Visual merchandising is the practice of organizing and displaying products in a retail space. It is used to highlight products and their features, gain customers' attention, make customers feel comfortable and promote sales. Visual merchandising began in physical retail stores, but companies are now using the same techniques for digital store fronts.
Effective visual merchandising uses a range of physical components to reflect a brand's image and aesthetic, including:
Color: Different colors reflect different moods and tones. Choose a color scheme that matches the company's image.
Lighting: Lighting can help set a mood in your space and draw attention to specific products or areas of the store.
Space: The layout and spacing of the store dictates how customers move through your space, where they spend more of their time and what they see.
Sound: Sounds, like ambient nature sounds or loud rock music, can add to the overall atmosphere in your space.
Smell: Certain smells may promote distinct feelings, such as calm or excitement.
Technology: Technology, such as digital displays and interactive installations, can enhance customers' engagement with your brand.
Types of visual merchandising
Visual merchandising includes the following elements:
Interior displays: Interior displays are displays arranged inside the store that can include products and decor.
Store layout: Visual merchandising includes how a store is laid out, including where certain products are placed, the flow of products from front to back of store, where points of sale are and where dressing rooms are.
Mannequins: The type, styling and positioning of mannequins can communicate messages to your customers.
Point of purchase display: The signage, decor and physical structure of points of purchase are part of visual merchandising.
Bundling: Bundling refers to displaying products together to show customers how they might use multiple products.
Window displays: Window displays are an important part of visual merchandising that can catch the attention of people passing your store, which can lead to more customers.
Outdoor signage: Outdoor signs communicate what your business is and set the tone for your space.
Exterior fixtures: Exterior fixtures, such as marquees, banners and awnings, provide the customer's first impression of your store.
Seasonal displays: Seasonal displays can show off new merchandise, encourage add-on purchases and create interest.
Product information: Where and how you communicate product details, including size of labels and signs, typeface and tone of content, can reflect on your company's brand.
Design decisions: Design decisions, like flooring, textiles and other materials can create a physical representation of your brand's aesthetic.
Online merchandising
Online or digital merchandising can be described as ‘the selection and presentation of products and content to make best use of screen real estate’. The screen real estate, i.e. your digital selling space, includes all areas on an e-commerce website where products are displayed - product pages, category pages, search results pages, recommendations, content/ ads etc. You need to have an online merchandising strategy for managing these areas.
Online visual merchandising, on the other hand, is about using a wide range of elements to enhance the overall user experience: from stunning photos and awesome design, to homepage storytelling, user generated content and rich product descriptions.
How online merchandising differs from offline?
An online store is a different animal from a brick-and-mortar one. The selling space online is extremely limited, but on the other hand, you don’t have to show the same products to everyone.
Regardless of the customers’ entry and route through the store, online merchandising makes sure they see the most relevant products, in the best order, presented in the most compelling way.
Some physical store features are:
storefront
signage
departments and sections
information desk
products
shop assistant
A
nd their online equivalents
homepage
navigation
categories
search box
photos, videos, descriptions
recommendations
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