What Are the Best Ways To Increase Sales in a Physical Retail Setting?

The brick-and-mortar retail experience has transformed significantly over the years, moving from mechanical cash registers to advanced digital points of sale. These technological advancements have not only reshaped how stores operate but also introduced cultural shifts that directly impact employees working in retail locations.

While certain aspects, like the importance of politeness, expertise, and cleanliness, have stayed relatively consistent, other norms have shifted and redefined expectations.

So, what are the best ways to increase sales in a physical retail setting in 2025?

The Greeting, or Lack Thereof, Can Make or Break a Retail Sale

It's important to make contact with each customer who enters the store.

"Generic greetings like 'Can I help you?' may appear insincere. Instead, personalize your approach with a friendly opening like, 'Hi there! Welcome to [store name]. Let me know if there’s anything I can assist you with,' Shopify recently suggested.

While Shopify's suggestion is helpful — the only thing worse than a non-greeting or being ignored is a highly generic greeting — it could also face at least light criticism. Most customers are already aware of the shop they're visiting or browsing, so mentioning it by name could come off as stilted or forced. Appearing to read from a preloaded script can also be a turn-off for today's increasingly savvy and critical customer.

"Tailor your greeting if they’ve shopped with you before: 'It’s great to see you again! How’s that [product] you bought last time working out?' Shopify continued.

This approach may sound good on paper, but there are two potential pitfalls: One, unless that particular associate has dealt with that particular shopper before, it could come off as potentially intrusive — or even the cause of open discomfort. Two, even if associates are equipped with a comprehensive omnichannel array of information about customers they haven't dealt with before, this can come off as inauthentic and inorganic.

However, Bob Phibbs, The Retail Doctor and a RetailWire BrainTrust member, spoke to the importance of greeting every customer in a similar fashion. Speaking to a potential introverted salesperson as a hypothetical, Phibbs emphasized the point.

"Well, introvert, retail is not about what you want. It is about what customers want. Leaving the shopper alone costs your company big money. 80% of customers never return to businesses due to perceived indifference from staff. 80% want to be noticed. 100% want a friendly greeting," he wrote.

"Greeting anyone with 'Good afternoon, welcome to (your store name) feel free to look around, and I'll be right back' is not pushy. It's good manners and the first step to making a successful sale. Doing it within 15 seconds is the best (that's not that long — try counting as you walk into your store)," Phibbs concluded.

Active Listening Is Key to Further Retail Sales

Something almost all experienced salespeople and retail analysts can agree on: Active listening is key to developing a sale, whether that sale happens to be transactional or based on the principles of relationship selling.

Shopify noted three key points in the approach to active listening that frontline retail workers should abide by:

• Never pose a response while the customer is speaking: Simple enough — don't interrupt the customer. It may be wise to formulate ideas, suggestions, or pertinent questions while the associate or manager is listening, however.
• Engage via body language: Generally speaking, it's best to avoid getting too close to a customer. With that being said, avoid crossing arms or leaning back, showing disengagement or disagreeableness when listening to a guest.
• Summarize what the customer said before continuing: This can be as simple as repeating a one-sentence debrief of what the customer has just said before proceeding. Size concerns, flavor preferences, timeliness considerations, price points, and more can be part of this restatement.

While many of the above mirror foundational concepts key to another active listening procedure, mediation, it's also important in terms of leveling with a customer. These are lynchpins that have stood the test of time on the sales floor for decades but may be especially important in an era where many interactions take place via screen, rather than face-to-face.

However, what is left off the table is the importance of training salespeople to dig deeper, particularly through product knowledge and actual empathy, to offer suggestions that not only benefit the company's bottom line and their own personal sales figures but also perfectly suit the needs of the customer. Such an approach is the basis of another key retail concept: authenticity, or honesty.

Managers might be receptive to the idea that an engaged and attentive associate is one who is not only actively listening as a job requirement, but one who is also actually actively concerned with the customer's outcome on a person-to-person level outside of their job description. This can be hard to curate, but is worth consideration.

The question remains, how do you close the sale, and ensure repeat customers? Merchandising is perhaps the unspoken ally of every sales associate.

Retail Merchandising Makes a Huge Impression on Newcomers and Loyal Customers Alike

Merchandising is a cornerstone of the brick-and-mortar retail experience. Untidy and unkempt stores with a great deal of clutter can confuse guests, making navigation of the store a hassle — and a hassle-free experience is necessary for longevity in this space.

As Merchandising Consultants Associates underscored: "Today’s customers expect more than just products on a shelf. Customer satisfaction is more a matter of the experience than the products. When a store is thoughtfully merchandised, it shows. The products are easy to find, the displays are engaging, and the overall flow of the store feels intuitive. This kind of environment can encourage customers to spend more time in the store, which often translates to spending more money."

When it comes to merchandising, multiple millions of dollars are spent on the psychology and social engineering of today's store layouts. Despite this, a lack of staffing at the store level combined with an influx of excess product — oftentimes, there's no room in the receiving area to put trucked-in wares — can contribute to a growing epidemic of retail clutter, particularly in larger outlets.

A clean and tidy store with merchandising selectively placed under correct lighting, on proper fixtures, and with accurate signage is, of course, the ideal. Floor workers benefit by being able to pull desired product immediately to display, customers benefit by being able to find the category they are searching for, and the brand looks all the better for it by leaving a lasting impression of professionalism and a certain cache in being a cut above.

As the retail business transitions to a hybrid model wherein online sales, shipped from faceless storefronts and warehouses, are of equal importance (at least in some cases) to in-store sales, how important is it for a retailer to maintain its physical presence? And if a brand decides to operate tens, hundreds, or thousands of physical retail hubs, how can they ensure frontline associates and managers are performing at their best?

These, and other questions, form the basis of a business in flux.