A month before Christmas, merchants begin to prepare for the main sales date. With the advance of vaccination and the reduction in the number of cases and deaths by Covid, the expectation is that this is the Christmas of recovery.
“It is the first Christmas that people are going to get closer to, and businessmen who suffered from sales during the most critical period of the pandemic are excited,” says Ariadne Mecate, a consultant at Sebrae-SP.
She warns that it is important that shopkeepers prepare for the date. “You can’t wait for the consumer, because it may be that, when he discovers your company, he will have already made his purchases.”
The consultant claims that 95% of purchases are motivated by emotion and, therefore, having professionals prepared to sell their products, offering tastings and having a good showcase can help in converting sales.
For consultant Antonio Wrobleski, the expectation is that at least half of consumers who started shopping online in the pandemic will return to physical stores this Christmas.
“But online will still be on the rise, as many people have lost their fear of buying online due to the pandemic,” says Thaís Leonel, a digital marketing consultant.
With the return of physical purchases, the entrepreneur must prepare the stock and invest in a good mix of products, according to Leandro Sobrinho, a specialist in business management and entrepreneurship.
Below, see the consultants’ tips to improve Christmas sales.
Logistics
About 13 million people usually leave to shop in the last week before Christmas, according to the consultant at Sebrae-SP. If you don’t have ready-to-deliver products and you haven’t planned, you may miss out on good opportunities
Competition virtual
Even if you don’t sell over the internet, you can use the digital environment in favor of your physical store. For this, keep the social networks updated, with information about products, promotions and values. Create a merchandise catalog to send to customers
Product mix
Almost 60% of customers buy on impulse, says Mecate, from Sebrae. Having a wide variety of merchandise can help to hook a portion of these consumers. This is because, if the customer arrives at the store with the intention of buying an item and is faced with a good mix of products, he ends up buying more. A tip is to make a gift kit
Emotion
Smell, taste and touch play a fundamental role when shopping. So, invest in tasting. Experimentation increases sales by 20%, according to Mecate
Packaging
On this date, the package can be a differential to attract customers. Even people who are going to buy just a souvenir want a beautiful package, to enhance the gift. It’s worth leaving options on display in the window to draw consumers’ attention
Training
It is important that your sellers know in depth what products are being sold. In this way, he can offer other items that can complement the purchase.
Disclosure
It is important to start by promoting services or promotions to those who are already your customers, via messages or email. Understand which other places your clientele circulates and then try to advertise in those places. They can be, for example, stores that are not competitors, beauty salons, doctors’ offices. Then expand to other audiences, advertising in neighborhood groups and through other merchants
Partnerships
Small business owners who do not have so many resources to invest in advertising can join together to grow together. The idea is to offer a discount or freebie to the partner’s customer, who must do the same at their establishment.
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