As a brand, it’s difficult to cut through the clutter of thousands of other brands competing for the attention of customers in a retail environment. So how do you make yourself visible and make customers choose your product over the others? Your answer could lie in what is called point of sale materials (POSMs).
What is POSM?
POSMs are advertising materials that brands use to convey information about the brand to consumers at the point of sale (the counter/checkout area) and promote sales. POSMs can be in the form of posters, dispensers, danglers, etc. The main objective of POSMs is to drive impulsive sales, besides increasing visibility and recall; hence, POSMs are used primarily in below the line marketing campaigns, which focus on a specific target audience.
Advantages of POSM
Here are a few advantages of using POSMs to help drive sales:
- Grab the customer’s attention
Packaging plays a crucial role in attracting a customer’s attention but given the shared shelf space, the impact can easily get lost. The use of bigger mediums, ie, POSMs, can help catch the customer’s attention and get them to notice your brand.
- Flexibility given to retailers to strategically place your products
POSMs can get retailers to place your products at strategic locations within the store as opposed to being stuck in some corner shelf.
- Supplement your packaging
POSMs provide additional space to market your brand and educate the buyer on the product. They are helpful in conveying additional or new information that is not on the packaging.
- Target impulse buyers
A well-placed POSM can entice impulse buying. Many purchases are often unplanned, and with shoppers already in the store ready to make purchases, effective POSMs can lead to quick sales.
- Independently merchandise your brand
How your brand gets promoted in a store is completely dependent on the time and understanding of the retailer. With POSMs, you are able to decide how well your brand is advertised in the store.
- Be more cost effective
Most POSMs are cost-effective when compared to other forms of media platforms such as billboards and magazines.
Types of POSM
Let’s look at the different types of POSM, their purpose of use, and advantages.
(1) Standees
These pop-up boxboards are used primarily to draw attention to a promotional product. These are available in different forms such as floor standees, rollup standees, cutout standees, and LED standees. As free-standing displays, standees give retailers the flexibility to strategically place your product in the store and not tucked away in some shelf with other products.
(2) Posters
Posters are a cost-effective way of communicating to your target audience. Visually appealing, high-quality posters in a variety of sizes can quickly draw attention to your brand’s message.
(3) Danglers
From shelf danglers to ceiling danglers, this POSM is helpful in promoting discounts, sales, and offers. A dangler can be as simple as a piece of thick paper with SALE written on it or it can be custom designed to draw attention to your message. They offer maximum visibility in a limited space.
(4) Buntings
Buntings are the oldest forms of advertising and highly effective too. The eye-catching, festive look of buntings make them ideal to promote new products. Buntings are usually used on windows and doors.
(5) Shelf wobblers
Wobblers are small but effective point of sale material that can be used to promote special offers, discounts, and new products. Also called “shelf talkers,” they give the customer a miniature sales pitch on the spot. Signs such as “Big saver pack” help drive impulse purchases and entice first-time purchases.
(6) Leaflets/flyers
Leaflets are the most effective and affordable ways of advertising. They can be used to provide key information about your brand or product but need to be visually appealing in terms of text and images to attract potential customers.
(7) Shelf branding
Shelf branding is a great way to engage customers is a competitive retail environment. By providing neat displays with product description and price, customers are more prone to gravitate towards your brand as they don’t want to spend excess time searching for a product that meets their specific needs.
Other POSMs include levitating units, stickers, LED window displays, cubes, counter mats etc.
Now that you know about the different types of POSMs, you need to carefully study consumer behavior/buying habits, besides taking into account the self-service of the store, to see which POSM works best for you.
POSM planning for maximum effectiveness
Many companies spend an exorbitant amount of money on POSMs, sometimes even greater than their profit! We also know that POSM is a great tool to increase sales and make for a better customer experience. Therefore, to optimize on this opportunity, it’s important to make a calculated decision on which POSM to use. This should not be based solely on the budget and the demands of retailers but on shopper behaviour.
Finally, when placing POSMs in a store, note that “eye level is buy level.” The easier it is to see a display, the more likely it is for people to purchase the product.