7 ways to get new customers into your store at Christmas

Foot traffic has steadily declined for the last few years at brick-and-mortar retail stores of all shapes and sizes. During the 2014 holiday shopping season, traffic dropped more than 8 percent, according to RetailNext, a decline that continued the trend downward each year since 2010. But the good news is consumer spending is now on the rise, and some physical retailers are reporting stronger sales than ever. The key to getting new customers to find your store may lie in your willingness to create your own “retail reinvention.”

“We’re in a strip mall with a couple of fast-food restaurants, so lots of people walk by our store,” said Donna McCollough, manager of Dove Christian Supply, a family-owned business with locations in Dothan and Enterprise, Alabama. “We are constantly changing out our displays, keeping the front of the store more gift-looking to catch new customers’ eyes right away.”

“Christian stores need current, trendy gifts,” said Connie Haithcock, co-owner of Servant’s Heart, a gift company that offers burlap throw pillows, wedding gifts, baby gifts, seasonal items and more. “If they choose items that are really trendy color- and style-wise, the people will follow.”

Haithcock suggests adding plenty of gold and silver to retail displays this holiday season, as well as warmer reds. And don’t be afraid to get a little bit more upscale to attract clientele who may never have stopped in before. Since customers have to make a special stop to visit, make your offerings as unique as possible.

“Don’t be afraid of some of those higher price points,” Haithcock said. “People who are buying gifts want quality. My mom is 85 years old, and if she finds something cute, she’s buying it and getting one for all her friends. Their women’s group likes doing the ‘cool,’ new Christian thing.”

To get new customers in your doors this Christmas and beyond, consider these seven ways to reinvent your retail location:

1. Sizzling signage: Your sign is your signature, usually the first thing a potential new customer sees. What does yours look like? What can you do to spruce it up? A great sign propels people to “See it. Read it. Do it.” Your sign should be visible, easy to read and compelling enough to drive customers in your doors.

“Traditional signage is a fantastic way to get passersby into your store during the holiday season,” said Dustin Heap, digital marketer for signs.com. “The biggest mistakes we see are signs that are tough to see, tough to read and [are] lacking an enticing call to action. To offset these things, keep in mind such considerations as using contrasting colors (especially for tinted windows on storefronts), sign placement, using too much text and forgetting to offer a good reason to enter a store that likely the potential customer has passed many times.”

While evaluating your outdoor sign, take a look around your entrance and parking lot. Consider hanging some twinkling lights, tidying up trees or shrubbery, or placing poinsettias to present a welcoming and appealing presence. Roll out the welcome mat by adding a piece of red carpet, a blanket of rose petals or any other eye-catching way to entice customers to come inside. Update your gift selection to capture current colors and trends.

“Tassels are in this year,” said Jean Cherry, co-owner with Haithcock of Servant’s Heart. “Look at your customers and try to hit the niches.”

2. Savvy social media: Successful stores know that customers are using social media as a big part of their retail experience. Update your Facebook page (or create one) and get familiar with Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest. Make sure to post regularly, using the space to describe new products, e-blast book release dates and offer coupons or discounts exclusively to your followers. If you are posting separately to each of your accounts, save time by using a tool like hootsuite.com to post to all your social media sites at once. Take a few minutes each day to write your posts, then set the time on Hootsuite you want them to go out.

3. Get your game on: In order to get shoppers to make a special stop at your store rather than clicking the mouse or heading for a one-stop shop like Walmart, create an exciting experience. One way to crank up the fun is to come up with an in-store game. For example, you could hide pieces of a manger scene or hang specially marked Christmas ornaments throughout the store. When a customer finds one and takes it to a one of the staff, it can be exchanged for a small gift, a coupon or holiday treat. Host a variety of holiday happenings to make your store an enjoyable gathering spot.

“We’re going to call it a Lighthouse Christmas this year and have cocoa and apple cider for customers that come in,” said Justin Story, owner of Lighthouse Christian Supply in Conway, Arkansas. “We will have things for kids too and have local people come in and sing.”

4. Customer contests: Increase interest and gather contact information at the same time by holding a holiday contest. Invite customers to come up with the best Christmas-themed window display. Host a holiday party to choose the new window theme either randomly or based on the best idea. The winner could then decorate the front window in your store.

If your store is in a shopping center or mall, see if stores near you are open to having a joint contest to increase everyone’s traffic. You could host a scavenger hunt to find certain products in each store, a fill-in-the-blank page, a word search or come up with your own unique competition.

“My store is in a very historical area,” said Sheila Williams, owner of Saving Grace Christian Store in Middletown, Delaware. “The stores on this strip are all homes on Main Street built in the 1800s. Our town decorates the whole strip for the holidays, and the stores have a lamppost contest.

“You get to decorate the lamppost in front of your business any way you want, and we have entry forms inside of each of the businesses. People walk up and down the street looking at the decorations and vote for their favorite lamppost. Each year it absolutely boosts sales.”

Tie in social media whenever you can to increase online interest. A “selfie” scavenger hunt where participants have to snap a picture of themselves and post them to the store and shopping center’s social media pages could keep your traffic flowing.

5. Going local: In addition to teaching customers how important it is to buy local, draw new customers by going local yourself. Exchange coupons with other businesses in your area. If you have a new product in, offer one to a neighbor store to display in exchange for showing off a product or service of theirs. Encourage customers to visit these nearby retailers and service providers and ask those stores to send new traffic your way.

“We are in an open shopping center near Kirkland’s and Old Navy,” Story said. “We include our nearest neighbors when they are interested. For example, we have a Hallmark store a few stores down from us. When we have a promotion going on, we ask stores if they will hand out flyers for us. If Hallmark is giving away a free candle with purchase or something, we do the same. That partnership is really good.”
In addition to partnering with other local businesses, make sure you have the biggest possible local online presence. Most Internet business directories let you list your local store for free. On some you can add personalized touches like a picture or greeting. Make sure you are listed and your location and contact information are correct. The top online directory sites include Google, Bing, Yahoo!, CitySearch, Yelp, Merchant Circle, Whitepages, Yellow Pages, LinkedIn, Supermedia, Yellowbook, Mapquest, Biznik, Local, Foursquare, ThinkLocal, CitySlick, USYellowPages and SuperPages. For an added boost, reward customers for giving you good reviews.

6. Exclusively yours: Remember Hess trucks, Beanie Babies and Cabbage Patch dolls? Collectibles are slowly coming back, and your store could create an exclusive item to bring customers your way. One idea is to have customers drop off their favorite holiday recipes during the fall, and create an exclusive store cookbook with each contributor getting credit, a discount price to buy it for their family and friends, and a coupon for a future in-store purchase. A one-of-a-kind Christmas ornament of a local historical landmark or something your area is known for (with your store name on it as well) might be a hit.

7. Media and marketing: When you want new traffic in your store, try turning to old-fashioned media and marketing. Local television and radio stations need new advertisers and may work with you to give lots of exposure for a little price.

McCollough pays her local CBS television affiliate $600 a month to do a 2 1/2-minute “Moms Everyday” mini-infomercial every other Friday during the morning news and talk shows. During her segment, she chooses a theme such as Father’s Day or graduation and introduces products from the store to the viewers. In addition to the biweekly segment, the station airs store commercials throughout the week.

“People come in all the time and say they saw me do the Moms Everyday,” said McCollough. “A lot of former customers also come back in, saying, ‘Oh, I forgot you were here, but then I saw you on TV.’ ”

For about $400 monthly, Story sponsors a “Word of Inspiration” and “Song of Inspiration” on a local country radio station. He records a word of encouragement and chooses a Christian song to play each morning on the station. The station runs store commercials throughout the week as part of his package.

Story also barters his own photography skills with a local magazine in exchange for store ads and buys advertising space on a promotional door hanger hung on doors in middle- to upper-income homes.

“I include a coupon for $5 off a $25 purchase or more on the Arkansas Door Deals, and we see a lot of those return,” Story said.

Natalie Gillespie has had an insider’s view of the Christian products and retail industry by covering it for the past 20 years. A speaker, author, editor and journalist, she invites your comments at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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