Setting a Roadmap for Customer Excitement when Opening a Dollar Store

There are only a handful of real secrets associated with opening a dollar store.  One of those secrets is your shoppers are looking for a little excitement whenever they decide to come into your dollar store business.  The excitement they seek isn’t your store being out of the basic dollar store items they routinely purchase from your dollar store business.  Rather, it is about frequently adding new and different products to the mix.  In fact one of the easiest ways to stand apart from the crowd is to properly gauge the next hot items and then make them available in your dollar store business even before competitors are aware of them. 

There are other ways to create shopper excitement as well.  If you are opening a dollar store read on.  In this article I present some great ideas for those who want to create a little excitement when opening a dollar store.

    Set specific days of the week for new dollar store items to arrive – this strategy can be used for general merchandise arrivals, as well as specialty merchandise.  It works best when your shoppers know when they can expect the arrival of specific items.

    Start offering one-time deals to your shoppers – this can be as simple as locating special wholesale prices on items you normally carry and then by creating an end cap display offering them at a better price.  It could also be adding 1-2 cases of new and different products you don’t generally carry.  Maybe you can locate a closeout deal and offer unbelievably low prices until the one order you receive sells out. 

    Rotate end cap display merchandise to keep your store looking fresh and different – shoppers do pay attention to the items displayed on the end caps in your store.  Be sure to keep them fully stocked and to buy new and different items targeted to go on end caps.  Don’t leave the same items there week after week and expect shoppers to be excited.

    Add the most requested dollar store items to your regular inventory – listen to your shoppers and their requests.  When many are asking for the same product it is time to bring in a small case and see what happens.  If these dollar store items sell well, then add them to your regular inventory. 

    Create new and different events to add excitement to your dollar store business – start this practice right from the day you open for business and continue it.  It can be as simple as a coloring contest for the kids to a special night each month for your most loyal shoppers.

The list of actions for those opening a dollar store can take to create a little excitement for your dollar store business shoppers is endless.  Always be on the lookout for actions you can take to help create that very environment in your store.  Never forget the positive impact of offering extra value by making traditional dollar store items available for special prices.  The more excitement you can create, the more frequently shoppers will return to your store.  The more frequently shoppers return to your store the more likely you are to are to see added sales.