The concept of POP marking is nothing new for traditional in-person businesses. Cardboard displays in grocery stores have been used for decades to help drive up sales of certain products. For ecommerce sites, there are different techniques to use POP marketing on customers.
What Is POP Marketing?
The strategy of targeting users while they’re already shopping is POP marketing. This is a late-stage form of marketing because users are on your site and in the process of purchasing. POP marketing would not be considered top of the funnel marketing.
The idea behind POP marketing is you target users that are already in a buying mood, making it potentially easier to add on to or upgrade the product they plan to purchase. Pop marketing could be signage around the product showing more details or suggesting complementary products to what’s already in a customer’s cart.
The strategies for POP marketing are things you may see every day and not even realize. Signs at gas pumps offering a sale on soda inside the convenience store would be considered POP marketing. Customers are already stopping to purchase gasoline, so getting a soda would be a “might as well” purchase. Candy placed by registers is also a form of POP marketing.
In essence, they’re items that didn’t bring you to the store to make a purchase, but you end up grabbing them out of impulse or ease of access.
For ecommerce sites, POP marketing would be suggesting similar products or showing opportunities for an upgrade. It may seem more difficult to market products to someone at the checkout online, but there are techniques to get customers to purchase additional products.
What Is Point of Purchase (POP) and Point of Sale (POS)?
The point of purchase is a marketing term used to describe the placement of products or advertisements around point of sale systems. POP would be considered product displays around the checkout area or at the end of an aisle in traditional brick-and-mortar shops.
POP can also be considered any promotional activity to help sell a product, such as a two-for-one sale or first-time customer discount. For ecommerce sites, POP would be how products are displayed on your website for customers who are actively shopping.
POS or point of sale is the location and time of purchase of a product. This would be the cash register or checkout system for traditional stores, where goods would be exchanged for cash or credit.
For an ecommerce site, this would be the checkout page where payment information is entered, and the order is submitted. While the checkout experience may be different from site to site, the process itself should be straightforward for the customer.
The POS system your site uses must be secure and easy for customers. Accepting numerous forms of payment and having a simple checkout process will lead to higher sales conversion and better customer satisfaction.
What Are POP Materials?
POP marketing can be enhanced beyond product placement with the use of POP materials.
Some examples of POP materials are flyers, emails, website pop-ups, or cardboard display stands. These POP materials should help promote your brand and, in some cases, offer more details about your products. Cardboard displays of products are a popular choice for in-person shopping. These can provide more information on your products while also providing a large visual display of your company.
For online businesses, pop-ups during checkout are one way to show users additional products they may be interested in. Suggesting additional services or warranties on top of a product would be considered POP marketing. Targeted social media posts are another good way to get additional purchases from a customer. Item displays are another common way pop marketing is used in ecommerce sites.
Pop materials should be targeted in a way that is logical for the customer. If a customer is purchasing an inexpensive item targeted at someone on a budget, the POP marketing items should be similar in type and value. For example, you shouldn’t suggest a high-end, top-of-the-line product to someone looking to buy a budget-saving product. Your product displays should be in the same league as the product the customer plans to purchase to maximize the chances of a successful conversion.
Product displays showcase one or multiple products to customers. There are multiple ways to present products to customers, so it’s good to understand the basic types.
If you need to know what POP marketing ideas or products would be the best fit for your website, let Kissmetrics help. With our tools, you can analyze your user search topics and paths to conversion.
What Are the 4 Basic Types of Displays?
The key to successful POP marketing is properly displaying the additional products. These are often done on a product page or during the checkout process. Pop marketing should be something all ecommerce sites incorporate to help boost sales and customer lifetime value. The four basic POP marketing display types are:
- One time displays
- Similar products
- Related products
- A cross mix of items
One Item Displays. A one-item display is the showcase of a single product to a customer. This is a good technique for showing off a new product or boosting a struggling product’s sales.
A one-item display can be a pop-up or a highlight in the product catalog, depending on your site layout. If you’re looking to dive into more detail about a product, a one-item display is probably the best choice.
Similar Products. Another type of product display is a similar products section. When customers are viewing a product, a list of similar products can be displayed on the same page to give the customer alternatives to what they are viewing.
This is an effective form of pop marketing, especially for customers that take a direct link to your product page. In a direct link case, the customer may not be aware of other products you offer. By listing similar products, customers may find a better fit for their needs, increasing customer satisfaction and increasing the likelihood of a purchase.
Related Products. An alternative to a similar product display is a related product display. Like similar product displays, related product displays could be shown on a product page or during the checkout process. These related products could be accessories or add-ons to the current product the user is interested in.
If your business sells products that are part of a product package showing related products is a must. If the product your customer is viewing is an accessory to another product, showing the parent product as a related product display is vital.
If, after product research with Kissmetrics, you find that customers tend to buy two or three products together, it’s a good idea to make that package suggestion to other customers.
A Cross Mix of Items. A product display to show the range of products your company offers would be a cross mix of items displayed. A cross mix of items is a great display for companies looking to expand beyond just a popular product.
Showing customers your company’s range of product offers can increase customer loyalty and lifetime customer value. Showing a mix of high-margin items that are a good fit for your customer is a smart way to increase overall revenue.
A cross mix of items is also a nice way to increase product awareness among your customers.
Conclusion: How Can I Use POP Marketing in My Business?
POP marketing is something all ecommerce sites should use. It strengthens sales figures and delivers value to your customers by providing them with options. By making customers aware of a product they may not have known about, you increase can your profits and deliver increased value to the shopper.
Capitalizing on customers already planning to make a purchase is “best practice” for all ecommerce sites. While the process is different for brick and mortar stores vs. online businesses, the thought process behind POP marketing is the same. Properly targeting customers who are already making a purchase can benefit your company and the customer.
You’ll need the right analytics data to understand how best to market your products. Request your Kissmetrics demo today to see how we can help you with your customer insights. By properly utilizing POP marketing, you can make your customers happier while increasing your bottom line.
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