Cross-merchandising is the practice of displaying complementary products together. The practice compels customers to buy multiple items, or it can help them choose one product over another. Drive sales and improve the shopping experience for your customers with these four tips for cross-merchandising grocery products.
1. Put Popular Pairings Together
From simple meals to gourmet dishes, successful recipes create seemingly magical experiences. Customers find their staple items and new items easily when you group complementary products together. For example, you could place peanut butter and jelly together for a classic pairing, and place some peanut butter by bananas for another delicious option.
Pairing delicious fruits can drive sales and make your produce section more inviting. Whether your customers frequent the fresh produce section or are starting on a journey of improved nutrition, placing must-have salad ingredients by each other makes it easier for customers to eat healthily.
2. Incentivize Buying Slow-Moving Items
Another useful tip for cross-merchandising grocery products is to incentivize buyers to purchase slow-moving items. A buyer might want to upgrade or replace their kitchen utensils and gadgets such as peelers, graters, and slicers. But if they’re making a quick stop or haven’t put those items on a list, customers will likely not wander to a specialized aisle to retrieve these products. Placing these items near fresh produce makes it more likely for customers to buy them.
Slow-moving items won’t gather dust on the shelves if you direct people’s attention to them. This makes cross-merchandising one of the best ways to effectively utilize your store layout.
3. Strategically Place Higher-Profit-Margin Goods
Cross-merchandising doesn’t just help you sell slow-moving items. You can also use this practice to sell goods that generate a higher profit for your store.
Selling pre-cut and packaged fresh produce is one of the best examples of using cross-merchandising this way. While a whole watermelon or pineapple costs less than a package with the same amount, the customer will save time and hassle preparing the fruit for consumption.
4. Highlight Seasonality
Use cross-merchandising to highlight seasonal favorites. Like other ways of cross-merchandising, seasonal displays make it easy for customers to get the items they want in the moment. Creating seasonal displays also refreshes the look and feel of your store.
Clear signs, evocative colors and images, and thoughtfully paired goods will entice customers to stock up on the displayed items. Whether it’s a BBQ display in the summer or hot cocoa and gingerbread in the winter, highlighting seasonality is an effective way to cross-merchandise.
