Christmas in September has taken on a new meaning over the last few years. If you have a retail store, you know that the holiday season is one humongous deal to boost sales. That is why most stores are preparing for the upcoming shopping season, because, without an early and effective plan, you can increase the chances of not reaching your goals for the year. Take, for example, something as basic as inventory. As a retailer, you always find it challenging to determine exactly how much inventory you need to stock and spend on it. Sometimes, what you sold last year would not hit the same level as for this year’s holiday season. The same goes for product assortment, shelf space planning, categorizing products, and promotions. This raises the question of how well retailers can prepare for this holiday season with the most effective strategies. Well, the answer is simple: planogram software. Planograms are visual merchandising tools, which help retailers plan and execute store shelves effectively to entice shoppers to make purchases. In this blog, we have put together a handful of planogram tips to kick-start your holiday season this year:

• Start planning your product assortment: In-store products are your bread and butter, so you must ensure how to showcase the right items for the season. Use a planogram to analyze the retail data of last year's holiday season to figure out what to stock up and add extra on this year. In a report, it has been noted that people are leaning towards sustainable woolen blankets that are cozy, warm, and stylish in colder months rather than cotton or polyester blankets. So, retailers need to pay attention to current and future trends in order to stay ahead of demand by adding such blankets before winter to boost sales.
• Entice your shoppers with an aesthetic store layout: Retail competition is becoming fierce day-by-day. Shoppers are looking for the season’s must-haves, best-selling, and creative things to take to their homes. Your holiday store layout must grab the attention of your shoppers, make it easier for them to find items on store shelves, and entice them to purchase more than they intended. It is said that layouts that sell start outside of the store, and those are your window displays. Successful store layout planning depends on what you sell, the size of your store, and product displays - whether you are an apparel retailer, grocer, or jeweler.
• Position and curate your products for the holidays: If you want to nail your holiday season, you need to finalize the products to display in your store. The right strategy is deciding your target audience, customer preferences, product assortment and categories. For example, if you are an apparel retailer, you can add outfits like shirts, shorts, and polos with versatile jackets which your shoppers can wear at any time.
• Plan your sales promotions: The holiday season is the time to plan your sales, promotions, and offers to increase sales. As a retailer, you need to plan the time period and duration of your promotions, applicable items, percentage of discounts and more. Implement holiday bundles of products that fit naturally together, like if you sell clothing, you can add shirts and pants that match up well. If you sell cosmetics, look for skin care products often purchased together like face cream, body lotion, and lip balm with a body wash. You can look at items that your customers have purchased together during the previous years with the help of planograms.

Overview of Nexgen POG

Nexgen POG is a robust and user-friendly cloud-based visual merchandising tool. It is designed for quick and efficient planogramming with minimal effort. Planograms can be designed by easily dragging and dropping the products. The multi-device compatibility feature of POG allows you to obtain, share and edit planograms on any device, including your phone. It helps in designing store-specific planograms for increased product visibility and sales.

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