When you’re in the grocery business, one way to differentiate yourself from your competitors is through consistent and clear branding. How you display your goods can have a profound effect on your customer’s perception of that brand.
People like consistency. Consistent branding makes customers feel like they’re in the right place and can trust you to deliver on what your brand promises them.
This is especially important since your customers are literally comparing apples to apples. Here are my thoughts on how you can make yours look better than the ones down the street.
1. Reduce visual “noise”
Product displays, signage, marketing materials and merchandise all combine to produce a visual impact designed to compel your customers to purchase… but having too much visual stimulation becomes noise, contributing to the anxiety many feel when shopping for groceries.
The best way to reduce visual clutter is to take care when displaying your merchandise. Create displays with nice flowing lines and seamless transitions between cases so your customers can focus on your products without needless distractions.
2. Make everything sparkle
A store where the displays are dusty, dirty and full of smudgy fingerprints isn’t appealing to anyone, and is certainly not something you want to have associated with your brand!
To help keep your store on-brand and your products looking their best, invest in displays that are simple and easy to clean (our display cases, for example, have easily removable base deck panels for easy cleaning and service). Employees tend to cut corners when cases are complicated (e.g. need tools) or difficult to care for.
3. Show your products in their best light
When displaying your products, lighting that mimics nature is more appealing — and customers expect the food they purchase to look the same once they get it home from the store.
Most people don’t think twice about lighting, but if you’re in the grocery business having display lights that are the right color and temperature is crucial for each food item to look its best. (This is why our lighted display cases have LED lighting located under the top ledge and under each shelf, with various LED color corrections and light intensities available, making them fully customizable.)
It’s also important to make sure you have enough lighting and that it’s directed at the products themselves — after all, they’re the star of the show!
4. Have accurate (and sufficient) signage
Signs help customers identify and remember your brand, navigate your store and make purchasing decisions. They can also help tell a story.
In addition to promoting sales and special promotions, good signage can influence shopping behavior and encourage impulse buying — so make sure your signs are clear, accurate and placed strategically throughout your store.
5. Make sure your displays are shopper-friendly
Self-serve displays should be easy for customers to access — not too tall and not too deep. They should also be easy for employees to restock, so your displays always look fresh and abundant.
Remember that simple is always best. Let the natural goodness of your products speak for themselves. Simple displays also tend to be more flexible (like our Fresh Go Bins and complementary Market Bins) making it easier for you to reconfigure your store’s layout at a moment’s notice.
In addition to being “shopper-friendly,” good displays should also represent your brand and fit the aesthetics of your primary customer’s demographic. Value-conscious shoppers, for example, would feel intimidated if their bargain store suddenly felt more high-end. They would think: “Am I in the right place?”
6. Customize your display cases
The last thing you want in an industry where competition is fierce and the products are virtually identical is a store with “me-too” shelf and display designs. If everything looks and feels the same, customers won’t be able to distinguish one store brand from another — making it difficult, if not impossible, to create a sense of brand loyalty.
Simple things, like using your store’s colors and adding subtle “lipstick” features, can achieve this. Cayuga’s platform design concept uses common base platforms with the ability to easily add an element of customization. We offer a wide variety of standard lengths, depths, heights, options and finishes. For example, on many refrigerated cases we offer up three depths, five standard lengths (which can be joined together to make any length), three interior finishes as well as a variety of exterior colors, patterns and wood grain finishes.
This gives our clients an easy way to customize their displays without custom costs!
You need to have more than a brand identity…
You have to showcase your products in a way that supports your identity and gives customers what they expect from your brand. Do that and your store will be supported by a large group of satisfied and loyal customers.
At Cayuga Displays, we bring your brand to life with thoughtfully designed food retail displays, so you can delight your customers and increase in-store sales — all within your budget and timelines. It’s how we “Elevate the Experience” for you.
If you’d like some ideas on how to use displays to enhance your brand’s identity and create a good first impression, reach out and book a consultation or just give us a call… whether you’re thinking of upgrading a single department, transforming your entire store or just have a question or two, we’re here to help!
