Selling with Sound

Our senses play no small part in our decision to purchase. Think about how the smell of freshly baked bread, the feel of a soft leather couch, even the colour of a car can influence your choice of purchase. Yet sound is rarely used by retailers to stimulate sales. There is of course a science about how we use music in stores to slow customers down or speed them up, and how the choice of music itself can change the customer’s mood but there is a stage beyond that that is rarely exploited.

The gardening and lifestyle sector can employ sound to sell product better than most other retailers. Themed displays, impulse orientated product and the creative atmosphere within the store all lend themselves to the introduction of sound. With advances in technology we certainly have the ability to bring sounds to any part of the garden centre. Weatherproof speakers and affordable media players mean it’s easy to install a discreet, secure system within any display.

Simple examples as to how this would work could be something as obvious as playing birdsong at the wild bird product display, the sound of happy banter and clinking glasses in the furniture and barbecue area, or the sound of running water near the pond section. But there are even more imaginative things to try.

Many garden centres now merchandise plants by end use, so for example there should be a coastal plant section with all of the plants suitable for such a location. Wouldn’t it add an extra dimension to have coastal sounds there too? Imagine the sound of waves, sand and seagulls… surely this would at the very least make customers stop and smile and perhaps even make them purchase? It would also be a conversation point and a way of differentiating your garden centre from the hundreds of others out there. It doesn’t stop there of course, as that birdsong playing instore could be mimicked by the same sounds playing from the Plants for Wildlife display. Or how about farm sounds emanating from the ubiquitous farm animal ornament display that most garden centres now have? The really is no limit as to how sounds can be used.

So next time you’re planning your merchandising why not look at investing in a few speakers and players, and encourage everyone to come up with some ideas as to how they can add an extra dimension to their displays. With a bit of planning and thought it might get those tills ringing, a noise everyone likes to hear!

Sound like a good idea?

looking After The Bird in the Hand

With so much techie driven information being thrown at us from every angle it is very easy for garden centres to get too wrapped up in QR codes, e-shops and Facebook pages to the detriment of floor sales.

With such a dreadful start to the season, garden centres should be making the most from the dedicated souls that do venture in to their stores.

So it should be back to basics!

Skills such as up-selling, link-sales, effective merchandising and basic customer care should be at the forefront of any business at the moment. Garden centres need to be making the most of - and from - each and every customer that crosses their threshold, as these are customers with a purpose and purchase in mind. They are the seasoned gardeners not the impulse driven, fair weather ones that the sector relies on in good weather. They are the ones who will listen to your advice, and trust and act upon it.

Although the customer count may be down the customer spend should be up as staff should have more time to spend with them and sell to them, utilising all the tricks of the trade plus of course timely and relevant advice.

With less traffic through the store there should be no excuses for shoddy merchandising, not meeting and greeting customers and not practicing the lost art of selling. Apart from everything else it’s good practice and training for when the season does kick off.

Because it really is true about ‘The Bird in the Hand’, now more than ever.

Key points to remember:

• Make sure staff actively engage all customers with a smile
• Never miss an opportunity to up-sell or tag on that added sale
• Get staff to sell themselves as gardening gurus!
• Merchandising should combine inspiration with link-sales
• Don’t drop your prices but do have value promotions
• Don’t complain to customers about how quiet it is – be positive!
• Thank your customers for visiting with a little gift