How Mannequins Influence Consumer’s Decisions to Buy

If you don’t have mannequins in your store or boutique, then you could be making a big mistake. There are so many benefits to having mannequins in the store that you probably haven’t even begun to imagine how they could help you.

Most retailers invest a little in mannequins simply to fill out their window displays. Well, they soon discover that there are so many other benefits! Mannequins can not only help you to make money, but can actually save you money, influence your customers to buy, reduce your losses, and save your employees’ time. Here we’ve listed just a few ways that mannequins can help you. Once you start getting into them you’re bound to discover new and exciting ways to use them.

Almost all sales are unplanned. This is why it is so important to influence the people that pass by your store. Consumers have a deep seeded desire to fit into a group or vision that they have of themselves. When looking to buy clothing, they go through a process of imagining themselves wearing the clothes, what they might be doing while they are wearing them, and how that might make them feel. If all areas of their decision making process are satisfied, they are likely to make a purchase.

Using a mannequin not only gives them the subconscious approval of other human beings, but also forces the image of the clothes being worn into the mind. The consumer instantly starts going through the process in their mind whether they planned to or not. Even if they would have never looked twice at the clothes on the rack, seeing them on the mannequin almost forces them to consider it. This is a powerful marketing tactic that helps boost sales.

Mannequins throughout the store can help your customers to locate items that they may be interested in. If they pass the front of the store and nothing really grabs them, they are likely to stop wasting time and leave. But mannequins offer a big visual clue as to what is in store if they keep travelling deeper in. They may see dress mannequins in the back that catch their eye. Big hats or brightly colored clothing are helpful here, too. This gives you the opportunity to have customers check out your other promotions along the way.

Mannequin displays can also help you to reduce losses. Put them in areas where shoplifters might think that they will find some cover. Mannequins, especially tall or elevated ones, give people the feeling that they are being watched. This is often enough to deter a thief. It is especially effective if you spotlight the mannequin or arrange things in a way that give the shoplifter little cover. Don’t put circular racks in a back corner, it is too easy to hide from the cameras, mirrors, employees, etc. Open bottom tables are better displays for these areas, or simply leave the floor clear and rely on spaced out gridwall or slatwall displays.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Mannequin Displays for the Holidays

The holiday season is the perfect time for retail stores to get back into the black. Make sure that you take advantage of the extra traffic that you’ll have passing your store. Your window displays are a perfect place to grab attention, showcase your best apparel, and draw in new business. Use this guide to make sure that you’ve considered every angle in your visual merchandising plan.

1. Create a meaningful display. When customers can identify with a scene in a window, you tap into the reason that they are shopping. People make emotional connections with visual displays that they can relate to. Mannequins are perfect for this reason. If you can create a scene that pulls at their heart-strings, then you have really accomplished establishing that connection.

2. Shoppers are generally in a hurry to get their shopping done. They want good deals and they don’t want to shop for longer than necessary. They are often stressed, so a calming display can help to soothe their nerves and not want to turn the other way when they see the commotion inside your store. Christmas lights, fluffy snow, soft music, and touching scenes will do the trick.

3. Mannequins also help to slow customers down. If they see a scene, they will take just a moment to figure out what is going on. Give your mannequins a personality and have them interact with other mannequins. This accomplishes a lot of goals. One, the customer can quickly see what you have to offer, outfits, accessories, etc. Two, they can immediately see what those items look like when they are worn, automatically saving them some time. Then, before they know it, they have slowed down, their interest has been peaked, and they can see that the items in your store will fit their needs.

4. Utilize your window and mannequin displays to save shoppers time, but also to save your employees from constantly having to manage the fitting rooms and straighten your displays. When you use a lot of mannequins or hangable mannequin forms, not only will you be showing off merchandise that is normally hidden on a rack, but you are also showing them what it will look like on. Often times this will keep customers from unfolding things and trying them on, saving your employees precious time during the busy season.

5. Use the mannequins for their intention. There are so many on the market that you can really get detailed in your display. For example, dress mannequins are designed to make tailored dresses look their best. The expression on the female mannequin face, fitting hairstyles, and posability are all things to look for when you buy a mannequin. Imagine what feeling you want to get across and then shop for the mannequin that best suits your needs.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail displays, including mannequins, dress mannequin forms, female mannequins, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Boutique Visuals: Mannequins

Use mannequin displays to show customers what an outfit looks like when it’s on, but also satisfy the needs of their subconscious that control whether or not they buy. Shoppers today are bombarded by images, ads, outfits and displays that are pleasing to the eye. Aesthetics are thought to have an 85% impact on whether or not a customer buys. Think about how much time and money is spent on packaging, photography, commercials, image and branding. It doesn’t have much to do with the actual product, but with the aesthetics of the product. The goal is always to make the customer feel a certain way when they see and use the product.

Customers associate quality with visual and psychological cues. They will generally decide to purchase something if all areas of their conscious and subconscious appetites have been satisfied. For example, they may go shopping for a shirt. They are not simply looking for a piece of cloth to cover their torso. They want to get a shirt that fits them in a flattering way. They want a shirt that says something about their personality. They feel the need to wear a shirt that makes them feel a certain way, whether it be comfortable, powerful, professional, hip, lovable, cheerful, friendly, superior or any other array of emotions. They may base their decision to buy a shirt based on over one hundred conscious and subconscious factors.

Shoppers associate quality with their impression of your store or web site, but let’s talk about price. If a price is too low, then the customer will most likely automatically assume that there must be something wrong with the shirt. Either its quality is bad, or the imaginary world of peers that have looked at this shirt before have decided, for some unknown reason, to pass it by. This fear of “making a social mistake” will turn a vast majority of customers away.

The same goes for pricing items too high. Customers will be let down or put off that they cannot afford or wouldn’t pay a high price for something that they were considering buying. They will get a bad impression about your boutique. Either the store management thinks they can pull one over on people, they think that they are too good for us, or they think that the boutique is doing so poorly that they have to charge high prices to make their bills.

You never want your customers to think that you’re doing poorly. This brings them back to the feeling that their imaginary peers have overlooked you for some imaginary reason. Keep your displays, promotional displays and garment racks full. Displays that are too empty make the items look like they are being discontinued or clearanced out.

Keep your mannequin displays changing. You want them to make customers comfortable, like putting a face with the idea of wearing the clothing. Imagine that the mannequins are there to make your first impressions. They are promising your shoppers, on a subconscious level, that they would definitely wear this outfit, that it will look this good, and that it will make the customer feel like the mannequin feels. It is so important to give your mannequins feeling by using their position, location, and creating display situations.

Using your mannequins to display and satisfy the aesthetics that your customers are looking for is a very effective way of marketing your boutique and your merchandise. The more of those one hundred reasons to buy you can satisfy, the better your chances are of making a sale.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail display cases including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

Retail Mannequins Attract Customers

The use of mannequins in a retail setting has long been recognized as a merchandising gold mine. Mannequins are notorious for boosting sales and drawing in customers. But why? Here we analyze what a mannequin really does for clothing and for retailers.

We know that people are unpredictable. We never know when and why they might decide to purchase an item. There are a lot of elements that go into determining what a person will buy and how much they are willing to pay. Of course, a lot of these things are out of our control. But, the things that we can control, we should.

People shop at malls looking for inspiration. They want to see the latest styles. They need to find clothing that helps them to establish who they are and what image they want to portray. Their choices can be influenced by lighting, music, signage, or promotions. You may be wondering what is going on inside of those heads as they pass your store and merely peer inside. You need to grab their attention. Not only that, but you need to make them feel something. They need to connect with you in a way that lures them inside. Give them the inspiration that they desire.

Mannequins are the most effective way to help passers-by quickly and effectively connect with you. They see what they want to look like. The freshest styles, combined with the hottest accessories, all beautifully displayed on a body that looks how they wish to look. Mannequins can make clothing look like it was meant to look when it was designed. This is much preferred to limply hanging on a rack.

Use your mannequins to get your customers to feel a connection. To do this, you need to position them in a way that conveys something that your target audience can identify with. If you are targeting teenagers, you will need to create beach or pool scenes in summer, school or sports scenes in fall, and boyfriend/girlfriend scenes at Christmas. Give them a scene that will allow them to envision themselves there, where they long to be, looking how they want to look, with the people that they want to be with.

Creating this ideal can have a swift and definite influence on your shoppers. Possibly without even knowing why, they will venture into your store with an open attitude and a curiosity about how they can achieve the social ideal that has been presented by your mannequins.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail display cases including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.

The Art of Visual Marketing

Our society defines and quantifies products or services often through a visual expression. This is where the art of visual marketing is important in its various processes and techniques, whether it is used to promote, sell, or distribute a product or service. Visual marketing permeates almost all consumer and marketing activities.

Why is visual marketing so valuable? Vision is our primary human sense. At a very early age, we use pattern recognition to differentiate and learn the nature of everything around us. The words you're reading right now are a prime example of our unique ability to recognize patterns.

Where is one place our business has the greatest visual impact? How about our window displays? A window display gives others an impression about your company and what you provide. It also is a calling card in that it can draw your customer’s into your store, or help promote a slow-moving item, announce a sale, or welcome a season. Window displays are valuable visual marketing tools but without being set up correctly they can give all the wrong visual cues. What creates a quality display?

Balance: Asymmetrical rather than symmetrical balance with the display.

Size of Objects: Place the largest object into display first.
Color: Helps set mood and feelings.

Focal Point: Where product and props/signage and background come together.

Lighting: Should accent focal point, if possible.

Simplicity: Less is more so know when to stop and don't add too many items.

Like any other aspect of retailing, creating attractive display cases takes a little skill and lots of trial and error. As your store changes, so will your opportunities for visual displays. Keep working at designing eye-catching and innovative ways to make your retail store profitable through visual merchandising.

Visual marketing is also about branding. With branding you are able to build an identity in the minds of your audience. As with creating window displays, there is also an art to this. For one you must try and keep your company’s image clear and concise.

Secondly, look at keeping your company’s message consistent, whether it is in your logo or your storefront display. Brand category leaders are invariably the organizations who employ the best visual marketing. Memorable, appropriate, and consistent visual images are presented across these company’s communication channels. It is easy to see how visual messaging, along with positive customer experiences, drive brand awareness, loyalty and repeat sales.

Any visual cue is going to tell your audience who you are. If you are aiming to be seen as unique, consistent, professional, and persuasive, your visual marketing with your branding must follow. Visual marketing also reaches into nearly every aspect of your communications plan. Advertisements, brochures, sales and informational DVDs, Web sites--the opportunities for enhancing your marketing activities through good visual planning and strategy are endless. No message exists in a vacuum; every message is delivered through a medium. That medium can be well controlled and intelligently utilized, or it can be poorly handled and become a wasted opportunity. Visual marketing applies intelligent planning to all communications media. More than simply design, it's design that is supported by a cohesive strategy.

Yes visual marketing is many things but mainly it is that which defines everything your business is, so take the time to think through the identity of your company and what you would like to present before starting your visual marketing campaign.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the Vice President of S & L Store Fixtures, a leading online resource for retail display cases including mannequins, mannequin forms, gridwall and slatwall store fixtures. For more information, please visit http://www.slstoredisplays.com.