Festive seasons make the merchandise fly off the shelf soaring the sales figures. Your warehouses are abuzz with the over-time working workforce. Some products move faster out of the warehouse, and some slow-moving stock remains in a section of the warehouse floor. After the close of the festive season, you may find that your stockpiles have excess inventory ordered for the season and there is also not-so-popular slow-moving merchandise lying on the warehouse floor.
Although the business goes, as usual, the sales figures are sluggish indicating the customers are holding themselves back after exhausting their budget during the festival shopping spree.
Every retailer faces this scenario post a holiday season. So, what’s the solution? How to bring the customer back to you and gear up your retail sales?
Here are 5 simple yet effective ideas to expedite the sales after the season. You can try them all or combination of them to suit your business model and product categories.
- Bundle them up
Bundle popular and not-so-popular products in an attractive offer and launch a post-season sale. The bundled offer is appealing to those who missed the season sale and to those who are looking for value shopping. You can extend the offer until you are clear of the excess stock. The bundled offer also works for those who want to stock up for any other occasion in the family or neighbourhood. You can decide the product mix in the bundled offer depending on what you want to push through the sales channel.
- Use multi-channels effectively
You can mull over adding one or more sales channels to your already existing sales platforms. Every channel has a specific type of customers visiting it. You can effectively place your product to attract new customer base and create a sales pipe for future too.
- Be omnipresent through innovative touch points
New-age customers are very choosy about how and when they want to interact with the brand. The best way to keep the customers (new and old alike) interested is to be present wherever your customers move digitally. Leverage the technological advancements by employing PPC, personalised subscription offers, messages or emails, style updates, invite to the new store etc.
- Loyalty programs
Loyalty programs like reward points, additional discounts for patrons, or more payment options create interest in your regular customers to check out the product and visit your digital or physical sales channel.
- Consistent marketing initiatives
When were you busily interacting with customers before and during the festive season why leave them alone after the season? Marketing activities need not go in the dark after the season. Continue creating touch points and interacting with your new and old customers consistently. The more customer mind-share means, the more market-share eventually.
After the season of festivities wane, it’s time to innovate new marketing pursuits and follow up with your shoppers. That’s how a brand can sustain the post-season sales slump and gear up for future sales.