Visual Merchandising Checklist

1. Store Front: A quick glance should tell you what the merchandise is about, what type of merchandise you carry, or the services provided.Try designing an inviting entrance to make customers feel welcome and to encourage casual passers-by to enter. Make sure your entrance is not too cluttered and customers are able to enter easily with strollers, coats, and packages.Also, be sure that window displays are creative enough to attract shoppers’ attention.

2. Statement: Pull together a display with a single, dominant color, single dominant profile or design.

3. Store Medias: Well, let me explain little about store media. It is the different areas of a store from entrance to exit which have maximum visibility and attention of the store visitors. Like focal points, Entrance podia etc. Try to group together collections that will create and maintain the visitor’s interest. For example, a display could contain varied items that all have the same color, or the merchandise could have a particular theme – such as bird watching. “Be sure to provide sufficient display space. It’s natural to want to display the maximum amount of merchandise. However, if customers can’t focus on individual products because of visual clutter, they will leave frustrated and empty-handed.”

4. Mass merchandise: Maximize your mass displays by angling, stacking, patterning, and using color. Make sure that the maximum products are on display and are having a price tag in it. “Seeing is believing” It is very true about shoppers.

5. Create Mood: Merchandise should be embellished with tender loving care. Get merchandise off the floor and display it at eye level where it will sell better. If you sell clothing, steam it; if you sell glassware, get out your Windex; if you sell lamps, plug them in.

6. What about store activity? Displays should lend themselves to action. Entertain customers with in-store demonstrations, taste testing, live music, and refreshments. Make sure your staff moves around the store, mingling with customers and not standing at the cash counter.Make sure that the store visitor gets to touch and feel the display. Everyone wants to make sure, what they buy is worth the value.

7. What about the services offered? Inform the customers the services offered within the store and include the added value services they possibly get, like alterations or delivery services for bulk items.

8. Lighting: This is one of the important factors, but is always overlooked by the retailers. Lighting is what makes the displays and merchandise commercial. Enhance and highlight your merchandise with proper lighting. Use lights to create warmth. General, Fluorescent, functional track, and spot lights may be necessary to provide sufficient light to display merchandise.

9. Store Signage: Signage is an important component of visual merchandising, as it acts as a silent salesperson. Signs should be straightforward, easily read, and most important, professional. It should also be enhancing and supporting brand image of your store. If you are having many stores it is important to make the signs as uniform as possible in each store. It helps the customer identify easily with your store.Signs not only educate the customers it also informs the customers how to shop, how to take care of their purchases. People value what they know. Inform customers about particular authors or product lines with effective signage and knowledgeable staff, and make sure special merchandise has a sign that will help sell it.