Hang on... there's a Hang Tab

Consumers shop as they read a newspaper; scanning the shelves from right to left and from the eye level down, making the eye-zone the buy-zone. This highlights the importance of eye-catching detail on shelves like the hang tab.

Sometimes, the little things can really make a big difference and this is not relationships but rather a smart addition to packaging, which can influence product sales in the aisles of retail stores. It is nothing more complex than a hang tab, but it can have a substantial effect on how your product is perceived and received by customers trawling the aisles while doing their shopping.

In most retail environments, customers really are spoilt for choice. There is not just one or two brands of the goods they are shopping for; typically, they can have five or more options, whether it is an item as simple and innocuous as dishtowels or torch batteries.

How, then, do you ensure prominence on the store shelf for your product over those of any other manufacturers?

The answer lies in a very simple and inexpensive, yet effective solution, which boosts the appearance and appeal of your product. The addition of a hang-tab to the packaging allows your product to be more attractively and prominently displayed - allowing it to say 'buy ME' a little louder than any other does.

Retail facts

It is estimated that more than 60% of all supermarket buying decisions are unplanned impulse sales. Most of us go to the supermarket with the idea that we will pick up some bread and milk, but often come home with a good deal more (especially if you shop while hungry). We shop as we read a newspaper; scanning the shelves from right to left and from the eye level down. The insight from this behaviour is that shelf or display location affects sales. Put succinctly, the eye-zone is the buy-zone.

As a manufacturer, you know that despite its considerable cost, there is substantial value in how goods are packaged. Packaging often dictates how a product can be displayed and it directly influences how the customer perceives or relates to the product.

With all the money you have invested in packaging, will it have the desired effect on your customer - not if your goods are stacked up on a shelf, hidden in the clutter of countless other piled products?

Making it stand out

However, if a hang tab is added to that packaging, the attractive design is put to full use by hanging the product from a display peg.

Our company's hang tabs are plastic, self-adhesive merchandise display hangers, which can turn almost any packaging into a peg-ready product. Putting your goods on a peg is adding a silent salesperson to the item, catching the scanning eye of the customer far more effectively than a stack of stuff on a shelf.

However, what about the retailer - how does he feel about pegged, versus stacked, goods? Well, obviously, more sales mean better business. Retailers generally love pegged products as they can be displayed where they will sell best. A pegged product also presents the entire 'face' of the goods to the consumer, not only getting their attention but also letting them make an informed choice through self-service. The item just asks to be touched, examined and purchased and once that's happened, the product is fast and easy to restock.

There can be little doubt that the attractiveness and prominence of goods displayed for sale has a direct and substantial effect on whether or not they are noticed by the customer. Give your goods a boost by adding hang tabs to allow for quick and easy vertical merchandising in-store.