In-store signage has a significant impact on the in-store shopping experience and how consumers view brands. Savvy retailers also know that a sign is the last, and often the most important, opportunity to make a sale. Acknowledging the importance of engaging shoppers through print promotions, Modell’s Sporting Goods tapped into the AccessVia dSignShop SaaS solution. The project was completed in just six weeks.
As part of the rollout, Modell’s receives guidance from AccessVia experts for application and support, allowing the retailer to minimize responsibility of IT staff while optimizing sign output processes. The sporting goods, active apparel and footwear retailer currently operates more than 140 locations in the Northeastern U.S., and has deployed the solution in all stores. Previously, the retailer had a manual sign creation process that was time-consuming and relied on third party printers and expensive shipping costs, according to Warren Eckel, VP of In-Store Visual Experience for Modell’s.
“Our primary goal was to launch a flexible, easy-to-use sign system that communicates a clear price message to customers, improves efficiency and reduces expenses,” Eckel said. “AccessVia allowed us to achieve all of these goals.”
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The implementation was completed in August 2011 and was immediately put to work to help increase awareness of Modells’ key back-to-school initiatives, Eckel noted. “Now signs are available within 24 hours; we don’t have to wait days or weeks for them to be printed, shipped and delivered,” he said.
AccessVia Web dSignShop SaaS is a cloud-based solution designed to provide resources for retailers wishing to outsource implementation, maintenance and support for signage creation. By tapping data from a central source, the solution delivers print and digital promotions to stores that align with point-of-sale and backend retail systems. The implementation allows Modell’s to release brand-consistent signage in a more timely manner, noted Dean A. Sleeper, CEO and TVP at AccessVia.
“Modell’s has always done retailing right and is well known for its great stores,” Sleeper told Retail TouchPoints. “We simply gave them a modern tool to simplify and streamline the tasks around delivering a great shelf-edge to their customers. And, at the same time, save labor costs and eliminate waste.”
Web dSignShop is part of the AccessVia Publishing Platform, which provides retailers with designing, publishing and shelf merchandising management resources. The suite also offers analytics and reporting of store activity to determine the success of promotions and signage.
Although consumers are growing more comfortable tapping into mobile and the web to purchase items, the store experience still plays a vital role in retailer income, Sleeper noted. Addressing this need, AccessVia allows retailers to alter sign messaging based on store location, key demographics and other cross-channel initiatives.
“Over the past year, the opportunity for retailers to leverage their signage for greater value has taken a huge leap forward,” Sleeper explained. “Retailers can now test sign layouts at one or two stores to determine how they impact lift, then apply higher-selling templates to all stores. Retailers also can use store-specific templates to address multi-lingual populations, local marketing initiatives, new store formats, and item and even store-specific QR code campaigns. These features help retailers understand who is at which store, looking at which product.”
Added Sleeper, “It’s time for retailers to take a vital 17th century tool — signage — and refine it so they can quantify the benefits and use them to competitive advantage.”