Convenience store advertising has become very important these days because convenience stores are everywhere.
Now people can ignore your traditional method to promote your convenience store. But these 14 out-of-the-box convenience store advertising idea can help you to get your desire goal sucha as:-
- Create buzz
- Increase foot traffic
- Accelerate sales
Before we start, Convenience store advertising, we need to know about “what is convenience store advertising”
So let’s get started.
What is convenience store advertising?
Convenience store advertising is a process to promote or market a convenience store and its goods & services. This promotion can be done by 2 methods.
- Traditional Marketing:– Signage, Billboard, Poster, Newspaper, Magazine, etc
- Digital Marketing:- SMS, Google ads, Social media ads, Email marketing, etc
We generally only promote within convenience stores, but today that’s not enough in this competitive market.https://www.google.com/
You need to go outdoors and advertise outside of the store. People will come to your store if they see you somewhere else.
14 out-of-the-box convenience store advertising
1 Floor Stickers That Lead the Way
Don’t wait for the customer; they won’t come to your store. You need to do something to get people to come to your convenience shop.
Stickers with bright colours should be placed on the sidewalks or walkways in the mall that lead to your store.
You can utilise phrases such as “Snacks this way →” or “Are you thirsty?” Proceed with your journey.
Examples:- A 7-Eleven in Tokyo has glowing footsteps that lit up at night to show people how to go to their store from the train station.
2 Bathroom Mirror Advertising
It is a terrific idea to surprise your target audience in public restrooms, such as those found at shopping malls, gas stations, or clubs.
Mirrors that are not noticeable in the reflection should have decals applied to them. Something like a sticker that reads “Out late? is an example.
The advertisement that says “Grab an energy drink nearby at [Store Name]” is right in front of your face.
An example of this would be a store in New York that utilised fog-reactive mirror advertisements, which only appeared when the mirror encountered fog.
3 Branded Delivery Bikes or Tuk-Tuks
Making your delivery trucks into moving billboards would be a great idea.
Put bright colors and funny phrases on motorcycles and tuk-tuks, along with words like “Rolling Snacks to You” or “Your Midnight Cravings on Wheels.”
When you are not making deliveries, you should park them in popular areas.
Example: There was a convenience store in Delhi that outfitted its fleet of scooters that transported products with LED signage and humorous inscriptions such as “Fuelling Your Study Sessions.”
4 Product Mascot Selfie Booths
Set up life-sized cutouts of characters holding speech bubbles that say things like “Can’t resist these chips!” or “The best coffee in town!” near the entrance of your store to make it a fun place for customers to take selfies.
You should give them a discount or a free item if they tag your store on social media.
Example:- A dancing banana mascot went viral on Instagram and made more people go to a Korean convenience store.
5 Augmented Reality (AR) Treasure Hunts
Make shopping more enjoyable by utilising augmented reality!
Make use of an application to launch a treasure hunt around the neighbouring area.
Users can uncover hidden retail deals and discounts by scanning barcodes or signage of the establishment.
Example:- Using augmented reality (AR), a retail chain in Singapore disguises “virtual discount coins” in parks located all over the city.
You were eligible for a discount of fifty percent on munchies if you discovered one
6 Reverse Psychology Mirror Ads
You could hang two-way mirrors or create ingenious illusions in which buyers see themselves holding your goods, such as a can of soda or a snack.
These works are memorable and attract a lot of attention, particularly in places that are geared towards young people.
Example: An organisation that produces beverages installed mirrors in such a way that it appeared as though your reflection was holding their beverage. Store purchases climbed by thirty percent as a result.
7 Cart Handle Stories
To get the most out of the handles on your grocery cart, get creative.
Create humorous short stories or jokes that include your product and give them to people to print.
Almost like a short comic strip, it goes something like this: “A lonely cookie’s day… until YOU came along!”
Example: There was a convenience store in Australia that sold “cart comics,” which were humorous comic strips that changed every week and were displayed on each handle of the merchandise.
8 Local Podcast or Audio Ad Triggers
When you want to promote location-based audio experiences, you can use QR codes or links to Spotify.
A “Bored?” sticker should be placed on the seats or the poles of the metro system. Discover the reasons why our snacks are the best by scanning this.
You have the ability to make your product sound humorous while avoiding being overly salesy in the podcast episode.
Example:This mini-series on Spotify was called “Snack Stories,” and it was created by a retailer in Mumbai. The retailer’s brand paid for the first episode. The promotion of it was carried out by posting QR codes all throughout the universities.
9 Ice Cream Stick Coupons
Give your product a marketing strategy that is out of the ordinary.
You have the ability to sell popsicles or ice cream that incorporate a coupon or discount that is concealed on the stick. It is necessary for them to return to the store in order to retrieve it.
Example:- During the summer, a company in Canada held a sale using “lucky sticks” that given customers a discount of twenty percent on their beverages or snacks.
10 Surprise Mailbox Flyers (With a Twist)
In place of traditional flyers, you might deliver little packages or “snack invites” to houses in the surrounding area.
In addition to a handwritten message and an invitation to return to your store for additional purchases, you should include a free sample, such as a toffee or sachet, to the customer.
Example:- These “movie night kits” were distributed by a mini-mart in Goa, and they contained a voucher as well as samples of popcorn. Over the course of the weekend, they saw an explosion in their sales.
11 Branded Public Bench Ads
Even if you donate money to a public bench, you shouldn’t let it get boring.
Through the addition of snack trays, drink holders, or charging outlets that all point towards your store, you can make the bench backs of your merchandise store more engaging or fun.
Example:- A store in Mumbai added a bench outside their shop with a built-in “snack shelf” and signage: “Rest & Refuel Inside.”
12 In-Store Meme Wall
Every week, you should hang a large board in your business that contains memes, jokes, or viral trends related to food, energy drinks, or insatiable appetites for late-night snacks.
People will come in order to take pictures and then share them on social media.
Example:- The “Relatable Snack Problems” memes were displayed in a store in Pune, and the store was successful in attracting more college students so that they could take pictures.
13 Daily Spin-to-Win Wheel
Put a real “Spin the Wheel” at the front desk or door with sections like:
- Cookie for free
- Ten percent off
- Snacks for Two
- Drink Energy for Free
Example: When customers made a purchase, they were able to spin a cardboard wheel that was constructed by a commercial establishment in Jaipur. As a result, this became a series on Instagram Story.
14 Jukebox Loyalty Cards
Distribute “Snack & Sound” cards, which let customers to select the music that will play in the store for a period of fifteen minutes if they purchase five items.
Suitable for members of Generation Z. The event becomes more personal for them, and they feel as though they have some control over it.
Example:This was at a business in Kolkata that was located close to a music college, and it resulted in a 25% increase in the number of repeat customers.
Final Thoughts
When it comes to marketing convenience stores, it is not necessary for the marketing to be tedious or expensive.
Getting people’s attention in situations where they are not expecting to see an advertisement is the challenge.
This could be in a mirror, on the sidewalk, or even while they are filling up their car.
Not only are these creative ideas inexpensive, but they also create a significant number of shares on social media, which provides them with the ability to reach a greater number of people.