Window displays are a critical opportunity for your business to catch the attention of passersby, advertise your brand, and hopefully attract more foot traffic to your store. But having a window and throwing some random items into it isn’t a winning strategy if you’re interested in maximizing the value from this approach.
Instead, you’ll need to be clever and strategic in how you approach your window display. What steps can you take to make your display better?
The Benefits of Window Displays
First, why should you care about window displays?
Window displays have the power to help your organization in several ways, including:
- Visibility and brand familiarity. At the most superficial level, a good window display will improve your store’s visibility and brand familiarity. Whether in passing or because they’re visiting your store, people will walk away with a better impression of your brand and they’ll be more likely to remember it if your window display makes a good impression.
- Foot traffic. Most store owners know that a good window display can increase foot traffic. If you have compelling products in the display, or if you just do something attention-grabbing and interesting, more people will be interested in coming into your store to see what else you have.
- Extended attention. If your window display is exceptional, it could help you generate even more attention beyond that. People may film your active window display in action and post videos on social media, or you might even attract some news media attention.
Tips for a Better Window Display
These tips can help you make sure your window display is as effective and attention-grabbing as possible:
- Start with the right windows. Everything in your window display depends on the quality of your windows, so don’t skimp on this investment. your windows should be big, thick, and perfectly clear; investing in better building materials is a great place to start. You’ll also need to spend time cleaning your windows regularly, so they don’t end up with scuffs or smudges.
- Get to know your target audience. Different target audiences are going to respond to different types of window displays, so before you do anything, you need to get to know those demographics. Which audience segment are you trying to serve? What kinds of things are they interested in? What specific angles or creative choices will be most appealing to them? For example, do they want something new and exciting or something nostalgic and traditional?
- Design around a focal point. Start with a strong focal point. This centerpiece of your window display will attract the most attention and give you something that you can build around. Choose something interesting that adeptly represents your brand.
- Utilize clean minimalism. For the most part, window displays are more effective when they employ minimalism and clean layouts. It’s tempting to cram as much stuff as possible into your window display, but it’s usually better to leave plenty of white space. This way, your window display won’t look as crowded, and it will attract more attention.
- Tell a story. It’s hard to overstate the value of storytelling in your business’s marketing and advertising strategies. Telling a good story makes your work more engaging and memorable. Try to tell a story with your arrangement of items in your window display; it’s not always easy, but it can make a big difference.
- Harness the power of effective lighting. Lighting makes the difference. Make sure you invest in a quality background and accent lighting to make all of your display choices pop, especially at night. poor lighting can instantly ruin an otherwise good window display.
- Be bold (maybe even controversial). Think outside the box and try something bold or unusual; it’s an easy way to differentiate yourself from the competition when the competition is playing it safe. Controversy can be a good thing if managed appropriately.
- Differentiate your display. You might be tempted to copy or take inspiration from a display used by one of your competitors. But it’s much better to strongly differentiate your display – in other words, you have to do something unique. This way, you’ll stand apart and you’ll attract even more attention.
- Experiment and measure. Don’t stick with one window display permanently. Instead, cycle through a few different options and measure your results; can you definitively prove that one window display attracts more foot traffic than another?
- Consider advertising an incentive. Use discounts, freebies, and other special offers in your window display to incentivize foot traffic even more.
If you follow these tips and get creative with your design, your window display should be a major boon for your business. At the very least, you should attract more attention and build more visibility and familiarity for your brand.
