Field merchandising can take on many forms, but predominantly merchandisers make sure stock is available and well placed on the shop floor for the consumer to see. Merchandisers can check stock levels by checking the store systems, make sure all products are placed out on the shop floor, or by going into the warehouse and unboxing products if necessary. Once the product is on the shop floor, a merchandiser will make sure that the product is placed in the best possible vantage point, make sure all POS is correctly placed and that the product is clean and tidy. So it will be the first product the customer will see when entering the store, and if the product looks good, customers are more likely to buy that product.

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Point of sale can have enormous benefits when designed correctly. If the design is poor and the thought process for designing it minimal it becomes confusing for the customer and can in fact, have the opposite effect.

Here are two examples of how it can differ. Both are designed to advise the customer on an electrical appliance but one is far superior and will inform the customer of the product more effectively.

First of all I want to raise the guidance given to staff by companies, quite rightly they ask them to talk to the customer about how a product will benefit. The benefit tells them what the feature will do for them; a feature may be limited in its ability to educate the customer by revealing its use. Despite this, some retail outlets persist in creating customer information in the form of point of sale which refers only to the feature, totally contradicting the sales training they give to staff.

Consider the picture below, POS for a camera. Unless they have previously completed their own research about the product or have a technical background, would the customer know why they should select a camera with 72 mega pixels as opposed to one with more or less?

Is ‘compatible with PRO Duo’ an important feature? Only the customers that know what ‘PRO Duo’ is would know the answer to that. What about 3x optifocal zoom and 6x digital zoom, will every prospective customer know if they need it? It leads me to ask the question ‘What’s the point’ of point of sale that doesn’t tell the customer anything. Perhaps the thought process is to encourage the customer to ask a member or staff. Easy for the confident customer to do if they can find a member of staff, but what about the unconfident customer who may feel foolish if they admit to having little knowledge about the product.

In my mind the presence of the feature indicates that the author is concluding that the reader should already know the benefit. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news – some don’t and any store displaying such POS could potentially alienate customers and lose sales.

If we compare the POS on the picture below a key feature with its benefits is displayed clearly and boldly. Straight away the customer is informed how the large 1.8” screen and easy to use interface on the MP3 video player will benefit them.
Following on key features are displayed as icons with a simple clear associated benefit.

Reading this information has given me a much greater knowledge of the product. As a customer I can make a more informed decision to buy or decide if the product is suitable or insufficient for my needs without the help of a sales person.

This is a great example of simple and effective point of sale with ‘a point’.

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Be specific Make sure your feedback is clear and focused on the performance and don’t personalise it. Explain what the problem is, why it important that the employee achieves the performance expected. If you have raised your concerns before about the same problem, remind the employee when you have pointed out the offence in the past. Simply telling them what was wrong won’t help them change their behaviour, discuss how the employee can improve or avoid the mistake in the future, get their input. Make sure you add a time frame when you want to see the improvement by.  

Give timely feedback. Make the individual aware of what they did as soon as you can after the event, so they can recall what as happened. However be aware of their emotional state, before you give the feedback, perhaps you may need to wait until the employee has calmed down and can think clearly about what has happened. But don’t wait days or weeks, to provide feedback, when the problem has become a distant memory and don’t save telling the person until you have your next meeting, this could turn your meetings into a negative event.  

Check understanding. When summarising back to the employee, avoid asking ‘Do you understand’ they may merely say ‘yes.’ Ask them to summarise back to you, what you want them to do to improve, and when you want to see the improvement by, this way you know that they have understood what was said.

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In response to a question from Sarah of ContractStore, Christine has written up some tips to help her prepare for her exhibition.

Here’s Sarah’s question:

The thing I find really difficult is understanding about the electrics and lighting, the shell scheme extras like walls and ceilings, and shelving etc. How do we know whether to buy it (at sometimes seemingly exorbitant prices) from the show organisers or if we can get our own? How to understand all the terms and lingo they use, and how to know if you are ordering the right lighting etc.

Here’s Christine’s response:

Your email gave me a flash back to the planning stages of our first ever exhibition. There are so many things to think about and budget restrictions to adhere to.

My initial reaction was ‘if they are suggesting we buy it we must need it!’

Not the case at all - let’s consider each area step by step

1. First of all you will no doubt have a budget in mind - keep to it, it’s very easy to overspend with things you think you many need.
2. Work with the exhibition organisers to get the best space you can - one where there will be plenty of traffic flow in the direction of, or passing by your stand. Ask them for their suggestions and look at the floor plan which should be available to you.
3. Identify what you get for your money - what is included in the package. In many instances, carpeting, lighting and signage will be included. We made the mistake of ordering additional lighting for an exhibition - we could have saved the money because the lighting included in the price was ample. We were all very close to wearing sun glasses it was so bright! The lighting supplied in the pack price will probably be directional spot lights. I would only suggest that you purchase additional spots if this isn’t the case and you needed to really highlight something on your stand or illuminate dark areas created by the props you’d be taking.
4. Electric sockets/telephone connections - will you need them to operate equipment on your stand? Find out how many will be supplied within the pack price and work out how many you need. Be aware that health and safety plays a huge part at exhibitions and you will no doubt have to provide a risk assessment. Ask for sockets to be positioned so that you won’t have to rely on extension leads which could prove hazardous. Do you need internet access if so would a mobile facility suffice?
5. The name board on the front of your stand. Take advantage of this - make sure the exhibition company has the correct spelling of your company name so visitors can locate you.
6. Walls and ceilings and floors - it depends on your display design. If you don’t need to hang anything from a ceiling point don’t select one, visitors won’t be looking up. Shelving for walls could be an asset if you have small items to display or want to store stock or catalogues, samples etc. But make sure they offer enough support. Carpets may generally be supplied. When you are offered the opportunity to purchase alternative carpeting perhaps to match your brand, consider if it really is worth it. It could be an unnecessary cost. We very nearly opted for a carpet to match our branding and were pleased we didn’t when we got there, it would have looked odd against the rest of the flooring in the hall and made us stand out for the wrong reasons.
7. Leaflet dispensers - if you’ve got leaflets I’d suggest a leaflet dispenser, either borrow or buy. Make sure it is prominently displayed and easily accessible. Worst case scenario if you don’t get to speak to a visitor is that they can select your brochure/leaflets for themselves and contact you later if they need your services.
8. In respect of whether to buy or rent furniture and fixtures, it is dependent on your own circumstances. A huge consideration though to help you make that decision could be how you will transport the items to and from the exhibition, how will you store it afterwards and if you can offset the cost of purchasing items at future shows/exhibitions, or even in the office. At a recent exhibition we decided to buy. We already had the need to hire a van for display boards so we had the transport required. Secondly we have sufficient storage space here. Finally the cost to purchase (from Argos) was comparable to renting and we knew we would be able to use the items again and spread the cost. Just remember if its ‘flat pack’, to take your screw drivers and allow yourself plenty of time to assemble it! Also think about storing the packaging until the exhibition is over. You will need to repackage the items to prevent damage - can you keep it in the van perhaps?
9. Something many forget is storage of brochures, samples, branded free gifts, and simple things like handbags. If you can incorporate a lockable cupboard on your stand it will be invaluable to you. We managed to hide ours behind a display board. A cupboard is tidier and safer than boxes and piles of stock. If you are taking branded items think about ordering those which will be easier to transport and store on the stand. A box of 20 branded mugs will take the storage same space as about 1000 branded key rings, USB’s or pens!
10. During your planning stages I would suggest you find an open space where you can layout the floor space you have available. You can then map out to scale where everything will go. It’s a task well worth completing because believe me when you get there, the stand never seems as big as you thought it was going to be!
11. Oh and finally from experience ladies - take a change of shoes and some foot cooling spray, you’ll be glad you did! Good luck!

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Sean describes how to increase sales at point of purchase:

Here are the notes to go with the video:

5 tips on how to produce successful point of purchase solutions

1. The first thing you need to do is check the compliance issues of the stores that you’re citing your displays within, check the criteria because they vary form one outlet to the next. Secondly, undertand the target audience. Understand and research them thoroughly.
2. Secondly, understand the target audience. Understand and research them thoroughly.
3. Thirdly, make sure you that you portray a clear brand message with the display that you design. Make sure you put over the essence of the brand correctly and that it’s clear and to the point.
4. Forth, simplicity of design. Make sure the design of the unit or point of sale display is simple, they are by far the most successful units in store. Don’t make it too complicated because it won’t work. Keep the wording to the point. Make it simple and clear. Use pictures because people won’t always read it.
5. Finally, allow time for mishaps. Because when you’re developing something bespoke, even though you may have prototypes signed off, there’ will always be something that could crop up during manufacture.

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Christine gives some tips to help improve your confidence when selling:

Here are the notes to go with this video in case you are unable to watch it:

How can ensure a sales person is confident to sell your brand instore

1. The first thing you need to do, is make sure they fully understand your brand values - This might be
   • key selling points
   • target market
   • ethical values
2. Next, make sure they fully understand your product. In order to do that, demonstrate it to them, let them use it so they understand good demonstration techniques that they can pass on to the customer.
3. Next, make sure they fully understand your key selling points. Whatever these selling points are, you’ve got to link them to benefits. There’s no point in talking to a customer about a feature - they need to know what will it do for me.
4. Finally - show them how easy it is to sell. Demonstrate how you would sell it, and go through a sales process so they feel totally comfortable, and can sell the product with confidence.

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Does the channel or business model make any difference to the level of acceptable customer service?

Jeremy writes that online stores should not bother with an extensive customer support service and offer a simple return service only. I.e. if you don’t like it, send it back.

In my opinion, it depends on a number of factors…

• How competitive is the market?
• Is your business model cut price self service or luxury?
• Is the item a low value commodity or a high value purchase?
• What channel are you using for the sale?
• Are you hoping for an ongoing customer relationship?

In the case of an online store - the majority of the work involved in achieving the sale and completing the order is automated. The customer can browse the store without a member of staff checking whether they need help or if they are shoplifting. Detailed product information and even reviews or customer feedback is available to help the customer with the decision. The purchase processing is automated, confirmation emails and estimated delivery dates or tracking can be automated. And depending on the nature and set-up, much of the logistics can be automated.

So when customer has a query - I would be inclined to agree with Jeremy - it may be simpler to continue the theme. With an automatically generated returns slip and refund procedure.

On the other hand - a retail store would need to staff a store with a number of people to complete a sale, so whereas a customer services team would need to be specifically employed if you wanted to offer support for an online sale, the existing retail staff needed for the original sale could help with queries - as long as they were trained correctly.

The customer expects different service levels based on the positioning of your brand - in his podcast, Steve Humphrey describes the decision making process and different levels of service required depending on the nature of the purchase. He uses the comparison of buying at Primark compared to Prada.

Customers also expect different service levels if buying a high value product - for example a car. Even in the case of online ordering, you would expect a certain amount of aftersales service.

Marks and Spencer offered a no quibble exchange policy regardless of how long ago the purchase was made, this was promoted as a selling point in the past.

This has now changed to a 90 day return policy for unwanted goods - presumably to reduce exploitation and cut costs.

Jason from good customer services blog suggests that the level of service you provide in retail stores depends also on your behaviour. I would agree that sales staff are likely to be happier to go the extra mile for polite customers.

Let me know your experiences -

• Have you been surprised by exceptionally good or bad service?
• Do you think companies should be able to get away with low customer service if they offer a lower priced product?
• Would a return only policy please you or is it not enough?
  
• What customer service do you offer?
• Have you seen examples of customers exploiting good customer service?

Listen to Steve’s Marketing podcast using this link - I would recommend episode 13 The decision making process, and 7 The Marketing Mix and the scope of Marketing.

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