Feb 1, 2023

Ideas to Boost Foot Traffic for Your Retail Business

Identifying chances to increase foot traffic is one of the most crucial strategies to improve store performance, whether you're a first-time retailer, a seasoned retailer, or an experienced merchant merely looking to boost sales. 

The number of customers in your store at any particular time is referred to as foot traffic. Measuring foot traffic may tell you a lot of information about your retail business, such as how effectively your marketing efforts are working, whether you are properly staffing your store, and how to make your business more proficient. 

With this in mind, what measures do you have in place to help your retail business increase foot traffic in the days, weeks, months, and even years ahead? Discover 5 methods for capturing more consumer attention through strategic, engaging approaches that assist in increased client visits to your store in the sections below. 

Maintain the appearance of your shop

Your storefront's curb appeal can be dramatically improved with a fresh coat of paint. Nobody wants to walk into a store with dirty windows or flaking paint, so stay on top of these maintenance tasks. 

Certain duties, like sweeping your storefront and cleaning your windows, should be completed on a daily basis, but others should be completed every few months or years. A good paint job, for example, can last for years. 

Take a step outdoors and take a look at your store from the outside. Examine the physical state of your windows, doors, and walls to determine what needs to be fixed. Daily maintenance duties (such as sweeping and glass washing) should be assigned to workers. You might have your employees rotate through different roles, or you could engage a third party to keep your storefront up to date for you. 

Create in-store encounters that are enjoyable

Customers do not always shop with the intention of making a purchase, they also shop occasionally just to enjoy the experience of shopping in general. Make the most of this reality by creating memorable in-store experiences for your customers. Encourage people to interact with one another while they are at your store. 

Create interactive displays that allow shoppers to touch items. Display product demos throughout your store. You may use technology to entertain, enlighten, and even assist clients while they are shopping. The goal is to provide clients with opportunities to be stimulated outside of their normal retail navigation. 

Invest in employee development

When compared to other stores, you can have the prettiest shop, the newest gimmicks, and the most intriguing discounts, but if your employees provide bad customer service, you will struggle to attract customers. 

Retailers invest a lot of money in marketing to persuade consumers to buy their items, but if customer service isn't handled properly in the shop, all of that money is squandered. Poor customer service can lead to the cancellation of purchase, as well as unfavorable social media shaming and brand ruination. 

Train your employees — If you have any customer service training in place, make sure your employees are familiar with it. What if you don't have one? Then engage an experienced specialist to train your employees for a day. 

Make sure your personnel have a "mental" suit of armor and are aware that not all consumers will be pleasant. Your employees need to care – Greet each customer as though they were delivering a million dollars of business to your store.

Have a Online presence

People are spending more time online, whether they like it or not. You can either whine about how the Internet is driving consumers away from your establishment, or you can take advantage of it. 

As a result, establish an e-commerce presence. Create a website that displays your catalog and allows customers to browse and purchase it. Not only will this increase your chances of making sales; it will also increase brand awareness and foot traffic. 

Interact with local community

When it comes to running their stores, retailers can be easily sidetracked by their never-ending to-do lists – especially given the competitive nature of the industry. Thus, do not lose sight of your target consumer audience, particularly your local neighborhood. 

More consumers can be gained via networking outside of store hours, participating in community activities, hosting locally-inspired events, and remaining connected in your community. 

Also, identify any locally produced things you sell through in-store signage and internet marketing. Using this local flavor to attract customers and increase sales is a good idea.

Ideas to boost foot traffic for your retail cannabis business

The burgeoning cannabis industry is expanding markets and raising demand. So, the next challenge will be figuring out how to market your stuff. What can you do to improve foot traffic at your dispensary? 

Attracting new customers is critical if you want your brand and business to expand. The goal is to increase daily visitors to your store, so you must optimize the benefits of your location while also taking steps to offset any negatives. 

How can you create a strategy that works across the board, despite differing regulations? You must be able to build new relationships and attract new customers on a regular basis because no company can keep all of its current customers. 

Location, traffic, visibility, parking, and proximity to similar retailers are just a few factors that could influence your dispensary's marketing plan. 

To learn more about your clients, to persuade them to shop with you, and to ensure that they are aware of your existence, consider the following strategies:

Invest in your company's image

Every cannabis dispensary wants to increase foot traffic, and one of the best ways to do it is to use your brand to attract clients. 

There is more to branding than a name and a logo when it comes to reflecting your culture, mission, and aesthetics. The store's design, layout, merchandise, employee interactions, and overall attitude will all communicate the dispensary's brand. 

If you do not know where the bullseye is, you will not be able to hit it. Begin the branding process as soon as you are ready to start your dispensary, while you are deciding on a location and shop-fitting. Then, using the same logo, make sure you are seen in a memorable and consistent manner. 

When potential clients think of visiting a dispensary, you want them to think of your brand. ‍

In other words, every retail store or dispensary should have a strategy in place to make the shopping experience and brand as enjoyable and memorable as possible. When they need to buy similar items in the future, your consumers will look for that satisfaction. 

Consider your audience

Knowing your brand is vital, but knowing your customers is much more so. So, who exactly are your clients? 

Identifying the types of clients you expect throughout this stage and understanding who they are and what they are searching for is a good idea. Investigate this and share the results with your budtenders and anyone that engages with clients on a regular basis. Increase traffic and return customers by using the proper voice and approach. 

Make the most of special occasions, holidays, and consumer groups

Taking advantage of unique occasions, holidays, and client groups is a terrific way to boost dispensary foot traffic and general buzz! You might provide discounts to keep existing clients and attract new ones to your dispensary during these periods. 

Make it intriguing by theming your special to the celebration in question, rather than offering generic specials for holidays or events. A funny and smart pun is something that everyone enjoys. Because you never know what your competition will come up with after your events, make your activities one-of-a-kind. 

‍Make sure your promos and offerings are available at certain locations throughout the venue during this time and plan for delivery, curbside collection, and in-store pickup. 

Finally, make use of online menus to promote special events, holidays, or specials. Also, make sure to promote your events on social media, your website, and as many local sources as possible, including an ad in your local event guide. 

Offer deals that are in line with the times

Certain trends and goods might propel themselves into the upper echelons of consumer desire for unforeseen causes. 

Don't miss out on the opportunity to bring people to your dispensary if you see this happen! By upgrading your customer-facing platforms with obvious promotions and incentives, you can make it known to everyone that you provide unexpectedly popular products. 

Another example of how supplying unique or varied items can help you attract new clients is through product differentiation. 

Take into account your marketing plan

If you want to improve foot traffic to your dispensary, you should rethink your entire marketing plan. 

There are many dispensary tools to choose from, but it is best to concentrate on the ones that will help you achieve your objectives. Billboards or signs, flyers or adverts with instructions, and digital marketing are examples of traditional and digital marketing approaches that operate well as attraction agents.

Sika is a co-founder and the Chief Executive Officer here at Uncut Lab. She leads the sales, business development, and marketing efforts of the company.