Learning from the 2022 Back-to-School Retail Season

2022 showed how important the back-to-school spending trend is, with a record high $34.4 billion spent despite the downturn in overall retail sales due to inflation. This year is shaping up to follow this trend, with 38% of consumers saying they are cutting back on other spending to focus on back-to-school purchases. According to the NRF, 56% of consumers are starting their back-to-school shopping as early as July. Starting early means shoppers have time to seek out the best deals. Shopping for dorm essentials and school supplies will continue as students receive their lists from schools, so retailers must be ready for wave upon wave of back-to-school shoppers.

Planogram Maintenance

Planogram maintenance is an essential strategy for keeping up with the record-high numbers of back-to-school shoppers. The RMS Planogram Maintenance Program keeps shelves stocked to capacity, reconciles count inaccuracies with store personnel, and ensures that displays are clean and generally looking their best. Ongoing planogram retail merchandising services reduce out-of-stock events by 23% on average. Consumers who find their desired item out of stock will move on to another brand, so make sure you are ready to get top marks in every wave of back-to-school shopping.

A Back-to-School Retail Strategy for Every Generation

At this moment, every segment of the population is shopping differently. But for everyone from Generation Alpha to Baby Boomers, social media is a big part of the picture. Most of Generation Alpha has had smartphones from a young age and are already heavily engaged in social media before they start shopping for themselves. Generation Alpha is mostly parented by Millennials, who are tuned in to the purchasing desires of their kids as well as their own consumption of social media advertising. Three out of five US parents say they look to their kids for what to buy during back-to-school shopping, while 70% of millennial parents say they’ve purchased products related to their child’s favorite character or show.

Gen Z is now part of the back-to-college shopping population, and they present particular challenges and opportunities for retailers. Brands have to meet Gen Z where they are, which at this point means reaching them on TikTok. Gen Z uses TikTok like Google, searching for products they want directly within the platform. Keywords, hashtags, and optimized content are important for any brand looking to reach Gen Z on TikTok. While Gen Z likes to build their back-to-college shopping list by engaging with social media, 55% of them still prefer to purchase products in-store.

What’s Getting Purchased

It’s no surprise that electronics continue to be a big part of back-to-college shopping. But electronic purchases are now focused more on accessories, with the sale of big-ticket items like laptops falling to 54%, the lowest it’s been since 2017. Clothing and apparel are rising in importance, as college students get used to making a statement for in-person learning. Dorm and apartment furnishings are also on the rise in the minds of Gen Z shoppers, reaching an all-time high of 57%.

Preparing for an Omnichannel Retail Strategy

Brands need merchandising partners with the know-how to meet the expectations of Gen Z shoppers. If an initiative is launched with an influencer, it’s essential that shelves are stocked before shoppers arrive. RMS’s Internal Compliance team is responsible for punctual store visits and maintaining consistent store coverage. The Compliance team audits 100% of photos taken by merchandisers, providing assurance for brands that nothing is missed. We all remember being told to check our work in school: the RMS Internal Compliance team checks the work of merchandisers to make the most of your marketing initiatives.

Consumers from every generation are looking for an omnichannel experience, with seamless transitions between online and in-store shopping. Whether they are Generation Alpha students making their first solo back-to-school purchases or Baby Boomers just warming up to social media, there are opportunities to meet consumers online through influencers that must be consummated with in-store sales. RMS provides customizable solutions for every brand’s strategy.

Contact us today to see what we can do for you!

The post Study Up for the Back-to-School Retail Boom of 2023 appeared first on RMS.

Businesses face new challenges from a strained labor market and inflation. It is important to leverage in-store marketing (ISM) and achieve high execution rates to help customers understand the value of your products and to remove any barriers to getting them in hand.

Read on for more considerations on leveraging store execution to increase sales and maximize profits.

Data Informs a Renewed Focus on Execution Rates

As the United States faces the highest inflation rates it has seen in over 40 years, it is important to understand the impact this has already had and will continue to have on consumers in order to make informed strategic decisions around store execution investments. Here are the facts:

• Foot traffic is on the rise. While consumers still enjoy the convenience of online shopping catalyzed by the pandemic, in-store traffic has seen steady increases since 2021. 
• Spending is up, total products bought are down. While omnichannel consumer spending has continued to rise, households are purchasing fewer goods for more money as they face inflation.
• Discretionary spending is down increasing competition between products to prove their value. 
• Brand “shake up” is trending. There are more consumers switching brands this year than in the past 2, and 90% intend to continue. 
• Value is a priority. Consumers say they are making purchase decisions based on availability and value. It is especially important for premium brands to explain why their product is worth the money.

As consumers face difficult decisions to stay within their budgets and reduce discretionary spending, brands should focus on making their products an easy choice. High merchandising execution rates and ISM help drive consumer purchasing decisions. Products being in stock, easy to find, and callouts for their value all influence a buyer’s decision to reach for your brand. 

Don’t Leave Dollars on the Floor

While brands cannot single-handedly fix inflation, there is still an opportunity to optimize your strategy and maximize your sales. Consider what dollars may have been left on the floor during the good times due to product out-of-stocks, incorrect inventory counts, and poor or non-existent ISM placement due to low execution rates. A third-party audit can be a great step to help increase sales in a flattening sales growth trend.

Keep an Eye for What’s Going on In-Store

Great execution rates set the stage for your retail success. It is essential that your products:

• Make it to the floor, set correctly, and shelves full.
• Have shelf labels and priced correctly
• Displays and ISM are placed correctly and put your products at center stage. 

However, with the ongoing labor shortage, the average execution rate falls around 40% when merchandising is left up to the retailer. As retailers struggle to be fully staffed, a good merchandising partner can help set up products during key store resets and fill the important role of improving retail execution rates by 40-50%. 

Achieve High Store Reset Execution Rates with the Right Merchandising Partner

Improve execution rates and maximize ROI by partnering with merchandising experts such as Retail Merchandising Services during major store resets, display installations, and promotional launches. Focusing investment on a dedicated partner to ensure ISM is appealing and strategically placed, and that products make it to the proper places on the shelf can drive your whole season’s success. Consider finding a great merchandising partner for your next back-to-college plan and future seasonal resets. 

Retail Merchandising Services (RMS) is an experienced retail execution partner. As industry experts, we bring all the knowledge and staffing needed to execute every step of your next major store reset.

Call today to see if we are a good fit!

The post How to Increase Store Execution and Create Successful Retail Resets, Display Installations, and Promotions appeared first on RMS.

But after a year of uncertain shopping patterns and few kids physically present in schools, what can brands and retailers expect? How can they prepare to make this season as successful as possible?

What Retail Trends Can We Expect out of Back to School in 2021?

The forecast is positive. NRF reports that parents with school age children will spend an average of $789.94 family, nearly $100 more than in 2020. On a macro level, total back to school spending is expected to be at an all-time high of $33.9 billion.

But what are these dollars being spent on? In high school and younger:

• 95% of consumers will be purchasing new school supplies
• 93% of consumers are refreshing their wardrobe
• 90% are looking for new shoes
• And 63% are expecting to buy new electronics

Driving these stats are new shopping trends, partly changed by the pandemic and partly by the increased use of social media in teens. Omnichannel shopping will be the big winner this year and it’s not hard to see why. For nearly two years, kids have been stuck at home, figuring out who they are in this new world, and now they’re ready to show off their fresh kicks and “serve lewks.” Parents on the other hand are just happy to have a return to normalcy and are ready to update worn-out clothing and tired colored pencils.

Even though online shopping is more popular than ever, people are ready to participate in “real life” again, which should bring a breath of fresh air to brick-and-mortar retailers.

For brands selling in physical locations, especially big-box retailers now’s the time to put the final polishing touches on your back-to-school strategies. Here are three tips to make sure your brand is capitalizing on the increased foot traffic.

Tip 1: Embrace In-Store Marketing

Brands can take advantage of the return to brick-and-mortar locations by launching in-store promotional campaigns. This will capture eyeballs of eager shoppers and help to drive purchases. If you’re like us, it can be a little overwhelming coming back into fully packed stores, so any way you can get your brand to stand out is going to be a winning strategy in this strange year.

Here are a few ideas for in-store marketing:

• Endcaps and Sidecap Displays: Use attention-grabbing displays to attract shoppers. Think colorful, clear messaging, and even interactive to take full advantage of these prime locations.
• Signage: If a full display is not in the cards this year, embrace signage. In the store’s aisles, on the windows, and whatever other location you’re able to secure. Signs should be visually appealing and direct shoppers to purchase your product on the shelves.
• Instant Redeemable Coupons (IRCs): Don’t forget about marketing directly on your products. Place on-item signage, like IRCs to encourage more sales. This is especially useful this year when people are still keeping an eye on their budgets.
• Bundles: Get creative with your back-to-school inventory. Can you create a bundle of products? People love to feel like they’re getting a good deal and bundles offer that as well as convenience.

Tip 2: Use Digital Channels to Drive Foot Traffic

For years, there’s been chatter about omnichannel shopping and using digital channels to drive in-store traffic. The question isn’t whether it’s important but rather, how?

Here are three tips to increase in-store sales, digitally:

1.  Make it easy for web visitors to find your physical inventory: On your website, include maps, transportation information, and compelling photography. This will make people understand what they have to gain by visiting your products in-store and make it easy for them to get there.
2.  Pay attention to SEO: Identify where your items sell and include local SEO campaigns to drive nearby foot traffic. As of right now, local SEO is still an underrated strategy but highly effective.
3.  Buy online, pick up in store: Capture dollars earlier by promoting any opportunities to buy online and pick up later in the store. Bonus points if you can include exclusive coupons that are only redeemable in the store.

Tip 3: Tighten Up In-Store Execution

What happens if you’ve driven the foot traffic to the store, customers are ready to buy from you, but then they can’t find your product? Not only is that sale lost but now you have an unhappy customer.

Here are a few ways you can make sure your in-store execution is in tip-top shape:

• Perform frequent audits: Use a trusted 3^rd party merchandiser to keep inventory counts accurate, shelves full, and in-store marketing materials in place.
• Maintain your planograms: Don’t just set it and leave it. Make sure that your planogram is getting frequent stocking and organizing attention during busy traffic times to raise sales by an average of 6%.
• Stay informed:Keep your finger on the pulse of in-store reality with Snap Audits.  These highly effective data gathering store visits provide a store level view, providing macro actionable insights.

One of the best ways to make sure your products are flying off the shelves is by partnering with an expert retail merchandising firm. Check out our list of 7 questions to ask retail merchandising agencies to make sure you’re finding the right one for you.

Contact us today to discover how we can help this back-to-school season be your best yet.

The post Back-to-School 2021: How to Prepare for a Successful Retail Season appeared first on RMS.

As you look back on your sales ask yourself these 5 questions and consider these steps to grow your sales for the upcoming holiday season.

1. Did you meet your goals?

Look at what your goals were and see how your sales performed against them. Hopefully, you exceeded your goals but whether you did or did not, you can’t afford to be complacent and risk your competition outpacing you.

Make your goals aspirational but realistic by basing them on past performance and a well-thought-out sales funnel with realistic conversion rates.

2. What are your competitors doing?

Performing a competitive analysis is one of the best ways to make sure you’re aware (and hopefully ahead) of what the competition is doing. Look at what they’re doing versus what you’re doing and funnel your resources into promoting what differentiates you from everyone else. Don’t copy the competition – out think them.

Benchmark your past and current sales against your competitors. If you can’t find exact information, look at publically-traded company’s 10Ks and retail industry reports. Examine their marketing tactics, their digital presence, the technological tools they use, and whenever possible visit their physical displays. Finally, If you’re not already, consider adding visual merchandising into your marketing strategy.

3. What’s in your toolbelt?

Take a look at the tools in your arsenal. Examine everything from your CRM system to your inventory management software to see if you’re utilizing your existing tools to their full potential. Make sure you have as much data entered as possible to be able to transform it into actionable insights. Talk to your software providers to see if there are updates or areas you’re not utilizing that could improve your performance without adding cost or time.

However, be wary of relying on technology alone to increase your sales.

4. Who are you partnering with?

Your partnerships are the most important resource you have. Are your suppliers, supply chain, and sales firms performing as you hoped? Providing clear instructions and expectations to all of your partners from the beginning as well as communicating regularly will help make sure everything is on track.

 Also, ask your partners regularly about what they’re seeing, they will have a different perspective than you and may be able to add value beyond what’s in your contract.

5. What happened to your products once they were at the retailer?

And last but certainly not least, you’ll want to take a look at what actually happened to your products once they were in the store. Were they set on time? Did you encounter multiple out of stocks? How many products did you have to markdown?

The back-to-school season is a great time to practice your retail strategy for the holidays as 71% of back-to-school shoppers shop in-store. However, you need to do more than just get your items to the store. You need to check in to make sure things are functioning as they should and your products are being executed properly.

After all, if your products aren’t set on time or in stock, you won’t make sales. If you’re not already, consider partnering with a retail merchandiser. They specialize in making sure your products are placed correctly and in stock.

Use this checklist to make sure the holiday season goes off without a hitch.

❏    Make sure holiday displays get to the selling floor and are fully stocked.

❏    Keep displays and shelves full during heavy-traffic periods.

❏    Utilize instant redeemable coupons (IRCs) to help your product stand out or to help sell down lump inventory to reduce markdowns at the end of the season.

❏    Take a physical inventory count prior to the holiday rush to make sure inventory is flowing to the stores and meeting the demand.

Small changes in your retail strategy can have a huge impact on your bottom line. Make sure you’re not missing out on sales by being thorough in your analysis, by establishing solid partnerships, and by staying on top of what happens to your products once they’re at the retail location.

If you’re interested in partnering with a retail merchandiser to make sure your products are set correctly, in stock, and much more contact Retail Merchandising Services today. To talk to one of our experts today by calling 877.248.5429 or emailing us at info@rmservicing.com.

The post 5 Questions to Ask Yourself After the Back-to-School Season and Before the Holidays Hit appeared first on RMS.