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4 Mistakes to Avoid When Preparing Displays for Holiday Shoppers

There are many best practices for holiday displays and there are also errors that may drive seasonal shoppers away. Here are four common holiday retail merchandising mistakes to look out for this year:

1. Don't let holiday displays sit alone
If your store's color theme is blue and white, then a bright red and green display may contrast with your atmosphere. The Retail Management Software Blog suggested making holiday retail displays part of your overall visual merchandising plan.

Instead of just setting up temporary display features at random points in your store, you should create a detailed plan of how limited-time offers will attract new shoppers and ways in which seasonal displays should compliment permanent apparel fixtures.

2. Avoid empty shelves
If your promotions are effective, seasonal merchandise should fly out of your doors. Inspire Retail Solutions said you have to look out for early success discouraging future shoppers. As you get closer to actual holiday dates, you have to avoid bare shelves and empty basket displays next to registers.

Employees should report daily sales so managers know which merchandise moves quickly and when to replenish. If you can't refill stock in time, you may have to reorganize store layouts to hide empty displays and promote available merchandise.

3. Don't forget to push products
Holiday displays are fun, but they should also be effective marketing tools. In your zeal to create engaging tableaus and creative decorations, don't forget to make your merchandise front and center of all your retail displays. You can really help last minute shoppers find the perfect gift by grouping products and promoting items with signage.

4. Cleanliness is key
The holiday season can be pretty hectic, so you want to have plenty of time set aside to keep your store clean and easy to navigate. Small Biz Survival advised prioritizing the appearance of the front of your store to encourage foot traffic. It might be an unpleasant task as the weather gets colder, but you need to clean outside windows and shovel your walkway.