If youre running a retail business or wanting a start-up, its always good to know the ins and outs of the industry and what is required to keep you ahead of competitors, continue growth and adding value.
With any business big or small, established, or new its important that you have a clear plan and strategy for what goals you wish to achieve and how you plan to achieve them. There are four key factors that need to be considered as the foundation to any business, especially retail.
Firstly, What is Retail Marketing?
Marketing is an important role in any business success, its the process of bringing your product or service directly to the customer. Marketing of any product involves planning, promotion, and presentation. Having a unique product or service is the first step to any business foundation with additional components to marketing such as the packaging, competitive pricing, and sales campaigns.
The Four Key Principles of Retail Marketing Success
Product
Simply put, before any business can start marketing, there needs to be a product that you are launching or rebranding within the industry. Whether the product is physical or intangible, it’s important to create a complete item, thinking of all the details that make up the product, most importantly packaging.
No product can be sold without packaging, for example the bottle the cream comes in, the box that protects the bottle all those finer details are what can make or break a product, its all about quality and deliverance. Your packaging should tie in with the product and your brand/business aesthetic. Having premium packaging for your product will only benefit you and your sales. It will make consumers remember the brand and think highly of it.
Take into consideration these guidelines to help you determine the product and how you want it to look.
- Know your demographic
- Low-cost packaging can still look personalized and chic
- The packaging should be part of the experience
- Eco-friendly options be considerate of the wastage
Price
When it comes to pricing there are several factors that have to be taken into account, such as overhead expenses, competitors, profit, demand, demand in the market and the market conditions. Finding a happy medium of a price will have a positive impact on your sales.
Two pricing methods that are commonly used by any business owner
- Cost-plus pricing
- Value-based pricing
Cost-plus pricing is a determination to find your break-even price for the product/service and adding a mark up of how much profit you wish to make on each product.
In other words, its the cost of materials + cost of labor + overhead = Total cost to produce the products. This amount is then added to the profit percentage you wish to make which will give you the final sale price of the product.
Value-based pricing is an estimate of how much your product is worth to customers, with this strategy you are appealing to the customers emotions, which in most cases especially in fashion and niche markets are high.
This type of method is fitting for products that have varying levels of value and demand in the market. This benefits retail owners as the higher prices will bring in higher profits.
Place
Like the saying goes location, location, location!
You might have the best product in the world, but if it’s out of reach to your customers then that could have an impact on sales. With various distribution channels available you have various options to place your product in front of your customers. Choosing the right channel is important as you must keep your target audience in mind and the shops they use.
Depending on your product, it can be simple but not always easy to get your products on the frontline of retail stores. Keynote of getting your product out there:
- Perfect the custom packaging
- Research retailers available and which fit your product
- Practice how you are going to approach the stores to sell your product for added convenience, consider installing cart corrals in your parking lot
Promotion
Lastly and most important is promoting your product/service. Retail marketing is about communicating with consumers finding out what interests them and what they expect in a product or service like yours.
The way you promote your product is all dependent on the type, you can go the traditional way for advertising, or you can use influencer marketing. With any marketing strategy and promotion having a clear understanding of who your target audience is and how best you can reach them is important.
Brands are continuing to grow and evolve and as competitors try one up on each other it all comes down to creativity for your promotion. What are you planning on doing that will stand out from the rest and attract more potential customers?
Its important for any business owner to be successful and make a profit, these four principles will get you on the right path to success whether youre starting out or well established and need to make a few changes. The market is always changing so staying ahead will give you a leg up and this will impact the growth of your business as well as adding value in the future.
Author Bio
Jennifer Anderson – LinkedIn Profile
Jennifer Anderson is a Senior Valuer at Valuations QLD and an Associate of the Australian Property Institute. With over 20 years experience, Jennifer is dedicated to providing specialized valuation services across residential, commercial and industrial real estate to her ever growing client base. Academically, Jennifer holds a Bachelor of Property and has had a hand in designing training programs for onboarding valuers and often speaks at her local TAFE as a guest lecturer.
