What are they?
Pop-up shops are small retail spaces set up for a limited time by a brand. These small branded spaces are a very popular marketing initiative for brands that want to introduce new products or create the buzz around their new campaign.
Key Success Factors For Pop-up Shops
- Location: Pop-up shops are either on a street corner, inside a shopping mall or in a big box store. To select the best location, brands need to assess the environment and pick what’s best for their consumer. What hours of the day will be the busiest? What are the local activities nearby?
- Season and duration: a temporary shop creates a sense of urgency and privilege for customers that are able to experience it or shop there. Some pop-up shops can be open for a short time (24 hours) or a few months. The product or campaign focus usually determines the best season for it.
- Pre-marketing Strategy: a launch party combined with a great PR and social media plan will help to create hype. Think of the right guestlist and invite journalists and influencers known in the industry.
- Visual appeal: When a space is Instagram worthy, it naturally benefits from word-of-mouth with social media sharing and tagging features. As an example, creating a hashtag is a common way to fully capitalize on this free publicity generated by social media users.
In conclusion, pop-up shops feel so unique to the consumers because they are not meant to stay: they can appear and disappear fast. On top of that, consumers tend to love the lure of exclusivity. The thought of getting access to deals or product releases before anyone else is one of their key motivational factors along with the unique experience they expect from their favorite brands.