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While e-commerce has been on the rise for decades, brick-and-mortar stores still account for the majority of retail sales. Shoppers enjoy the experience of getting out of the house and testing products out before making a purchase, which keeps them coming back to shop in person rather than ordering through a website.
This guide to store layout optimization will help you understand how to use technology like digital people counting systems to enhance the shopping experience and drive more sales. Let’s dive in.
The main benefits of implementing people counters in your retail business include the following.
People counting data can help you determine your typical conversion rate, which compares the number of visitors who make a purchase to the number of people entering and exiting your store. With this information, you can reveal lost sales opportunities that could be eliminated through a store layout overhaul.
For example, you might find that customers walk out empty-handed when they can’t find what they’re looking for right away. You can use your people counting data to determine where to place high-selling items so they’re most visible, which can improve your conversion rate.
Did you know that 90% of customers believe retail technologies like people counters improve their shopping experience?
With a people counting system, you can determine how your store layout can improve the chances that customers will convert during their visit. By understanding how people typically move about the space, you can strategically position top-selling products and displays where customers are sure to see them. You can also use this data to determine the best placement for sale merchandise or impulse-buy items, creating an overall more convenient layout for customers and employees.
You can also use this data to give promotional materials more visibility for your intended target audience, which can help attract more customers and maximize sales.
People counting data can help reduce the stress your staff deals with daily. By tracking how many people are in your store at any given time, you can determine your typical peak hours — which is when you’ll need the most staff on deck.
Once you know the normal demand from customers, you can staff your store to reflect this need, which boosts employee morale and enhances the customer experience. You can also schedule your best performers during peak hours to maximize sales.
While there are several types of people counters for retail analytics, they all follow the same general principles.
Using a network of internet-connected sensors and image processing, people counters track the number of people who walk in and out of your store each day. You can place them at store entrances to monitor general foot traffic, or you can strategically place them throughout your store to get a clearer idea of how customers navigate the different displays.
For the purpose of optimizing your store layout, you’ll want to do the latter. This way, you can get a sense of where customers tend to go first, how they walk through your store and which displays draw the most attention.
Your people counters send the information they collect to your connected software platform over the internet, which gives you visibility into the data you need. You can use this software to perform various analyses and generate reports that you’ll share with other store employees and stakeholders, which is essential for getting the approval you need to begin making changes to your store layout.
People counters are also useful for other retail analytics applications:
The specific type of people counter you will need depends on your chosen placement strategy. It can also help to discuss your needs and goals with a sales specialist who can help you choose the right option for your business.
If you know a people counting system is the right move but aren’t sure where to start, follow these five steps and get started on your store changes.
After selecting the right people counting system for your store, define the parameters for this process. How long will you collect data for? What are the specific goals of your analysis? Answering these questions can help you get started.
People counting software is an essential component of a people counting system because it enables you to pull actionable insights from the data you’ve collected. Once the data collection period has ended, use your software solution to analyze foot traffic patterns throughout your store. This analysis will reveal where your customers tend to gravitate toward during a regular day of operation.
After running analytics, you’ll determine what kind of report will best demonstrate the key points of your analysis to your stakeholders. While your software can create many different kinds of reports from your collected data, visualizations like heatmaps of store layouts are especially advantageous. They provide a clear, color-coded representation of the most frequently visited areas of your store.
Rearrange the store to reflect your heatmap findings. All best-selling and high-margin items should be placed in the most frequently visited areas to help drive sales. While you’ll position lower-selling products in the least-visited areas, you can use promotional displays and digital signage to entice customers to explore your other products.
Optimal sale and clearance section placement varies by the size and floor plan of your store. Larger retailers often create multiple category-specific clearance sections in certain aisles because customers are more likely to find deals on the products they’re looking for. However, smaller stores usually benefit more from setting up one sale section for all products because it offers more space for the rest of their inventory.
Seasonal items and new products are an exception to these guidelines. Retail experts recommend placing them close to the entrance to attract new customers into your store and increase the likelihood they will purchase those products.
After a specified time period, run the same analysis and create the same type of report that you generated at the beginning of the process. This follow-up will reveal the effectiveness of your layout changes so you can determine whether you need to make any further adjustments. Be sure to complete this process for each season your store experiences to gather historical data for future years.
Brick-and-mortar stores are still more popular with shoppers than e-commerce sites, and implementing functional people counting systems, like the ones offered by Traf-Sys, can help your store stay competitive.
Our people counting systems are up to 99% accurate, making them a reliable option for a wide range of retail analytics applications. To complete the system, we also offer VisiCount, a people counting and reporting software platform with the advanced capabilities you need to make the most of your data. From heatmaps of store layouts to hourly people counts, you’ll find reports for the insights you need in our solutions for retail businesses.
Ready to get started? Contact us online today to schedule a free demo or request a quote. Our team is here to answer any questions you may have about our solutions.
