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Extra Features and Video Online FloristsReview.com R E A D O N L I N E 51 Knowing where to position a display is just as critical as a display's composition. To determine the focal points in your store, walk through your store's front door as if it were the fi rst time. Notice where you look fi rst. Where do you look next? Which way does your head turn? (Most consumers look right and veer to the right fi rst.) Have your staff followed this procedure as well, and jot down the points they notice fi rst. en, using all their answers, identify what should be the most important display areas in your store. e "big-buy spot"—your store's initial point of visual contact for shoppers—is likely near the front entrance and should showcase your newest and/or most distinctive merchandise. Be sure this display will not only attract attention but also refl ect your store's brand or image. Many professional merchandisers also believe that it is important for retailers use their big-buy spots to display the merchandise in which they have the highest dollar investment. Other important focal spots for displays are typically on either side of the main entrance and directly behind the big-buy spot. Whatever areas you choose for your displays, make sure there are uncluttered and easily navigable pathways to them, wide enough for two people to pass comfortably. Many retailers forget that customers need "space" to shop; in fact, research shows that cramped and/or cluttered aisles make people feel confi ned and want to get out of the store as fast as they can! Smaller shops can often benefi t from an X-shaped aisle layout, with merchandise displays created in areas at the top, bottom and sides of the X. is simple pattern, which can be modifi ed slightly depending on the location of a store's main entrance, invites shoppers to walk through all areas of a store and enables them to easily view all four display areas. e best-buy spot could be just below the area where the aisles cross, where a display could be viewed and accessed from at least three sides. Regardless of your store's layout, position your check-out counter as far away from the entrance as possible so that customers will be exposed to as much of your merchandise as possible on their way to the counter. In an X-shaped layout, that spot might be at the top of the X, against the back wall of the store— again, depending on the location of the front door. TIP: Be sure to display aff ordably priced ($5 to $25) impulse and add-on merchandise on or next to the check-out counter. Showcase merchandise in a range of price points in every vignette. Although the overall look of a display may be elaborate or "expensive," be sure to include items that shoppers of all means can aff ord. is is essential to maximizing holiday sales. And make sure to order an adequate number of lower-priced items because they will likely sell in greater quantities than more expensive pieces (which some customers might want to be the exclusive owners of !). Merchandising Magic 1 2 Attractive in-store displays are crucial components for successful holiday sales. Here are eight tips to help you create displays that will entice shoppers to buy! 3 4

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