Planogram: the essential tool for organizing your products in-store
It's not easy to arrange the shelves of a store in such a way as to keep your products organized. Your point of sale is the key to the success of your business, and this organization requires careful thought in order to optimize your store's space and satisfy your customers.
But with countless products of varying sizes, how do you get organized?
The solution: a planogram.
What is a planogram? Definition
A planogram is a graphic representation of how you arrange the different products on your store shelves (shelving, display, etc.) to maximize sales and minimize wasted space. It is implemented by a store manager, a retailer or a member of the marketing team.
Planograms in retail merchandising sell several products in a single store. So, by optimizing the placement of your products, and therefore your shelf layout, you not only save precious time for your customers, but also for your work teams. With new technologies, planograms are increasingly managed digitally via SaaS-based software or applications.
Before creating your planogram, make sure you understand your customers' buying behavior. If your planogram is a well-established tool - in other words, if your customers find the products of their choice without difficulty - your sales are likely to increase considerably.
Imagine a customer wants to buy jam. He easily finds this shelf, perfect, but also remembers that he's missing bread. In short, if you place your shelves thoughtfully, consumers will be able to buy products they weren't supposed to buy in the first place.
What are the different types of planogram?
There are many different types of planogram, and choosing which one is best suited to your needs is a significant strategic advantage.
Here are just a few.
Text format
The easiest planogram to produce is in text format, where the names, codes and locations of your merchandise appear in each of the boxes on your document.
Advantages :
- easy to use,
- limits unnecessary travel.
Graphic format
This planogram is more complete than the previous one, as it contains not only the location of products on shelves, but also the way in which they will be presented to consumers. It's much easier to find your way around the space when you have a clear, precise image.
Advantages :
- clear visual,
- detailed information,
- time-saving.
Three-dimensional format
This is the most comprehensive planogram you can find. In addition to the information mentioned in the other two planogram types, this one includes the number and advertising material. This format is perfect for encompassing an entire department and faithfully visualizing the final layout of the desired part of your store.
Advantages :
- faithful image,
- complete,
- fast.
What are the advantages of a planogram?
Let's take a look at how a planogram can be a strategic asset for your store.
Optimizing space
Your planogram will help you optimize the space in your store, leading to greater efficiency and therefore maximized sales. Not only will it enable you to assign a specific function to each part of the store, it will also help you reduce unnecessary movement.
The items you put on the shelves are not placed at random.
Group them according to size, weight and usefulness. By identifying them, you can avoid stock-outs.
Avoiding out-of-stock situations
Out-of-stock is a well-known problem in stores, and one you can easily avoid. Out-of-stocks are mainly caused by poorly organized department replenishments.
To help your store staff in the field, it's essential to digitize your planogram in real time, so that it can be consulted by everyone.
As a retailer, you can find out immediately when a product is out of stock by looking at the emptying shelves, and can place an order on time to avoid out-of-stock situations. Stocktaking can then be carried out under the best possible conditions.
Boosting sales
Your store is set up as follows: successful brands or USCs and new or low-margin products.
In order to increase your performance, taking into account the management of your stocks and the locations of different products helps you to define optimal strategies, after analyzing the behavior of your buyers.
What's more, all customers want the same thing: speed and convenience. The layout of your shelves is essential to ensure that your customers can easily find the products they're looking for.
But that's not all!
Shelf design has a major influence on the customer's mood and the way they shop. In order to build long-term loyalty and a positive brand image, arranging your shelves in an aesthetically pleasing way can greatly help.
It encourages purchase, and therefore increases sales.
☝️ Tip:
To be effective, the planogram must be :
- easy for consumers to find, preferably in an open area,
- easy to understand. Use a clear legend, a direction of circulation for easy location in the space, an appendix containing product references,
- share information effectively through customer updates, so that your customers are kept informed of any changes.
Which planogram have you adopted? Tell us in the comments!
Article translated from French