Sign Me Up! How to Boost Store Sales With One Simple Trick

Though retailers do depend on the customers who come in with a list and know exactly what they want, they also hope to entice the dozens of people who float in and say breezily, "Just browsing, thanks!" to offers of assistance. Sometimes, the best customers are casual shoppers open to browsing for good bargains. One of the most important ways to get those people to make purchases? High quality point-of-sale signage.

For someone passing by the deli counter, deli sign holders that advertise specials might catch their eye, and they might start thinking that sandwiches this week DO sound good. Now, they're making a purchase they otherwise might not have. Window signs with suction cups might advertise this week's discounts or sales and draw people into the store in the first place. Signs are crucial for any good business.


Making the Sale

Though a dedicated customer base is important, most retailers also depend on foot traffic and browsers to come through the store. Anywhere from six to 10 purchases at a store are usually impulse buys. And regardless of lists, shoppers make over 80% of their decisions on what to buy while they're in the store. There's plenty of time to convince consumers to open their wallets with good signs and advertising. From  deli sign holders advertising specials to outdoor pedestal signs that grab customers' attention from the street, signs are an effective way to sell.


Continuing to expand and build their customer base is crucial to growth, as is wooing customers from competitors. A consumer will decide whether to stay with a current brand they like or use now or to try a competitor's brand in between three to seven seconds, so you only have a limited amount of time to persuade them to go with you. Good signs, branding, and attractive logos can all help with this.


How Do Signs Affect Us?

On a daily basis, we're exposed to an average of 3,000 ads or promotional notices. Whether they come from the grocery store in the form of deli sign holders, or you say display racks advertising a half off sale, or note a new retail display at your favorite clothing store, signs are everywhere. They tell us where to look for products, when to stop and when to go, where to find information and people who can help us, and tell us what things are. Essentially, they're vital to our everyday lives.


For businesses, signs are crucial to making a sale. Studies have shown that full priced merchandise that had a sign did almost 20% better than full-priced merchandise without one. Furthermore, a 2014 Mass Merchant Study showed that over 15% of unplanned purchases were thanks to a point-of-sale display that caught the buyer's attention while they were shopping.


And let's think about it. How many times have we checked something for a price tag, not seen one, and instead of asking someone for a price check, simply put it down and walked away? For a business, those missing price tags are costing them sales. Though it may seem insignificant, the right signs can make a big difference.


How Do I Make My Signs Stand Out?


Custom retail signs are always a good idea -- whether it's door decals, sign holders, or display stands, if they're somehow personalized or unique enough to your business, they can definitely stand apart from the rest.


If you've got the sidewalk space and it feels appropriate for your business, outdoor signs can also be effective. Plenty of restaurants, coffee shops, bookstores, and even grocery stores put out outdoor signs, often with cute drawings or funny jokes or puns, to draw people into the store.


Consider researching what colors catch people eye and keep your signs to a clean aesthetic -- anything too jumbled or cluttered will make it hard to read.


Good signage -- whether it's ones in deli sign holders or on the store window -- is a simple thing, but one that can make a big impact on your business.