Furniture, lighting, and materials manufacturers use these spaces (and perhaps those of their distributors) in multiple and varied ways, including, but not limited to: launching new products, letting customers see or try before they buy (the famed sit test), hosting events and training sessions, providing inspiration to designers and consumers, and, of course, branding. Often, the way a company stakes its claim in a given market is by opening a flagship showroom there.
All of these functions are still very much alive today, even in a post-pandemic context. But how can you make sure investing in physical retail space will yield a return, particularly in 2021?
Relying on potential customers to spontaneously find your space seems like a recipe for disaster, with foot traffic down an average of 28% across the US and cities experiencing a major shift in demographic and workplace trends.
Even if customers know you have a physical space, what will convince them to visit? And, without the reinforcement of the in-store experience, can you be sure they will actually end up becoming clients?
Marketing your showroom online
Product research today begins online, both for architects and designers and for end consumers. So when the need arises for your product, be it a light fixture or bathroom tile, you want to be present and engage with your potential customers. This means advertising online, not just to showcase your product, but also to invite people to check it out in person.
Search Engine Marketing (SEM) campaigns are particularly well suited for this task since they allow you to leverage very specific targeting parameters. For example, you could choose to show your Google Ad to someone searching for your product or product category (say, modern light fixture ) in a 10-mile radius around your showroom. This ad can also include extensions, for example, your phone number or street address.
When a user searches for a product or a product category, it usually signals there is high intent on their part. In other words, they’ve detected they have a need and want to know how to satisfy it. SEM campaigns are ideal in this scenario to attract people to your showroom, as they capture their attention in the precise moment they are looking for your product.
Complementing paid search efforts, social networks are another powerful tool to drive traffic. If targeting and audiences are crafted properly, Facebook and Instagram, or even Pinterest, can bring in qualified visitors to your showroom.
Because social media users are not actively searching for your product, unlike those captured from a paid search campaign, the role of social campaigns should be to intrigue and to inspire, drawing enough visual attention to make someone click.
Another part of the equation is, of course, your website. Aside from all the user experience basic principles, your site (or landing pages) should include information about your showroom, preferably in one page and easy to find, with prominent call-to-action elements.
When putting together digital strategies to promote our client’s showrooms, we urge clients to take this as an opportunity to tailor the campaign assets and landing pages as specific as possible. Not only is this a chance to efficiently direct local users to the closest showroom, but this is also an opportunity to give them a tailored experience - whether that’s location-specific or focusing on a product category that piqued their interest.
Finally, offline marketing can work as reinforcement for the efforts mentioned above. Direct mail campaigns to well-targeted zip codes or businesses have proven successful, especially when tied to an event like a pop-up or a launch party.
Podcast placements too can draw in visitors, however for them to have any real impact the campaign needs to be very specifically targeted and maintained and repeated over a certain period of time.
Using your showroom as a digital tool
If you’ve followed our advice, you’ll find your traffic numbers have grown. Now what?
Perhaps you are able to increase in-store sales, which is a fantastic outcome. But certainly not all visitors become clients, at least not immediately. Well, we’re here to remind you that your efforts have not been in vain.
Showrooms are quickly becoming another client touchpoint that allows you to gather valuable information. For example, many furniture and design companies use some sort of “check-in” system, by which the potential client is welcomed into the store and asked a few questions.
Check-ins can be casual -just a person asking the questions-, or systematized -where technology (typically a tablet) is used to interact with the potential client. Systematized check-ins are preferred to casual check-ins because they store their information in an organized, consistent manner, regardless of who is entering it.
The type of information that can be collected from a potential client in a showroom varies depending on the situation (did that person make an appointment? Or is it just a walk-in?), but it typically includes:
- Name
- Email and/or phone number
- Company, if applicable (for trade sales)
- How did you hear about us
- Referral source or person, if applicable
A more extensive survey could encompass questions about a specific project or even budget ranges, although those questions don’t necessarily apply in every situation or to every user.
Why bother with a check-in? Well, for one, it engages the showroom visitor from the start and creates a relationship with the brand. But more importantly, it gives you the opportunity to market to a potential customer and eventually turn them into a client or a repeat client: add them to your email workflows, retarget them with display and other remarketing campaigns, have your sales team keep in touch with follow-ups.
Finally, this information is also valuable as you optimize your ad spend. Although you won’t always get accurate responses, answers to “how did you hear about us” and referral sources can help decipher which channels are bringing in the most qualified traffic.
If you have questions or would like to discuss how STAPHAUS can help you thrive in the digital age, get in touch. We have the industry expertise to help you grow.
