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Competing During the Holidays

Written by Ron Maier

Wednesday, 13 December 2006

The hustle and bustle of the Holidays is difficult enough for store security, inventory, and numbers of transactions that it is almost impossible to rise above your competition. It is especially stringent in this current season as stores everywhere are using mass release methods or playing the "low baller" game in product prices. Every business is betting on the sheer numbers to make up for their incredibly low sale prices.
This has become a huge method of corralling people into stores by offering "day after Thanksgiving" sales that go from five to eleven in the morning and other gimmicky sale draws. Obviously all of those people who get up and out will be sticking around past eleven, when all of the sales have ended. People still need to get there shopping done. Also, the numbers for such sales in shopping malls especially are astonishing. People have been known to camp out the night before to be there for the doors to open. The limited products that these customers are chasing will obviously be gone long before all of the customers find their way to the shelves. As a result, they will see all of the other products and possibly pick up something else.
The greatest resent example of such intense product searching is the release of the new PlayStation 3. Stores were ransacked immediately for this item, and the sales continue to climb on Ebay with resale prices up to ten times the original price. The biggest question on everyone's mind is "why doesn't Sony just make more units and make more money?" In actuality this style of gorilla/blitz product release causes the sales of all the other products to rise as well. Masses of people flock to the nearest Walmart, Bestbuy, or any other electronics carrier in search of the PlayStation 3, and when they cannot find one, they probably settle for something else or see something that catches their eye. Numbers produce results. It is just a fact of retail. Seventy-five percent of the battle is getting customers in the front door to view the products you are selling.
Young adults and children are the most targeted people group for such campaigns. Parents everywhere are scrambling to make their child's Christmas the best it can be. They run to stores looking for things on the child's list, and if they cannot find the right item, they speak with a sales associate to find something similar. This is the best sales opportunity for any retailer. The customers are actually desperate to buy something.
Consider this intensity when putting together your own future Holiday sales campaigns. You may not have a PS3, but there are many other forms of blitz sales and low pricings. Advertise a limited product or create extreme sale day with a small window of time. Remember, you need to get people in the door. Do not worry about loosing money on these low sale periods. The traffic of customers will make up for the margins.
About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online provider of store fixtures new solutions. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

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About The Author:

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online provider of retail display fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com. null

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