We all need ideas. Some of the ideas that we will be discussing might be new or old to you, however we guarantee you that reading these will give you some insights you can use anyway. One thing for sure is that all of them have worked somewhere or the other, even if some of them may have gotten lost in the shuffle. Every now and then you can use an old idea with a new spin. So, here they are!
1) Get Acquainted Sale: Find out a source where you can get a list of the newest residents and invite them once a quarter or so to a special event. You can name this a “get acquainted sale”, and use the same by offering a special discount (for first time buyers only). Don’t forget to get their e-mails and any other contact information from them.
2) Work on creating a few ads for the next school year designed to go into the school magazine/newspapers in your area. You might even offer a donation to some school fundraiser in return for each sale. Students/teenager are customers of tomorrow and if you have anything that they find interesting, they promote you and your retail space.
3) Begin building a following for a Surprise Special of the Week on a regular day of the week. Avoid advertising any specific products, but work regularly to build the concept via signage and handouts. Make it a special discount, with the idea of getting customers to start thinking of your store each week on that day-just to find out what you might have. On the actual day, post a large banner featuring “Surprise Special of the Week, Available TODAY!
4) Offer a free lesson or class on make-up, scrapbooking, sewing, hair styling, gardening, or a home improvement task or even how to get more effective use out of a product or product line you are selling. The options are limited only by your imagination. When customers get to learn how to get the best use out of your products, they’re more likely to buy more and also become more connected to your business.
5) More Window Advertising: With all the vacant retail space out there, take advantage of the empty windows by approaching landlords in nearby locations to allow you to create a window display in an empty shop window. The landlord benefits by having a better-looking store window with activity and you win by having another free advertising vehicle. Just don’t agree to pay them for the privileged.
6) Consider a FREE offer on after sales service – cleaning or maintenance of the purchased product at your store.
7) Advertise In Unusual And Creative Locations. Link building, which is actually promoting your business on successful websites of other businesses. Also, you can use various locations like – parks, restaurants, etc. again, all are good possibilities. Advertising can be done at bus stops and other transport modes as well. Don’t forget that promoting your store on the bus stop or on the bus itself will get your business viewed by a lot of potential customers that too on a daily basis, whether they take the bus or not. Another way of promoting business is through social causes. As an Example: Businesses can join hands in filling in potholes faster than you can say their TAG LINE. As part of a new marketing campaign, these businesses will receive the right to brand and label potholes with a stencil that says their brand name and tag line. This idea will work for them on a couple of fronts. (1) The city will get many of its potholes filled and paid for. (2) Businesses will get some great advertising on roads and highways every day. Talk about traffic! (3) The Brand will get some great PR and goodwill by taking care of potholes.
8) Promote All Summer or winter. Promote it on any recordings for calls on hold. Promote it with handouts. Promote it on banners and in your window. Promote it on your Tweets, Facebook and your website. But do it with consistency over time! Do what you ask? Promote the fact that on any day when A happens you decide) all merchandise will be ____% off. You can also limit it to a particular type of merchandise such as shorts or tees for apparel stores. Do this with enough regularity over time and sales will build as customers will begin to remember and seek you out on those hot/cold days.
9) Business Card & Books: I’ve seen this one used in my own local bookstore. In this case, the business takes their business cards and places them in every book that relates to their business. Obviously, a computer repair business might put one in every book on the shelf in the library or bookstore about computers.
Talk about target marketing. Wow! And it’s cheap too.
Source: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/nine-budgeted-retail-promotional-ideas-harsh-gupta
