According to the National Retail Federation , 2018 retail industry sales grew between 3.8 and 4.4 since 2017. With social media reach on the climb, and experts keeping tabs on the constant state of change, consumers are confident as ever in making purchase decisions from businesses with or with-out a brick and mortar presence. For retailers, this means that you need to have a savvy strategy in place in order to promote brand loyalty and stand out in the crowd.

Q4 is just around the corner, but on the BRITE side there’s still plenty of time for retailers to prepare for the upcoming season and take advantage of increased web traffic. With a few tips, large and small retail stores alike can set strategies in motion that will allow you to feel confident in a time of high competition.

There’s nothing more exciting for consumers than getting the inside scoop on the newest designs, fashions and trends. Offer sneak peeks and preview sales to show off incoming merchandise, and give new and returning customers a chance to envision themselves wearing or using the new styles. Use website retargeting to advertise upcoming sales to consumers who have recently visited your online store. You can also use Geo-fence retargeting to advertise to those who have visited your physical location – or even the locations of your competitors. Take advantage of the increase in viewers online and shoppers in brick-and-mortar events by driving traffic back to the store with coupons or limited time offers. Following your customers journey and delivering the right messaging, at the right time is crucial.

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Once the season is up and running, don’t waste any time putting on the first flash sale. Offer deep discounts or special discounts on highly coveted items, and provide in-store perks like free samples, discount racks or bins, and interactive activities. Draw customers in using beacons or geofilters that target customers who are in your area already. Then create follow up campaigns, so that you have a plan to retain new customers and transform them into loyal, repeat business after the holidays. Plan flash sales not only for the largest shopping days, but also for days or times that hold relevance for your company or shopping audience, i.e. the night of the local fashion event for clothing retailers, or the first snow for outdoor gear and apparel. Don’t forget to offer sales initiatives to your staff, to be sure their efforts align with your sales goals. Create bonus structures or other initiatives to keep everyone on staff motivated throughout the busy and stressful holiday season.

Brick-and-mortar operations are struggling to compete with large online distributors, so retailers must make their brands available online and on social media. The brands that do the best often feature free apps that their customers can download to get sale previews, use coupons or keep track of wish lists. If building an app doesn’t fit in the budget, make sure your retail website is mobile-friendly and provides an easy experience for shopping and checkout. Consider influencer marketing which will help generate brand awareness to drive profits. Build your followers on the largest channels of Facebook and Twitter, but don’t forget to go where young people are as well. Build a strong following on Instagram, Pinterest and SnapChat as well, and offer enticing multimedia posts to convince followers to shop your brand.

Email newsletters and invites are still some of the best ways to reach consumers, because they arrive directly in a shopper’s inbox without cluttering the house with piles of mail. Build out your website to feature places where customers can subscribe to newsletters and email alerts, then work hard to grow your subscription numbers. List building on your site is crucial. Offer discounts for signing up for discounts on purchases for first-time customers or make exclusive offers that can only be redeemed by email subscribers. On the days when brick-and-mortar shops have trouble attracting foot traffic and social algorithms become hard to beat, you’ll be able to reach your customers directly.

Develop marketing campaigns that you can implement across different mediums, ranging from print, direct mail or TV advertising to online ads , e-commerce and social media. Analyze your brand, to find out the unique strategies you can implement into the business. This is a time where you want your efforts to be anything but cookie cutter. Ensure that each marketing campaign has a clear plan of action and establish a timeline so you can meet the campaign goals along the way. Define each goal carefully, relate the goals to staff and test your campaigns before you send them live.  Don’t forget to get your customer involved early on! Create personal interactions with your target audience early on so that you develop trust and customer engagement long before the competition.

Above all, a well planned and executed strategy will put you in the drivers seat, steering customers in your direction to interact with your brand, build a lasting relationship and boost sales. By creating and defining a clear plan of action for your marketing efforts through the end of the year, you can easily attract and retain new customers and set your business up for a successful start of Q4.

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