Opening a well received and financially successful pop up shop requires you to go beyond finding the perfect location and design aesthetic. To reach your target audience and create buzz around your business you need to effectively promote it.
As marketing tools themselves, pop up shops are playing a big part in the UK’s economy, replacing outdated and more expensive retail spaces. This means there is potential for you to make money if you pull off a successful pop up.
But as a startup company, you will be watching every penny. So, it’s up to you to make every pound go further by finding the most effective ways to promote your pop up shop.
By balancing traditional and digital techniques will enable you to achieve the broadest reach at the lowest cost to your business.
Keep using print: posters and flyers
Print media is still an effective medium for attracting customers to your business. The key being to use it tactically, sparingly and without skimping on the quality of your prints – both in terms of graphics and paper. This will help you to keep outgoing costs down.
While it does entail a bit more work and creativity, a good poster placed in a visible location always raises interest. Ro-Am Posters say that A1 posters are the most suitable for promotional materials for pop ups, as they are large enough to read clearly without a hefty budget.
Prior to your shop opening, look to place posters in high density population areas, such as tube stops or near high streets. To save on extra design costs, consider getting a poster designed that can be shrunk, without losing readability, and use the same design for flyers.
Handing out flyers in nearby areas will also give you a chance to check on customer interest and network with local businesses about your pop up.
You can also incorporate social media into your print advertising, with hashtags and social media account details. Or vice versa, by sharing your posters and flyers in digital form through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Take advantage of social media
Social media is a great tool for promoting your pop up shop to new customers and a good social media strategy can take you a long way. Ensuring a faster and cheaper way to make your store known and get feedback from visitors and shoppers in real time.
Networking platforms like Twitter and Facebook allow businesses to get involved with existing shoppers while also pursuing new ones. Due to the “share” and “retweet” systems, your current clients can easily spread the word amongst their friends and followers.
But, with over 300 million users, Instagram may be the best channel for promoting your pop up shop. The mobile social platform is much more personal and relies only on visuals, so if you have a product worth taking a filtered picture of then make sure to share it.
The real cost of social media is time, but with scheduling tools like Buffer, it’s easy to plan promotional posts in advance. Posting numerous photos of your retail space leading up to its launch date, feeding into people’s curiosity while creating images that can be used in articles about your pop up.
Network with other local businesses or shops
Social media is the digital age’s word of mouth. Direct person to person networking is still a hugely powerful tool, though harder to quantify. A real reputation like this is invaluable.
By engaging with the local community, you will be able to advertise without spending. Network with the other shops, bars and stores in the nearby area. Invite them to see your pop up or ask them to put up flyers for your store. Better business in the area will only encourage more shoppers, thereby helping them as more customers means more financial gains.
If you can make the most of these three ways of promoting your pop up shop, with tactical print advertising, smart social media and backup from the local community, you will be more likely to succeed in your limited run.