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Supermarket Merchandising and Marketing Techniques

Merchandising has long been a feature of store promotion activities. Goods that are presented to customers in a carefully planned manner will sell better than those that are displayed without thought or care. Neat and tidy is not always the best option, but whichever merchandising strategy is used, it must be appropriate for the products on sale.

Merchandising techniques are the final link in the sales chain. After the supermarket layout has been planned with precision, and the customers have been attracted through the marketing strategy, the final step is to present the goods to them in such a way that they can't refuse them. Some merchandising techniques are listed below.

Sign Color

Supermarket merchandising We have been conditioned to accept that items priced in some colors are good value, or should be bought before they disappear. While most items in a supermarket may be priced in the store colors, some that are being pushed aggressively will be priced in red and yellow. These colors are synonymous with reduced prices and sales, but they can be used to advertise a Special Purchase where there is no price reduction.

Be clear when you shop that supermarket products promoted with red and yellow cards are actually reduced in price, or are lower in price than those in competing stores.

Shelf Height as a Sales Tool

As we browse products for sale on shelves, we spend most time looking at those items placed at head height. We may scan lower or higher shelves, but we read packaging and price information more easily at head height. For this reason, the highest profit items tend to be placed at head height to push them. From the customer point of view, the lowest profit, and hence best value items, will be on the higher or lower shelves. Remember that in isles supplying products for children, head height may be adult waist height. The pester power of children can be used to sell to parents.

Facing as a Display Imperative

Facing is the process whereby goods are brought to the front of the shelves, with their labels facing forward. You will always see the attractive front surface of a can label rather than the informative list of ingredients on the back.

Retail Theatre

There is a body of thought that suggests a supermarket is one example of ‘retail theatre’. The presentation of items for sale is not a simple matter of bulk storage and logistics. If gaining a lifestyle is part of the sales pitch, more sales will result. This was recognised years ago by the most famous department stores that used a desire for opulence and luxury as part of their sales techniques. Thick carpet and chandeliers sold expensive jewelry and perfume. Modern supermarkets have continued this theme by creating little theatres for selling particular products. You don’t buy fish from a fish counter. You buy it from a refrigerated counter that is surrounded by trappings of the sea, images of trawlers and fishermen, and even the sound of waves and seagulls. You will leave the store with some fish, and your senses ringing from a trip to the seaside.