4 Ways That Pop-Up Shops Are Making eCommerce Stores Stand Out

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4 Ways That Pop-Up Shops Are Making eCommerce Stores Stand Out

4 Ways That Pop-Up Shops Are Making eCommerce Stores Stand Out

With Black Friday and the holiday sale season fast approaching, eCommerce stores will be fighting for the attention of shoppers worldwide. The great thing about eCommerce is that you can reach just about anyone. The bad thing? So can every other retailer.

With around 12-24 million eCommerce stores, it’s more important than ever for eCommerce businesses to stand out. However, while 51 percent of people prefer to shop online, that still leaves us with 49% who still favor the experience of shopping in-store. It’s a figure we cannot ignore, especially considering how giants like Amazon are taking much of the market share of online sales.

This means that eCommerce stores need to differentiate themselves in a competitive retail market. But how?

Enter the pop-up shop. Championed by both big and small businesses alike, the pop-up shop allows a level playing field. Pop-up stores make you stand out from the rest and offer your customers an immersive experience that will likely keep your brand cemented in their minds.

But what makes pop-up shops so effective? And how can they make eCommerce stores stand out?

Pop-Up Shops Create a “Buzz”

According to Statista, one of the reasons consumers shop at pop-up stores is their social media worthiness. People are more likely to trust a brand if it has been influenced by their social network, with 81 percent of consumers saying that they trust the advice from their family and friends

Brands can, therefore, leverage pop-ups as a way of creating brand ambassadors organically. 

In the same way that shoppers can share products they’ve brought online by clicking on social sharing icons, in real life, they’ll probably take a selfie or post your pop-up on Instagram to share with their social network. This creates an in-real-life “buzz” to get people talking about your brand. Your pop-up can create an army of brand ambassadors on the back of a great pop-up experience.

Tip: use the pop-up store to your advantage and capture customer information such as names, email, and contact numbers so you can follow up on their experience and keep the buzz alive online, too.

They Cater To The Experience of Economy

Nowadays, people want experiences over things. According to Forbes, 74 percent of Americans want experiences over products or purchases. 

While larger brands might install an interactive virtual reality feature in their pop-up stores, your eCommerce business could do something more suitable for your budget, like carrying out a live demonstration or facilitating a VIP shopping experience for your most loyal customers. 

This way, you are personalizing the customer experience and adding a human touch to it while offering something different from your competitors.

They Work For Businesses of Any Size

It might seem like a feat that only bigger eCommerce stores can handle, but this isn’t necessarily true. Whether you’re an SME or a multinational corporation, the pop-up model works for everyone.

Take Etsy, an online marketplace for small businesses that sell handmade and vintage items, as an example. In 2018, several Etsy businesses came together in Oxford to form a pop-up shop, which proved to be such a success that it is now a permanent store, supporting over 70 local businesses in the area. 

They Have Always Been Relevant

If we take a quick look at the history of pop-up shops, we can see that they have been around in some shape or form for hundreds of years.

From Viennese December markets to the Nike pop-up store in LA, they have proven to be a tried and tested way of getting customers’ attention and likely won’t go away soon.

geaves history of pop up infographic

Final Thoughts

The bottom line is that consumers want brands to be savvier in their buying experience. They want experiences they can share on social media and tell their friends and family about.

Pop-up stores aren’t meant to replace eCommerce. Still, they can be a fantastic way of bringing increased brand awareness and driving sales to your brand, which all eCommerce business owners want to do – especially in the lead-up to Black Friday and the festive sale period. 

Last year, Americans spent a massive $5 billion on Black Friday alone, so it’s worth exploring how you can make your eCommerce store stand out.


Author bio:

Maham Azam is a writer for Geaves Surfaces. She enjoys writing about business trends, customer experience, and marketing, particularly for SMEs. You can read her latest piece on the pop-up shop trend here.

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