Do you remember the anticipation of Christmas as a child? How you pressed your nose against the shop windows of department stores to watch the gnome’s baking biscuits and the hedgehog family wrapping presents and sledding. These beautiful shop windows, in which magical scenes took place: A Christmas carousel, a snowman with a big carrot nose in a thick snow flurry, bears having a snowball fight, a railway winding its way through a snow-covered mountain world … Wonderful fairytale worlds that made me dream as a child and made my mother despair as she could barely loose me away from the window. And I wasn’t standing there alone but in the middle of a large crowd of children who all wanted to get a front-row seat right by the window. And of course, there was not only something to see, but Christmas carols could be heard, and the smell of gingerbread was in the air. It was like immersing yourself in another world with all your senses. And I believe that this atmosphere also affects adults. I still feel that way.
People long for an intact world
Do you think this is cheesy or just nostalgic daydreaming?
Wishing for a short time in a different world, away from war and climate change? This longing could help us in our Christmas preparations to let our customers dream again and ask ourselves: ‘What makes them happy, how can I inspire them and convey this sensual happiness to them?’ Certainly not with a plastic Christmas tree on the front door, a few dusty parcels underneath and jingle bells on an endless loop. Why not take the opportunity to discuss this with your team? You will be surprised at the wonderful ideas that come together. Because you must have your team behind you so that they can go the extra mile with you.
My store as a Point of Experience
I would like to share the following options with you as an incentive:
- Do a Secret Santa with your customers: Everyone brings a gift and gets to choose another one in return. Wouldn’t this be a wonderful joint activity to increase the attractiveness of your shop and extend the length of your customers’ stay?
- Think of the children in Africa or earthquake victims around the world. But the daycare center in your neighborhood, the retirement home around the corner, and the church choir in your community will also be happy to receive attention.
- How about having one of the shop windows designed by the first class of your local primary school? You can be sure that the parents and grandparents will look at this window.
- Organize a special event together with clubs and institutions in your area. Open your doors to new target groups, to different people who may not even know your shop yet.
People at the center of attention
Above all, create a sense of community beyond your customers. After all, that’s what bonds and solidarity are all about. You will see that word will get around and how long these memories will last beyond the Christmas season. Turn your point of sale (POS) into a point of experience (POX). Don’t just focus on your products but on people. Even if it may be difficult, your first thought should not only be about profitability, but also about building a community of values that reciprocally ensures your economic success. Have the courage to show what you stand for and that you are not avoiding the social discourse but are assuming your social responsibility as a company. In the end, this will make more of an impression than an expensive product advertisement in a glossy magazine.
With this in mind, I wish you an imaginative pre-Christmas period and look forward to you sharing your campaigns with me.
Yours, Monique Fischer