Want to integrate a pop-up store into your market entry strategy?
The pop-up store transforms the core values of your brand into a customer experience. It’s a marketing strategy that allows the consumer to interact with your brand in a tangible way. Here are five (5) reasons you should create a pop-up store.
1. It creates a sense of urgency
The concept of pop-up store has been carried out by international brands in some of the world’s most vibrant cities: Paris, Milan, New York, and London, to name a few. Brands such as Chanel, IKEA, Reebok, and Mercedes Benz.
Even though a pop-up store is by definition a short-term sales space, it has now become a key element of proactive and evolutive marketing strategies. Creating a pop-up store, whether for a few days or a few weeks, will attract attention and will foster a sense of urgency because it is spontaneous, unique, and temporary.
2. It’s an inexpensive way to test your market
By setting up a pop-up store in a new environment, another region, or a different neighbourhood, you’ll be able to assess the potential profitability of a new business space.
The pop-up store provides a direct contact with the client. In fact, it’s a way for clients to immerse themselves in your brand’s universe and share their comments and opinions. You’ll be able to collect valuable data that can act as a leverage in the next steps of your marketing strategy.
3. It cultivates engagement from current and younger generations
According to Daniel Dutesco, VP of digital strategy at Archipel, 78% of consumers and 82% of millennials still prefer to buy from a physical store rather than online.
A pop-up store can be used to:
- announce a change in the brand image;
- demonstrate and share your commitment to social, economic, or environmental issues;
- launch a new product or service;
- liquidate surplus inventory in a creative way;
- get the media talking about you;
- highlight a special anniversary for your company;
- organize an event or contest;
- test the waters before opening a new point of service;
- create a buzz for a seasonal or limited edition product.
It’s a way to create a space where your customers feel privileged to discover a unique and diverse universe. It’s a tool you can use to speak their language, share your passion, and cultivate engagement from current and younger generations.
The website Dans ta pub lists the 20 most creative and unique pop-up stores. Even though a pop-up store is temporary, its concept must be well-planned. In the examples listed on Dans ta pub, the venues are incredibly original. Take a look at Puma and Sephora who’ve skillfully transformed shipping containers into creative boutiques. Kate Spade, Warby Parker, and Converse have also risen to the task by combining originality and mobility with buses and camping trailers. The possibilities are endless!
4. It creates a buzz outside social media
A pop-up store is also an efficient and original communication tool: it creates a powerful message on its own. Currently, companies are focused on creating a buzz on social media in order to make content, an ad, or an event go viral.
The pop-up store combines all the key elements required for an item to go viral, as illustrated by the ones featured in an article on Cultureevenement.com. A pop-up store can advertise your brand, showcase your content, and create an event that people share without being solicited to do so.
Nike, with its New York City pop-up store in the shape of a giant shoebox, is the perfect example (albeit a large-scale one) of this concept that is gaining in popularity. It’s a striking installation thanks to its bright red colour and its numerous digital elements that captivate the senses. Once inside “the box”, the consumer is completely immersed in the brand.
5. It’s a sensory marketing experience
You know that designing a unique client experience is a huge challenge for any company. Sensory marketing requires a lot of creativity. The pop-up store is a great way to achieve this because it is visually attractive, provides a way to directly interact with the customer, and provokes emotions and a sense of engagement.
The “wow” effect
The success of a pop-up store is tied to its ephemeral nature. However, its impact will depend on the customer experience you’ve designed. It requires a choice location that is original or mobile, a visually appealing installation, a clear message in line with the target market’s values, and it must create a sense of urgency because it will not last long.
The only limit is your imagination.