How to make your pop-up a smash

When it comes to retail, you can fail fast and hard. Online stores have it easier in a lot of ways, while they are paying for storage, they don’t have to worry about footfall on a day to day basis. It all comes down to the traffic and the marketing. 

Pop-ups are a great way to give you online shoppers a way to experience your products first hand. They get to feel the material, shop discounts, and getting that in-person shopping excitement. Pop-ups tend to be a big deal. They are heavily marketed, and when shoppers arrive, they want to take photos with your logo and goods. 

For many online brands, having a pop-up is a really big deal too. Having the ability to show off new products and flex those marketing and promo muscles. New product launches are a lot of work but typically will pull in a big crowd if you already have dedicated buyers. You can treat them to a mystery bag with smaller, cheaper products, some of your branded merchandise from places like The Pin Factory, and even a discount coupon for online shopping. 

But you still need to pay careful attention to what you are doing in the run-up, and how the day itself will go. Here are some tips and suggestions for you to consider when it comes time to have your first pop-up. 

Why?

Anything to do with your business should have a goal. To make money, to gain followers, to attract new customers - to retain customer… Whatever it is should be the underlying reason. Pop-up shops are no different. They are there for a reason. Are you taking your products to a new city? What about a new country? Do you want to test new products and get feedback? Are you simply looking to meet your buyers in person? You need to ask yourself the questions before you decide to commit to booking anything. 

When?

Pumpkin soup maker? Pumpkin spiced drizzle creator? You know your season is autumn, and a pop-up with those spices wafting around is going to be a success. Sell holiday themes items? Then November and December will be your crown and glory. If you don’t have something so niche, then you can pretty much do what you like. Food trucks do well when tied into markets and festivals. Try and see where the possible links are for you. When you choose will make a difference. Going slightly deeper into that, the week of the month will also matter. You should ideally consider what week people get paid, and what week people are likely to spend money. 

Who?

Do you have a lot of contact with other indie brands via your social media channels? If you do, are there any that you can see a good partnership with? Sunglasses brands and holiday bags, simple links can see a collaboration which will pull both of their customer bases in. Another massive perk is that you can use the same space for half of the cost - because you’ll be splitting it. 

Where?

If you find a really well priced pop-up location, unusually low for an area, don’t jump into booking it. You need to go and spend a few days outside the shop or area and see how many people walk by it in an hour. This will give you an indicator if the cost is worth the potential walk-ins. Is it easy to get to by train or walking? This will matter to your current customers. If you manage to land a big city slot, then the links are typically great, but you need to know that for sure. 

Words

You are going to have to carefully sculpt a fantastic social media campaign to get people involved in what you are doing. Have two locations in mind? Get a vote. Have a few dates on offer? Take another vote. Get your current customers involved. They might not be able to make it to the pop-up, but you need to make it clear that you value their loyalty and support - giving them a say in what you do is one way to do that.

WOW, factor

Do something special. There are very few times as an online store that you are going to be able to see people trying on your clothing, or being excited to see the jewelry you offer. It might even be you launching a new drink. Whatever it is, you need the value-added. Aside from your product, what is the hook? What is going to have people traveling hours to get to your pop-up? You can use all of the data you have on your audience and turn that into something useful.

For example - you know that 90% view your site or purchase via an iPhone, then source some well-priced personalisation options with your logo on. Are most of them parents? What about matching tees? If you know that they drink coffee, then think about having some personalised beans on hand to make people a coffee while they browse. 

Wow doesn’t mean overwhelm though. You might be tempted to put too many things in the store, and if you do that, then you might find that people won't be able to make a decision and end up buying nothing at all. The paradox of choice is going to come into play here. 

Who two?

Of course, you will be there on your big day, but if you are usually a one-person business - who is going to help you? You are going to want to have someone who is friendly and bubbly - but not to an off-putting level. They should be well versed on your products and able to help people quickly. The little things matter and your staff might seem like a small detail, but actually, it is one of the biggest. 

When it’s over

Measure your success in a few ways. Income, social mentions, new followers, newsletter sign-ups, and website traffic. Follow up with attendees if you have their details and ride the wave of success and respond to all comments about your pop-up. 

And finally, have fun. A pop-up can be a really great thing for your business growth, and you might learn more about your products than you thought.