Overview
Retail cleanliness is often overlooked in retail businesses. However, it is one of the prime ways to enhance customers’ experience and keep them in the store for a longer time. From wash rooms to floors to trial rooms to tables, customers expect an organized clean store. The demand for retail store cleanliness has surged owing to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Customers expect a spotless store for an enjoyable shopping experience and feel more secure shopping in a retail store that offers sanitizer, gloves, and is germ-free. To the extent, customers even research ‘retail cleaning COVID’ for a particular store before planning to visit it during the pandemic.
As per many surveys, customers are ready to compromise on service quality but cannot adjust to an unsanitized and unclean store. A service can be instantly rectified, but an unorganized store leaves an unpleasant memory in the customer’s mind for a longer time, and most likely, they may not return. Retail store cleanliness and presentation have a direct impact on a customer’s decision to make a purchase. As per ISSA – The Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association, a significant number of customers would exit the store if they find unpleasant odors, unclean restrooms, dirty floors, stains or spills, or dirty shopping carts. The cleanliness factor particularly plays a crucial role if the retail store is associated with a grocery or food or beverage business. Generating a positive experience right from the doorstep will create a base of loyal and recurrent customers.
Why Is Retail Store Cleaning So Important?
Retail cleanliness impacts overall sales in three different ways:
1. Standards:
An unclean and unsanitized retail store may land into big trouble if a customer lodges a complaint, and this is even riskier in the case of food and beverage industry stores. A retail store needs to abide by the standards set by local authorities. Most countries have dedicated industry professionals who regularly pay a visit to ensure the retail store’s regulations are followed. A messy store also invites a bad review and can have an adverse impact on sales.
2. Positive Customer Experience:
A clean store offers a great positive experience to customers, and they tend to spend more time in the store, boosting the chances of a sale. For instance, if a retail store is a grocery and maintains the utmost hygiene level, customers believe the products it sells also reflect the same quality and hygiene. If a retail store is spotless, people would prefer visiting it often, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, giving a competitive edge to the business even during a pandemic.
3. First Impressions Matter:
A good and loyal customer base is crucial, especially if the retail store is a new player in the locality. Besides the business strategies, maintaining a visually appealing store and organizing products enables customers to quickly find what they are looking for. Unorganized shelves can be frustrating, and people who have lesser time in their hands would walk away if they cannot easily find what they need. Dusty products, foul smell, and overall unappealing stores force customers to make a quick exit, causing a loss.
Five Practices to Follow to Achieve Retail Store Cleanliness
- Create a retail store checklist for cleanliness. A quick retail cleaning checklist helps the employees ensure nothing is missed out, and the retail store is completely free of germs and is clean to deliver a positive experience to its customers.
- Train employees and teach them the importance of cleanliness. It is vital to constantly remind the employees to pay detailed attention to the store’s overall cleanliness. During a pandemic, employees should constantly sanitize and wear a mask to ensure they are safe and offer customers safety.
- Documentation helps to manage the store efficiently. With the right tools, the entire documentation can go digital, including past audits with data stored easily and securely on the cloud.
- Tracking helps to maintain consistency in cleanliness across all the stores located in the country. A similar visual appearance and spotless store help increase sales not only in one branch but throughout all the branches.
- Hiring a professional staff dedicated to cleaning helps a retail store ensure cleanliness is achieved. Contract-based cleaning agencies offer timely service and maintain cleanliness without the need to be constantly reminded.
Why Outmarch?
Outmarch is one of the leading one-stop platforms offering vital features such as a cloud-based, easy-to-use mobile interface and is enterprise-ready. Outmarch provides role-based access control and easy integrations with third-party systems.
Find out how to implement Outmarch and achieve better control of all your retail stores by connecting with us today!
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