If visual merchandising didn’t matter, every store could be filled with rows of gondolas crammed with merchandise. The truth is, though, even grocery and big box stores use proven techniques to visual merchandise, overtly drawing attention to certain products or aisles. There are specific concepts any retailer can use to present items to shoppers in ways that increase store traffic and sales.

As you read through these tips, consider them in terms of your own clientele. Learning how to visual merchandise successfully requires appealing to your specific customer, whether you sell auto parts or jewelry or toys. 

Show them the whole enchilada.

Appeal is emotional as well as practical, so play to their lifestyle by displaying merchandise in entire “ensembles.” When they can picture themselves wearing or using your products, they’ll be more likely to buy. And showing related items together is a tried-and-true method of suggestive selling. Customers will not only buy, they’ll buy more.

Less is more.

Just as white space makes a written page more welcoming, a feeling of comfortable roominess welcomes shoppers into your store and encourages them to stay and browse. Generally, the higher-priced your merchandise, the more "empty" space you should allot around displays. Use restraint in your displays, too. Clutter in the form of over-filled displays is visually confusing – the eyes don’t know where to land, so they just move on, away from your display.  

That’s also why each display needs a deliberate focal point. To create a focal point as you visual merchandise, use:

• The pyramid principle – Stacking fixtures and items in a triangle shape or “stepped” shape, so the eye can start at the top and work its way down and over.
  
  
• The rule of three – Uneven numbers and asymmetry are more visually interesting, so arrange items with varying heights and positions. Note that, where clutter pushes the eyes away, perfect symmetry stops them cold. In effect, there’s “nothing” to see. The best displays create visual interest but also give your store a sense of balance and harmony.
  
  
• Repetition – Displaying multiples of a single item is also eye-catching. This works well for items that come in lots of colors such as accessories, eyeglass frames, T-shirts, etc. Be sure to line all the items up exactly the same way, or you’ll lose the impact. (This technique also visually promotes your deep product selection.)

When you visual merchandise effectively, you create a holistic experience for customers. You’re attracting and pleasing the eye. You’re enticing shoppers to touch your merchandise. But you should intrigue their other senses as well. You don’t have to run a bakery or a music store to do this – subtle sensory appeal can be equally effective.

Last, but definitely not least . . .

Don’t neglect your cash wrap counter. If you think it’s there only to hold up your cash register, you’re missing out on multiple opportunities to visual merchandise your store effectively, right down to that last shopping minute.