10 Different Ways to Increase Foot Traffic to Your Retail Store

by Jessica Perkins Published on April 20, 2023

As the owner of a retail store, you’ll always want to find new ways of increasing your foot traffic.

After all, the more people that come into your store, the more opportunities you will have to sell more products and generate greater revenue. There are multiple methods you can utilize to increase foot traffic, from improving your curb appeal to holding in-store classes and events.

Here are just ten excellent options that you’ll want to consider.

1. Host a Grand Opening or Reopening to Increase Foot Traffic

If you’re opening a new store or reopening after a refurbishment, you should definitely consider holding a grand opening ceremony.

Not only can you create a buzz on the day to get people coming into your store. You can also ensure you get return customers after the event.

The people who attend your grand opening are sure to spread the news of your opening, too. That means you can get word-of-mouth recommendations without having to spend additional funds on marketing.

In the coming weeks, you’re sure to see your foot traffic increase.

Before you plan your store’s opening, it’s a good idea to check out the latest store openings across the US. You can find the newest ones at openings24.com. You can then take inspiration from those events for your own grand opening or reopening.

For instance, you could:

Decorate the interior and exterior of your store with banners and balloons.
Play music or hire a band to entice people into your store.
Offer free snacks and drinks.
Provide in-store discounts on the day.
Get staff members to dress up in costumes.

2. Offer Discounts and Special Promotions to Increase Foot Traffic

You shouldn’t only offer in-store discounts on the day of your opening. You should also do so intermittently throughout the year.

By holding sales, providing discounts, and offering special promotions, you can attract more customers into your store.

Just make sure you promote your sales and discounts well. In addition to placing signs in your store windows, you should run promotions online and do things like local leaflet drops.

3. Increase Foot Traffic by Improving Your Curb Appeal

Whether you’re opening a new store or not, there are various ways you can improve your curb appeal to attract more passing foot traffic into your retail store.

That means looking at the exterior of your premises with fresh eyes so that you can determine ways of improving its appeal.

Don’t underestimate just how much curb appeal affects business traffic.

According to a poll performed by the CEO of Service Channel, Tom Buiocchi, 80% of those surveyed said they would enter stores that they had never been in before based solely on clean and professional-looking exteriors.

The following are just a few ideas for enhancing your store’s curb appeal.

Replace the Signage

Your store’s sign should visually display your brand to attract people to go inside. You should carefully think about the design, such as using a font and colors that will grab people’s attention and which is suitable for your industry. These visually appealing elements should be present and consistent in your displayed company name and logo design.

You also need to place your exterior signage in a position where it will easily be seen by passing prospective customers. It could be a good idea to place a sandwich board outside your store, too.

Give Your Store’s Frontage a Lick of Paint

By painting the frontage of your retail store, you can revamp it and get your store noticed more by passers-by.

As with your signage, use colors that are suitable for your brand and which will increase foot traffic into your store.

Keep the Exterior of Your Store Clean and Tidy

A messy or unclean store frontage will put off people entering your store. So, make sure you always keep the exterior of your store clean and tidy.

Clean up debris before and after opening. Clean windows regularly. And consider hanging plants outside to give your store a fresh look.

Create Enticing Window Displays

People who pass by your retail store on a regular basis may often not give your store much attention. But by creating enticing window displays regularly, you can ensure everyone who passes by will pause to marvel at the displays.

In turn, you’ll get more people coming inside.

Think outside the box. The more inventive you can be with your window displays and the more you pay attention to the design elements of your displays, the more you can ensure they grab the attention of passers-by.

4. Sell Food and Drink Onsite to Increase Foot Traffic

Regardless of your industry, it could be a good idea to start selling food and drink onsite. If you have room, you could create a café area where you serve things like coffee and pastries.

By doing so, you won’t only create a new stream of revenue. You’ll also attract more people into your store.

When passers-by smell the delicious aroma of coffee and food, they’re more likely to enter your store.

5. Invite Other Businesses into Your Store So You Can Increase Foot Traffic

Rather than running your in-store café yourself, you could partner with an existing company. The same applies to other services.

By inviting companies that offer frequently used services to set up inside your retail store, you can increase foot traffic into your store.

For instance, you could partner with a barber, a photographer, or a shoeshine business.

Look for businesses that suit your specific type of store.

By renting out corners of your store to other businesses, you can create more income and increase your footfall.

6. Increase Foot Traffic by Promoting Your Business Online

Even if you don’t sell products via an online store, you’re sure to promote your retail store online.

You should have a website and make use of social media to raise brand awareness and get more people to come into your physical store.

To up your online marketing game:

Make good use of SEO methods to get your website ranking higher on search engines.
Offer discounts to people who sign up for your email newsletters.
Create high-quality content that people will share.

The more ways you utilize to promote your retail store online, the more you can increase foot traffic and gain valuable repeat customers.

7. Hold Classes and Events to Increase Foot Traffic

Another way to increase foot traffic into your retail store is to hold classes or put on events that are suitable for your sector.

For instance, if your store sells food products, you could invite a chef to hold cookery classes in your store once a month. If your store sells clothing, consider holding a fashion show every time you get in a new product range.

By offering more things that people can engage in, you can quickly get more customers coming into your store.

8. Provide Cell Phone Charging Stations to Increase Foot Traffic

Providing cell phone charging stations is a simple but effective way of getting passers-by to enter your store.

When people need to recharge their phones and they notice a sign in your shop window that tells them they can charge their phones for free, they’re sure to enter.

And once inside, they’re likely to browse and buy products while they wait for their phones to be charged.

Just make sure you put up a clear sign that can be seen from the street.

9. Increase Foot Traffic by Creating a Loyalty Program

One excellent way of ensuring customers return to your store time and time again is to create a customer loyalty program.

You could offer free items or discounts once customers have purchased a certain number of products. You could also offer discounts to people who sign up for your company newsletter.

By giving something back, you can obtain loyal customers and quickly increase foot traffic to your retail store.

10. Increase Foot Traffic by Catering to Children

If it’s suitable for your specific type of retail store, consider doing things in-store that cater to children.

For instance, you could:

Have a play area for toddlers.
Rent rides.
Hold kids’ events, such as fancy dress events at Easter and Christmas.

By doing such things, you will broaden your target customers and get more foot traffic.

And, of course, when you get more children coming into your store, you also get more parents visiting your store. Those parents are sure to browse and buy.

So, you can generate higher revenue by simply catering to children more.

Summing Up

The more thought you give towards increasing your foot traffic, the more ideas you can come up with to achieve a higher level of footfall.

You should consider your specific sector to create the best ideas, as some ideas will be more suitable for some retail sectors than others.

But some or all of the above methods will undoubtedly help your retail store to attract more customers, regardless of the types of products you sell.

So, to recap, you can increase foot traffic to your retail store by:

Hosting a Grand Opening or Reopening.
Offering Discounts and Special Promotions.
Improving Your Curb Appeal, which could include:

Replacing your store’s signage.
Giving your store’s frontage a lick of paint.
Keeping the exterior of your store clean and tidy.
Creating enticing window displays.

Selling Food Onsite to Increase Foot Traffic.
Inviting Other Businesses into Your Store.
Promoting Your Business Online.
Holding Classes and Events.
Providing Cell Phone Charging Stations.
Creating a Loyalty Program.
Catering to Children.