Let's Get Those Feet Moving Towards Your Doors
by Zoe Zorka
The high street business is not dead. Many businesses do thrive in this particular sector and with the right model, you can still gain the level of profits that you want. However, it is a competitive landscape and perhaps more competitive than you might be expecting. You need to take the right steps to ensure that your company does come out on top and ahead of the competition. This is all about whether you can get the right level of foot traffic. A high number of feet walking through your doors will usually translate into a great level of sales. At the very least it’s the starting point to winning over a customer. So, let’s explore some of the ways that you can boost those numbers.
Signage
Arguably one of the first things that you should consider is whether you have the right signage for your business property. This says a lot about your company and you have to use the outdoor signs on your business to send the right message. If you think about it, the signs you choose can provide a range of messages. They can suggest that you are a contemporary business, in-style, on-trend, vintage, friendly or professional. They can even suggest how successful and popular your company is.
You can make different choices here too. Are you planning on keeping your doors open late some nights? If so, then a sign which lights up will help you stand out from the rest of the street. A lot of stores find that this type of design pays off through the busiest shopping seasons.
There are different types of signage too. When you think of signage, you probably imagine a sign attached to a building above the door. But you can be creative. You can add signage to the path outside your property. This is a great choice because you can essentially use it to lead customers through the door.
Maintenance
You do need to ensure that the property is well maintained and we’re thinking specifically about the interior here. It’s important that the building doesn’t look like it has seen better days. Even keeping the windows clean will go along way to sending the right impression. If your building does look dated and worse for wear, it will pay to hire a contractor. They will help you make the necessary changes to ensure that your property looks incredible. If you rent the space, you will need to speak to the owner about these type of changes.
Sometimes it can even be worth moving to a different property where you will be able to make the right first impression immediately. Remember, no one wants to buy from an underdog or a business that doesn’t look like it has the interest of the public. There can be quite a long road to changing a perception like this. However, it all starts with the curb appeal.
Omnichannel Marketing
You probably think that marketing a highstreet store is all about real-world promotion. While this is certainly a large piece of the puzzle, it’s not the full story. You need to think about how you can use digital marketing to your advantage as well.
One of the best ways to do this is to combine different elements and types of promotion in an omnichannel marketing campaign. There are numerous ways to do this. However, one example would be to rent a billboard. These billboards are capable of broadcasting real-time online feeds. Once you have done this you can create a hashtag and work to get it used by your customer base on social media. Promote the tweets using the hashtag on the billboard which will be connected to a campaign that continues in-store. This might sound complex but when it works, it provides fantastic value.
There are simpler ways to do this too. For instance, you can approach it in the other direction using flyers with a hashtag printed on them. In doing so, you can get customers on the street to promote your company online and grow your audience base.
Regardless of which option you choose, you should speak to a marketing team about how to orchestrate this type of campaign the right way.
We hope this helps you understand some of the best ways to increase the level of foot traffic for your company. Take the right steps here and you’ll be amazed by the improvements you see, even over a short period. Remember, if you’re bold, creative and unique, you will see the greatest results.