Effective Merchandising 

It is very important that proper item placement can be the difference between success or failure. Consumers like stores that are easy to shop in and to find sections that are well merchandised. Busy customers hate hunting for goods. The really do like and prefer retailers with clean, well organised and easy to shop stores.

A great way to do this is to merchandise like items together with a similar theme or function. The different segments make it easier for shoppers to shop.  Most categories allow you to group items into quality segments super – premium, premium and economy. Placing super premium items at eye level and economy items on the bottom shelf is a great way to trade a consumer up. Customers always want good value for money and that usually includes super-premium products. This is where a very strong brand strategy helps. Merchandise your brands into different segments.

Another very important strategy of merchandising is to group complementary categories together for example pasta with sauces, it makes it much easier for the consumer.

An often overlooked benefit of this strategy is the ability to co-promote items with a similar them. Co- promoting complementary items stretches your budget and draws attention to other products throughout your store.

What strategies do you use for effective merchandising? Share your thoughts.