Click here to download the catalog as a PDF file. To view this site you need Adobe Flash Player and your browser must allow javaScripts. Go here to get the latest Flash Player. Ron Wright, owner of Wright’s Sport Shop, says displaying optics properly is 99 percent of the sale. “Everything is cleaned and dusted every day,” he said. Abraham suggests placing some optics at eye level. “Display optics in a place where the customer can comfortably have a look at them,” Abraham said. “A very common, but not perfect place, for example, is under the counter. Then the customer has to kneel down to have a look at them, or the items are only put on the counter on request. This doesn’t create additional sales.” Abraham says dealers should have at least one well-placed showcase where they really present the merchandise to their customers. “Even better is having an open display so the customer can touch and test the optics. Place that display in a good location near a window, and people will start trying the items. This will create additional sales,” Abraham said. www.shootingindustry.com Reduce Customer Confusion ne thing customers can find very confusing, said Pat Mundy, marketing communications supervisor at Leupold, is the number of products in a given display. “Many bigger stores have a lot of products,” Mundy said. “It’s easy to get those products mixed together so the customer gets overwhelmed at the counter. Because smaller stores often have less to display, they sometimes do a better job of both displaying optics and of explaining one-on-one to the customer what a particular product does.” One role of a good display, Mundy said, is to separate products into categories and brands so customers can see very clearly what you have available for them. “If you don’t have a good display, or a display that stands out, you run the risk of your store losing ground to retailers who do good displays,” Mundy said. “A good display really separates your products out, and is particularly helpful when a customer comes in with a preconceived idea of what he wants to buy — it’s much easier for him to find what he’s looking for.” To improve optics displays, Mundy said, one of the best things you can do is utilize manufacturers’ point-of-sale displays. “All optics manufacturers try to supply good displays to help retailers do their jobs,” Mundy said. “But sometimes that’s hard to do because some of the displays are large and take up too much room.” If you don’t have room for some of those larger displays, Mundy said, finding a way to keep the brands separated in a smaller display area can reduce the customer’s confusion and make it easier for him to find what he wants. JUNE 2008 25 O