Smart Advertising Ideas to Help Ring Up Sales at Your Retail Store

Marketing for Retail Stores

Using a Multi-Screen Approach to Attract More Customers

It’s not easy running a retail store in today’s crowded marketplace. You’re not only competing against department stores, chains and other independent retailers, but also battling e-commerce websites and online giants like Amazon.

The good news is many people enjoy patronizing local businesses — 90% of U.S. shoppers frequent small businesses at least once a week and 63% specifically like supporting local entrepreneurs.1 And with the abundance of tablets, computers, smartphones and TVs today, there are more ways than ever to get the word out and draw in customers as they look for local stores with products just like yours.

These simple, affordable advertising ideas can help put sales in the bag for your retail store:

TELEVISION

TV builds awareness of your store so even shoppers who aren’t currently in the market for your products will think of you when they are. You can use TV commercials to target viewers based on factors such as age, location and gender. And advertising on television often costs less than a day’s session of “retail therapy.”

Cox Media can help you find programming that suits your target audience. If you sell used records and other music items, try advertising on MTV Classic (recently rebranded from VH1 Classic). A jewelry store could focus on wedding shows like “Say Yes to the Dress” on TLC or romantic movies on the Hallmark Channel. Ads for specialty food retailers, like cheese shops, spice shops or delis, can find a great home on the Food Network.

Urge viewers to visit your website for a special offer so those watching with smartphones in hand (that’s 87% of all TV viewers!) can take action when they’re still watching the commercial.2

ONLINE ADVERTISING

Whether they’re 18 or 64, most shoppers start researching retail purchases by going online — which often leads to an in-store purchase.3 In fact, 56 cents of every dollar spent in a store is influenced by a digital interaction from something a consumer saw online.4 Get shoppers’ attention with digital advertising on websites your target customers visit.

What’s really cool about online ads: They can target prospects based on what they’ve searched for and viewed online. For instance, if your store sells luggage, your ads could display when people search for “luggage stores near me,” browse travel websites, or make flight reservations.  Or, if you sell women’s clothing, you can advertise on popular fashion and lifestyle sites, limiting your target audience to the women whose age, income and ZIP code match your ideal customer profile.

And once they conduct those searches for “luggage,” online advertising can continue to serve up ads for your store even if the consumer is visiting unrelated websites. For example, you could get extra mileage out of your TV commercial by repurposing it as an online commercial to be shown to consumers who have previously searched for terms like “luggage” or “carry-on bag” or browsed online luggage stores and reviews. Your luggage store’s commercial could play before any online video — related to luggage or not — that that person views.

MOBILE

Women account for 85% of consumer purchases, and almost two-thirds (64%) of women are open to getting special offers based on their location in a store.5 Target’s popular Cartwheel app pushes promotional offers to shoppers’ smartphones, and your store can do the same thing using mobile ads. “Geo-fencing” technology limits your advertising geographically so it only displays to people near your store or in a certain ZIP code.

You can take this a step further: Imagine being able to send a discount offer to consumers while they’re browsing your competition’s showroom. That’s called geo-conquesting and Cox Media can help you display mobile ads to prospects whenever they get near — or even in — a competitor’s store. That’s one way to compete with megastores!

SOCIAL MEDIA

If you’ve ever browsed Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, you know how appealing product images can make you want to buy things. Attract social media users with eye-catching product shots, videos showing off your products or a “virtual tour” of your store. Social media is also a great way to get extra use out of your commercial video shoot: While your TV commercial may be just 30 seconds long, it’s likely you have other snippets perfect for social media. You can even consider producing a long-form version at the same time for YouTube and your website.

Facebook, the most popular social site among all ages, is the perfect place to focus your social media efforts. Enhance your posts with Facebook ads that target prospects based on location, age, interests and more. For example, if your store sells cameras and accessories, target ads to Facebook users who have shown interest in photography.

CASHING IN

It’s never too late to take advantage of these different advertising options to get new shoppers lined up at your door. Visual advertising methods like cable TV commercials, online commercials and online ads with images can give people a feel for your welcoming store and the must-have products you sell. If you’ve been putting off looking at advertising options, it’s easy to get started:  Just ask Cox Media  to put together an advertising plan that’ll really get sales ringing.

Cox Media is the perfect advertising partner for your business. Their experienced media consultants know the retail industry, local business challenges and can help you learn more about your potential audience— including why “Near Me” searches are so important to grow your customer base.

For immediate assistance, contact Cox Media at 1-855-755-2691 but if you’d like to learn more advertising tactics for your local retail business click here.