business out there does some kind of Presidents Day sale. You need a way to make your store, and your Presidents Day sale, stand out from competitors and entice customers to spend their holiday money at your store.
Grab consumers’ attention with colorful, eye-catching sales banners, window graphics or other retail signage. Use the right placement and colors to market your sale—before and during Presidents Day—and wait for shoppers to stream in through your doors for your sale.
While red is the go-to retail sale sign color, a red, white and blue color scheme would also be good for Presidents Day. But, 90% of other retailers are using the same colors. Why not select a handful of products to highlight for this sale and use vibrant colors that complement those products with your store’s sale signage?
