Christmas tricks to boost sales

It is worth taking another look at category roles in connection with the Christmas season. The Christmas campaigns with armies of Santa Clauses employed to find out what children want, as seen in American movies, have not been adopted by Hungarian retailers yet, although this is only a matter of time. As we like to buy delicacies, premium category beverages and toys as gifts, these products play the role of target categories in almost all retail chains. When such different products are placed together on the basis of a common idea or concept, this is referred to as cross-merchandising. Such interesting placements which serve to break the monotony of shopping can be used in connection with any idea. Promotions in the Christmas season need to be tailored to the consumers of specific stores, because cheap fondants for example, will not be very successful in a store frequented by customers of premium brands. On the other hand, there are places where fondants sold at a price offering a favourable price/ratio value, or in smaller sizes will attract price-sensitive consumers successfully. Christmas displays are constructed focusing on gifts, which leaves a lot of room for creative ideas. Specialities like dried fruits, or decorative packaging like presentation boxes should be placed next to traditional gifts. This is guaranteed to boost sales substantially. It is also a good idea to use humour, as we tend to appreciate jokes. Combined placements can also serve to remind customers of things to buy, as 70 percent of them come shopping without a list. This is why everything needed for preparing a specific dish should be presented in a single placement, including even recipe books. Cheese selections are very popular in Austria, especially when these come with an accessory like a wooden plate. Slower moving products like knives or wine specialities can also be included in such placements. Christmas focuses on children, which means that displays built to the height of their eye level, or providing some form of activity, like a moving doll can be very successful. Gifts are also increasingly often bought for pets, so the pet food assortment can also be widened in the Christmas season. Following Christmas, we have New Year’s Eve which translates into a number of products from champagne and frankfurters to disposable plates, decorations and paper trumpets. Less well known products can be promoted successfully and contribute to creating a party atmosphere when placed next to standard products like soft drinks.