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12 August 2010: 90% of UK POS customers said the weather affected their summer sales, according to a recent poll carried out by the leading manufacturer of point of sale solutions. Ensuring its customers keep up the heat, UK POS’ Sales & Marketing Director, Debra Jamieson, gives her top tips on what to consider when investing in point of sale solutions to ensure a hot and steamy summer is on the cards every year, and the effects are felt all year round.1)         Understand which promotions will suit your customers

Understanding your clientele is fundamental to the success of your business and is something to bear in mind when promoting special offers through POS. Do a lot of your sales come from special offers? If so, you should use cost-effective POS solutions including PVC poster holders or PVC ticket holders so your offers can be updated regularly. If, on the other hand, you are always promoting one particular product or service you would be advised to use higher quality materials such as oval based poster holders or wooden based poster holders – these are an excellent option.

2)         Carefully consider your store’s layout when positioning POS

Essentially POS positioning is just as important as the special offer it promotes, so make the most out of available space, both inside and out. Is there enough room for a pavement sign which is visible to customers approaching the store? Once inside, is there a particularly favoured route customers take to get to the till? If so, maximise the use of that section to promote any special offers and deals with poster holders at the entrance, to merchandising strips, show cards and shelf talkers down the dedicated aisle and branded impulse bins at the tills. This fluidity will pass on the necessary visual cues that turn browsers into buyers.

3)         Make the most out of window displays

Window merchandising is an extremely important part of the customers’ shopping experience, showcasing different special offers and new in-stock seasonal products. Ensuring your window really stands out and special offers and promotions are clearly on show will certainly make a difference. The obvious form of POS ideal for such displays is a cable poster display. But displaying your products effectively is just as important, which is where display bridges and support stands come into play.

4)         Think outside the box with in-store promotions

Take advantage of seasonal periods and think of alternative ways to promote the relevant products, such as offer cards in counter top leaflet dispensers, which can be displayed on the counter or wall mounted, recommending specific products. Consumers will be grateful for this advice and are more likely to buy multiple products, if recommended by experts and positioned in attractive, good quality POS.

 5)         Update your POS materials when they start to look tired

Nothing is more off-putting than seeing a poster put up by sticky tape or an old worn and torn ‘A’ Board sitting outside the front of a store looking unloved. POS should look clean, streamlined and most importantly professionally consistent to draw customers in. This can easily be achieved by investing in new POS materials and print. First impressions are often the ‘deal breaker’ so make the most of your store’s appearance to maintain customer retention and keep your customers happy.

As figures have just been released that the UK economy isn’t expected to grow as much as the old government predicted, the retail industry is going to be focusing even harder on driving footfall to stores or websites all year round. Gone are the days when the prime push was over the festive period. Here, Sales & Marketing Director of UK POS, Debra Jamieson, comments on the increase in retail seasonal promotions and how it has affected the POS industry, 12 months out of 12.

The run up to Christmas has always been renowned for being the busiest period in the POS industry – retailers racing to make sure their promotions are more prominent than their competitors, offers on everything you can think of from candles to crackers, and customers always looking for new and innovative ways to present their offers to entice the public off the high street.

Until recently, POS companies will have spent most of the year preparing for the Christmas rush and hoping for mini booms throughout the remaining 10 months. Over the last few years, however, a transition has occurred in the marketplace, seeing seasonal promotions taking pride of place throughout the year. Easter, Bank Holidays, the World Cup, Wimbledon, summer holidays, back to school, Halloween, Bonfire Night… the list goes on but the theme remains the same – retailers are realising that customers are keen to take advantage of offers all year round.

The effect this has had on the POS industry is phenomenal, with retailers trying even harder to bring customers in by standing out from the crowd, even in the notoriously quiet 1^st quarter. To support the industry, it is the job of POS professionals to make sure the solutions on offer are relevant, in terms of style and price, and will ultimately meet the client’s objectives of drawing customers in.

At UK POS we are recognising the change and have launched a series of new products to suit to tie in with the World Cup, and summer holidays, for example. Advising on how best to use POS is also key – some retailers need guidance on where they should place their offers and what message they should be portraying. Depending on the type of product on sale and the location of the store, this could vary from in-store POS to window displays to outdoor POS, with either cheap and cheerful offers or a more exclusive product to portray a higher quality brand.

Whilst there is still an inclination on the behalf of the consumer to be more cautious with their spending habits, retailers know there is a way to draw them in if they are more strategic with their offers. This is where we, as POS experts, come in to provide current and flexible display solutions to meet all budgets and try and give the retail industry a much-needed boost.

UK Point of Sale Group Ltd (UK POS) has announced the launch of two new pavement signs to help retailers scale up their promotions to generate a greater interest this summer. Developed to complement the existing A1 pavement sign, the new range is available in A0 and 40”x30”, with the A0 pavement sign priced at £139.97 and the 40”x30” pavement sign priced at £138.73.

For exterior or interior use, UK POS’ pavement signs comprise a range of features including; a unique snap open and shut mechanism making changing the display quick and easy, robust wheels for easy positioning, double sided display, free standing water filled base and a stylish design.

As figures have been released showing that parents pay out up to £201, 809 a year raising each child, and up to £37 a month on school uniforms*, UK POS is launching a campaign to help retailers strengthen their focus on their target audience through visual displays and point of sale solutions as back to school is once again on the agenda. 

No longer is there one local shop supplying uniforms to the surrounding schools. The age of the mass market is well and truly underway, with big name retailers stocking box pleat skirts, pale blue shirts and knee length charcoal grey socks which means there is even more reason to fight to stand out from the crowd with back to school offers.

The back to school market has changed dramatically over the last decade, with retailers now offering whole uniform sets for under £10. It is for this reason that UK POS is fighting to help the high street market their merchandise.

UK POS’ Sales & Marketing Director, Debra Jamieson, said: “We’ve noticed a shift in terms of customer buying patterns, especially over the last few years. Retailers are opting for more flexible solutions where they can update and change their offers regularly. We’re finding our Acrylic Freestanding Poster Holders to be a really popular product at the minute. They sit on the head of a gondola with the image of the offer on display. Offers need to be visual in today’s competitive market place – the increase in sales of our poster holders support this.”

 She continued: “There’s debate over whether the retail market is picking up at the moment but one thing that is for sure is that parents need to kit out their children in school uniforms before September – retailers just need to be more focused on their audience and market their offers accordingly to make sure they get this business, rather than their competitor.”

UK POS has been manufacturing point of sale products for over 20 years and is continually adapting to changing market trends when it comes to working with retailers to market their offers.

UK POS, specialists in manufacturing point of sale products for over 20 years, has announced a special offer on its Acrylic Freestanding Menu Holders to help the catering and hospitality industries give their customers the pick of the day throughout the summer holidays.

The A5 menu holders are available at £1.51 each for a minimum quantity of 10. UK POS also manufactures a variety of other designs, including 3 sided menu holders, A3, A4 and A6. They are also available in PETG and other sizes can be manufactured on request. All menu holders are manufactured in 2mm clear high impact acrylic, all edges are polished and they are supplied poly-bagged.

For more information on UK POS please call and speak to a member of the experienced customer services team on 0161 431 4400,

UK Point of Sale Group Limited (UK POS) is this month promoting its Cable Poster Kit to help leisure centres kick start their summer activity campaigns. UK POS is offering its A4 ceiling to floor poster kit at a special offer price of £25.50.

Whether it’s the Government’s ‘Change4Life’ scheme or fitness classes, UK POS is helping leisure centres promote their summer activities and get the UK active. The cable and rod displays enable leisure providers to take advantage of the additional space often missed in a traditional office environment, opening up the opportunity to create innovative and dramatic displays.

Sales and Marketing Director of UK POS, Debra Jamieson said: “The summer season is a key time of year for leisure centres to be focusing on their seasonal activity programmes to encourage children and adults to visit their local leisure facility. Therefore, we are offering leisure centres the discounted kits as a special offer to enable leisure centres to promote their activities in a cost-effective way, yet making sure the quality of the finished display is uncompromised.”

Working with leisure centres to provide an advanced range of smart and stylish cable display and rod displays, UK POS is helping them to showcase the latest activities and programmes in time for summer. With all products manufactured in the UK to specification, the kit includes:

-Smart and durable satin chrome and regular chrome finish

-A range of ceiling to floor and wall fixings

-Stylish acrylic poster holders and accessories

-A custom laser cutting service to make the perfect snap frames

-Large stocks for next day delivery

Usually retailing at £36.60 UK POS will offer the kit at £25.50 excluding VAT as a special discounted offer. For leisure centres wishing to take advantage of this they will need to quote ‘OFFER’ when ordering the pack.

Online poll from UK POS indicates that UK economy is still struggling to recover

 Despite the Government’s claim that we are now seeing green shoots in the UK’s economic recovery, it is clear that both retailers and consumers are still very much feeling the pinch. UK POS’ online poll in March asked site visitors whether the UK economy has yet recovered with a staggering 87 per cent voting no.

 The online poll clearly indicates that retailers are pessimistic rather than optimistic about the stability of the economy with consumers still holding a tight rein around their purse strings.

Yet despite this gloomy outlook, department store John Lewis saw a 30% increase in sales this Easter compared to 2009. The department store put its success down to its competitor price matching, ‘Never Knowingly Undersold’ campaign and sales in home categories*. With a strong advertising presence and in-store POS, John Lewis proves that traditional marketing methods are still effective tools of the trade.

 As such there is an added benefit of using POS to refresh and highlight the latest in-store promotions and offers, especially when it comes to seasonal events.

Impulse dump bins are the ultimate flexible sales promotion tool. Placed next to checkouts, they are great at encouraging those last minute impulse buys. Shelf talkers, leaflet holders, leaflet dispensers, wobblers and poster holders come in a variety of sizes and styles for you to personalise your retail displays. These will also ensure that you don’t miss an opportunity to cross sell other lines, advertise new products and promote special offers to customers.

Discreet display accessories and fixings give a high-end finish to complete POS packages

Behind any retailers strategically designed POS should be a fixing which adds a suitable and discreet finishing touch. Offering a varied range of display accessories and fixings, such as suspension fixings, ceiling fixings, wobbler strips and suction cups or bespoke products, is important for customers to complete their POS packages.

Retailers will have a process from which they design and print their POS to how and where it is displayed. But how is it going to be attached and fixed without the fixings looking unsightly and intrusive? The answer is to offer a variety of options whatever the shape, size and weight of the POS and an experienced customer services team who can advise on the best option. As a manufacturer of these products, we can even design and manufacture unique items especially for customers.

For example a leading furniture retailer approached us in the hope that we could solve a longstanding nuisance. It found that flexible wallets were always supplied with white adhesive buttons, which really stood out when placed on furniture. Having tried to source clear buttons for a while, our design team went that extra mile to mould clear alternatives to the retailer’s desired specification.

UK POS’ range of ceiling, wall, window and shelf fixing options ensures retailers have the accessories to finish the job. The range includes suspension and ceiling fixings, which come in a variety of designs to offer uplifting promotions or to guide customers around stores. Wobbler strips provide off the shelf solutions for impulsive offers, whilst suction cups are discreet and secure making them perfect for window displays.

Currently UK POS is offering bulk buy discounts on it entire display accessories and fixings range.

UK Point Of Sale Group Limited (UK POS) is offering low prices on its high impact, outdoor products to help retailers with their Easter promotions. Point of sale materials such as the A1 Pavement Sign and A4 Snap Poster Frames are ideal for promoting outside of shop hours and getting customers off the street and into the store during the run up to the Easter holidays which start on 2^nd April.

The A1 Pavement Sign and A4 Snap Poster Frames are two of UK POS’ best selling outdoor products. They offer a flexible approach to outdoor promotions as posters can be quickly and easily changed for the swift succession of calendar events which take place over the spring months. This helps retailers get the most out of the high impulse spending events which include Easter, Father’s Day and the May Day bank holiday.

Current offers on these two products are buy two A1 Pavement Signs for £85 each (plus VAT) and buy 10 A4 Snap Poster Frames for only £3.49 each (plus VAT).

Sales and Marketing Director of UK POS, Debra Jamieson commented:

“In addition to these outdoor products we also supply a wide selection of products to encourage those all-important in-store impulse buys. These include: PVC ticket holders, impulse dump bins, shelf talkers and sign flags. All of which are readily available at competitive prices. We also sell a selection of card racks ideal for year round events.”

UK POS Group Limited is encouraging retailers and their marketing departments to start looking at alternative methods of promotion to boost much-needed sales over the Easter period. The UK manufacturer of PoS materials believes ideas such as Easter recipe cards in counter-top leaflet dispensers or Easter baskets and hampers on display supports are the type of promotions to turn browsers into spenders this year..

The retailers’ Easter is no longer just about chocolate eggs; it has fast become the second biggest sales time, even first for many retailers. The fact is, consumers typically associate the Easter period with the start of spring; bringing with it longer days, warmer weather and a sense of renewed vigour, and retailers grab onto this optimism when promoting it. It is therefore not just a key date for food retailers, but also gardening and DIY, food and drink outlets and even fashion retailers. The simple fact is with warmer weather, consumers want to be out and about and with that comes spending.

Ultimately special offers need to be effectively promoted, never more so than now when stores are fighting for sales. But in difficult times, promotional materials need to come in at a credit crunching cost. UK POS items tick both boxes.

That means stores can provide fluidity to promotions, from outside, as part of window displays and then in-store. Using a combination of anything from A Boards, to show cards, shelf talkers and poster holders will pass on a clear and consistent message to the customer. Yet, UK POS predict that the real key to standing out from the crowd this Easter will be to offer shoppers unique promotions or added value USP’s. These too can be promoted through the use of PoS.

Speaking of her predictions for this Easter, Sales and Marketing Director of UK POS, Debra Jamieson commented:

“Easter is much later this year, allowing consumers to claw back from Christmas spending. With a bit of luck the milder temperatures of spring will start to kick in too, blowing away those winter blues. Taking that into consideration, consumer spending could see a vast improvement on like-for-like sales. Hopefully retailers and marketing departments will pick up on this and look to traditional PoS to support their in-store promotions. ”