Want a quick way to remember the essentials of chocolate confectionery merchandising? Think of the three Vs!
CHOCOLATE confectionery is one of the key product categories in convenience stores, says manufacturer Nestlé.
The company reckons that 99% of households buy chocolate confectionery and says it has identified several key elements of sales and merchandising that, if properly executed, will help retailers maximise their sales of chocolate.
For Nestlé, the three golden rules of chocolate merchandising are variety, visibility and value.
VARIETY
• Stock the right range for your shoppers. With such a wide variety of products to choose from, retailers should analyse EPoS data and then ensure they are stocking the top-selling lines and giving them the right amount of space. Best-selling lines should be available at all times.
• Capitalise on new products. New products create excitement and generate sales, Nestlé claims. Look out for slow sellers and remove them to accommodate new products. Retailers should give newly launched lines space on the main confectionery shelves as well as on any special off-shelf displays.
• Provide a broad range of products. To cater for shoppers’ preferences retailers should offer a wide range of chocolate lines.
VISIBILITY
• Pay special attention to the main confectionery display fixture. More than 80% of confectionery sales is taken by products on the main fixture’s shelves.
• Group confectionery by product-type, based on the different ways that consumers use confectionery products. For example put premium products together and place single-serve products designed to combat hunger together.
• Give the best spaces to best-selling lines. The best spaces on any confectionery fixture are those where shoppers’ eyes fall most quickly and most frequently. Nestlé says prominently positioned best-selling lines in each section are easily recognised and therefore guide shoppers quickly to the shelves they’re interested in.
• Multi-face the best sellers in each section. It helps ensure popular products remain available through the day and makes them easier to find.
• Display confectionery in other parts of the store (often called secondary sites). Some 70% of confectionery is bought on impulse and products that can be easily seen on extra sites can trigger purchasing impulses even among shoppers who don’t pass the main confectionery shelves.
Placing point of sale materials, and other reminders of confectionery, strategically around the store should also increase the number of impulse purchases.
VALUE
• Offer attractive value-for-money promotions. Consumers are looking for good deals and that’s true on chocolate and other confectionery just as much as anything else. Retailers should offer consumers a range of promotions. Price plays a deciding role in very many purchases.
• Use PMPs. Him Research shows that 53% of shoppers say they would be more likely to try a new product if it was price-marked, says Nestlé. The same research shows that 48% of shoppers say price-marked packs would encourage them to switch from a preferred brand. So PMPs are likely to be especially important in the promotion of new products.
