A lot of business managers and leaders think that location is the primary determinant of footfall – and they’d be right. Where you set up your store primarily determines how many people will visit it.

But we should point out that this is by no means a universal phenomenon. While some stores depend heavily on passing traffic, we can all point to out-of-town retail stores that generated their own footfall. Firms can adopt other strategies to get more people into their stores.

Is your footfall weak? Do you wish more customers would come through the front doors? If so, take a look at some of these strategies you can use to attract punters and sell your products.

Arrange Demos

Arranging a demo outside the front of your store isn’t always practical. But if it is possible, then it can be a great way to drum up interest in what you sell.

Don’t assume that your customers understand how every product you sell works. Even though it might seem obvious, people can’t always imagine the value that they can get. It often takes a professional to showcase what they can achieve. Even something as simple as a frying pan needs a little explanation.

Prioritize CRM

CRM or customer relationship management is a tool that has taken the retail sector by storm. In the past, you’d just passively process people in your store, not collecting any data on them. Today, though, things have changed. The more you know about your customers, the more you can appeal to them through your marketing, and the more likely they are to show up in your store.

CRM is all about discovering how you’re NOT serving your customers. It quickly highlights problems with your processes and enables you to deal with them. You quickly find the issues that are leading people to stay away from your shop and go to your competitors. It’s an essential piece in the puzzle.

Create a Loyalty Scheme

If your store is a little bit outside of the centre of town, then you need to provide incentives for people to come and visit you. If you don’t, then they won’t make the journey, and you’ll miss the opportunity to sell.

Top retailers began offering their customers loyalty schemes many years ago. The idea here is to reward customers who keep coming back, encouraging them to stick with your brand. You can do this in a variety of ways, but usually, it involves offering money off products or building up points. Some coffee shops will give you your sixth cup free.

Improve Your Signage

Store signs not only tell people who you are but also entice them to shop with you. They are, in a sense, a form of visual advertising – a magnet that brings people into your store.

The quality of signage varies massively from retailer to retailer. Some have fabulous signs that stand out on the street and encourage people to come in and browse. Others, however, do little to sell the products inside, or the brand.

Improving your signage, therefore, should be a priority. The better you make it look, the more likely people are to consider trying you out for the first time.

Quality signs are particularly vital if your brand is relatively unknown. You need to give people an immediate reason to take the plunge and try you out. A great sign can provide them with the confidence they need.

Be Different

If there’s one thing that makes a retail business successful, it’s being a little different from the competition.

Lots of retail outlets like to believe that they are a viable alternative to their competitors. Still, only a few can genuinely lay claim to this accolade.

Hollister is an excellent example of a company that does something very different from its competitors in its stores. Unlike most clothing brands, the firm creates a different atmosphere in its shops, lowering the lighting and pumping fragrances through the air conditioning.

Do Local Marketing

Some major brick-and-mortar retailers do nationwide advertising. But the most effective marketing method for improving footfall is local marketing. Ideally, you want to appeal to the people who live near your business, not those who live further afield.

Local marketing can be incredibly simple. It doesn’t necessarily mean advertising in the local paper or on the radio. It could be something like a strategically-placed sign, telling people where they can find your store. For instance, “300 yards on the right” is a good way to direct people who are not familiar with the area to your outlet.