Visibility is an undeniably vital aspect of successful branding. After all, how can you convert a sale if the customer is unaware of your product’s existence? In fact, 83 percent of all information processed by our brains comes through our sense of sight.
OnTrak Software, a company that provides point-of-sale software for clients in the alcohol and spirits industry has analyzed the effect of point of purchase displays on overall sales. According to OnTrak:
- More than 76 percent of all brand purchase decisions are made in-store.
- In-store sales have increased as much as 65% when POP/POS materials are used.
- On a cost-per-thousand basis, POS advertising is close to that of out-of-home advertising, or radio, which is about half the cost of TV advertising
The cannabis industry cannot advertise the way others are able to. Familiar strategies for traditional marketers such as Facebook and Google ads are not an option for most cannabis companies, and television/radio ads are almost always off limits. This makes the dispensary experience crucial with brands often only get one shot at catching the attention of consumers. While this makes packaging important, what good is a quality logo the product hides in the shadows and remains out of view? It is in the interest of both the dispensary operator as well as the producer to have a product be shown in the best light.
One company that understands what it takes to maximize sales is Uniweb. They have been specializing in display merchandising since 1970 and now are working to help cannabis dispensaries increase their bottom line.
Uniweb has rethought how dispensaries can maximize their retail space. Their wall displays have hooks and shelves spaced one inch apart, whereas competitor slat walls are often anywhere from two to five inches apart. According to Uniweb, this difference typically increases the number of products available to display anywhere from 10 percent to 25 percent. They have even seen some cases where retailers were able to display as many as 50 percent more products than their previous setups. The increased inventory and product offerings often leads to higher sales for dispensaries.
Uniweb’s VP of Sales, Ron Mackert, feels that the entire customer experience begins how the products are displayed.
“In retail, the first perceived quality is the appearance of the display; the second is the product itself,” Mackert told mg.
Owen Weber, a sales executive with Uniweb thinks cannabis retailers need to set themselves apart from other industries. “It’s important that the cannabis industry blazes its own trail,” Weber said. “The only way to successfully provide a positive customer journey is to invest in high-end displays that focus on quality aesthetics and easy access to cannabis education.”
