Image Credit: Fotolia
Your storefront is essentially your window to the world. When this is not appealing, it is easy for potential customers to keep walking until they find a store that really draws their eye. You do not want to lose valuable foot traffic by neglecting your storefront. Here are 3 tips to a professional storefront.
Clean Up and Maintenance
This is a big thing that people overlook. They will paint and remodel, but do not think about sweeping up once a day. You need to keep the front of your store clean. Think about it. If you live in a big city, many of the storefronts are full of litter and have a rather unpleasant smell. A quick sweep and hose down once a day will eliminate this. You want people to be drawn to your store and feel welcomed once they hit the front door. You also want to clean the windows and power wash the front of your store with the change of seasons. This will help to keep things clean.
About once a year you want to make necessary repairs. The summer time is best for this because of weather conditions. You want to make sure that any chips in paint are fixed, any old wood is replaced and anything else that needs a little help is replaced or repaired. Your storefront should look excellent every day of the year. A worn down storefront is an easy way to repel customers.
Your Window Display
While you do not have to create the displays shown around the holidays in New York City storefronts, you still want your window display to draw the eyes of those walking or driving past. For example, if you have a furniture store then set up a room at the window that people can envision themselves living in. Living rooms or bedrooms are a popular choice. Be sure to fully decorate and accessorize as you would a room in your home. If you have a candle store you can do the same thing. Set up a nice display showing some of your most popular candles. Add some flowers and other items to accent these and make it appealing. You also want to go with a color scheme regardless of what you are selling.
You will probably use your door for this, but you also want your contact information on full display. You want customers to know your phone number, email address and website address. Some customers may not have time to stop in if they are in a hurry, but having this information keeps your store in their mind so they will stop by later when they have some free time.
Advertising
You are going to have various sales and specials throughout the year. You want to advertise these in a way that is noticeable, but also fits into your window decorating. This is where it is worth putting out a few extra bucks to ensure that you get professional signs that look good and are not cliché. You can work these into your window display. You can also put out a sidewalk sign if your city allows these. When you have a sale or special, you want people to know. Many new customers will come to you when they notice a sale going on. Then, if they like the product they will be back for more.
Links for Readers
- http://smallbusiness.chron.com/retail-storefront-31770.html
- http://www.tri-citiesbusinessbuilder.com/home/tri-cities-busienss-builder-blog/2012/02/08/3-quick-tips-to-increase-the-appeal-of-your-business
- http://www.showmummythemoney.com.au/mastering-visual-merchandising.htm
- http://retail.about.com/od/storedesign/a/create_display.htm
About Author: Julianne Parrish is a mother of one beautiful daughter. She loves spending time with her and catching up on reading otherwise. Julianne also likes reviewing sites like Optiva, which specialize in custom LED signage.
