Top 10 Checklist for Great POS Activity

photo credit: Yoni Freedhoff

In my previous post I talked about the importance of POS activity, especially when marketing in an economic downturn. Here is a simple checklist I put together to act as a guideline of the dos and don'ts for implementing great POS activity:

1. A design that fits perfectly with what the brand represents - can you capture the essence of your brand in just a few words? It might be best to mindmap everything associated with your brand first, to find out the true essense of what you want to communicate. This is then what the design should express. Measure each design proposal against these words.

2. Know your customer - you have to have a clear picture of who you are talking to. Who is your brand here to serve? It can't be just any random person who enters the store. The more specific your defined potential customer, the better you can be at creating a POS activity that captures their attention perfectly.

3. Give your customer something to experience - make it interactive so your customers can get involved and have a more memorable and enjoyable experience.

4. Something to take away - although you would love to convert each visitor to your promotion area into a sale but the fact is that not everyone will buy right away. So give them something to take away and keep you in mind...and please be more creative than a brochure!

5. Clean execution - I know it's a cliche but the truth remains, 'retail is detail', a visual that's off colour here, or a spotlight that's gone out there, it all adds up to create the image of how you are perceived. So make sure your execution is as close to perfect as you can.

6. Dare to be different - each promotional area sees a rotation of brands come and go each week, it all melts into a sea of sameness. So why do brands keep doing the same kinds of promotions? Because it takes courage to be different. What they don't realise is that sameness is just as risky as being different. You risk your promotion being a flop and not being noticed by anybody.

7. Plenty of testers - it costs you time and money to set up a POS activity so the least you should do is make sure there are plenty of products to try out. I have sighed on more than a rare occasion at the effort a brand has made on setting up beautiful POS but have not had the foresight to keep the flow of testers available. Am I really going to buy a RMB500+ bottle of perfume by sniffing at the pump? Hardly.

8. Influential promoters / sales assistants - at POS they are the face of your brand, they are the bearer of your message. Make sure they have the right training, presentation and attitude and subsequently say the right things about your brand. And in a market like China where 70% of purchase decisions are made in-store, your sales assistants have a critical role in making or breaking the sale.

9. High traffic location - Don't waste time and money if the location is in a low traffic part of the store, you will not get the exposure you need. The space needs to be in a key traffic corridor where people cannot help but notice you. Be careful with spaces too close to entrances / exits as they are often drafty in winter and too hot in summer and customers are not in the mood for perusing and sampling your products when they do not feel comfortable.

10. Support from the store itself - get all the free support you can from the store itself. You are in the same boat, they want you to do more sales so they will in turn benefit. They have many resources at their disposal from the usual instore / outdoor banners and billboards, window displays and elevator light boxes to store VIP mailing lists, magazines and instore speaker announcements.

China on a Shopping Spree

photo credit: yogma

There was a telling article yesterday in Time Magazine online about China's recent shopping spree around the world. The Chinese government has a wallet bursting full of cash, $2 trillion to be precise, to buy everything from non-branded commodities to flashy branded cars. In the current economic climate, the Chinese state entourage is a welcome sight for country hosts as all are eager to be lavished with some red Maoist money. I find the picture quite ironic, since here back in China it is the foreigner who casually flicks a coin in the pan of the poor Chinese man. Anyway, here's a quick summary of the top 5 recent spends by country:
1. Russia $25billion (loan to state owned oil co.)
2. Brazil $10billion (loan to state owned oil co.)
3. Germany $10billion (incl. $2.2billion worth of BMWs and Mercedes)
4. Great Britain $2billion (incl. 13,000 Jaguars)
5. Spain $320million (incl. gallons of olive oil)

This is a telling sign where the wealth in the world now lies. The spending at government level is reflected also at consumer level where the majority still say they will spend more this year than last - probably the only people in the world to say this right now! However, the nature of goods and brands spent on will differ. There will be more trading down and looking for more value for money, which could mean in some categories, like home appliances and household daily items, people will switch to reputable brands that offer a more competitive price. However, in times of recession, people do still need the little luxuries in life, so sales of beauty products are expected to continue to prosper, but consumers will be more discerning, which means it is imperitave to get all your marketing and communications right...relying more and more on effective in store which can help drive your bottom line up.