Visibility is important. Research has shown that there is a direct correlation between how quickly a product is seen and its likelihood of being purchased. Realistically, consumers do not thoroughly scan all of their choices before making a choice. It is more likely that they will take five to ten seconds and make a quick decision. Therefore, displays need to be eye-catching. Eye-catching displays will have essentially two determining characteristics, color and placement.

Colors count. You may have the most beautiful, artistically-designed display. But, if it lacks bold, contrasting colors then it is unlikely that it will grab the attention of consumers. Choose colors that stand in stark contrast to other products near the display so that your display will stand out. This concern for contrast within the display environment brings us to the second determining characteristic, product placement.

Product placement is key. Ideally your display should be placed as close to eye level as possible. When determining where to place your display, competition with other brands is an equally important consideration. If your product is not the leading brand, then a point-of-sale display ought to be positioned as close as possible to the leading brand. If at all possible, try to get your display to the right-hand side of the leading brand because consumers tend to scan products in the same direction that they read. If people are instinctually drawn to the leading brand, they will have a greater chance of switching to your product if it is competitively priced and placed just to the right of the leading brand. If it is placed to the left it will have a much greater chance of being overlooked.

Make sure you close the sale. Color and placement are essential elements of point-of-sale advertising, but they won't do much good if you cannot convince the consumer that your product is right for him or her. Therefore, the display should also contain key phrases that will assure consumers that they are making a smart buy. These phrases will vary widely based on the nature and category of your product, but the display might contain key phrases about its effectiveness, taste, safety, or age appropriateness. For instance, if you are marketing a product for children, you should make a statement about the products age limitations, such as "Safe for children ages 3 and up." These kinds of assurances on the display will save customers the time and aggravation of scanning the product packaging and/or label to determine if it is a good choice for them.

Do your own research. Be sure to incorporate some time and money into your marketing plan so that you can determine what works best for your particular situation. Observe what kinds of products customers are drawn to at the point-of-sale; then tailor your display to attend to their perceived needs. Customer feedback might also be useful during this research phase. It can take time, but if you are willing to experiment and pay careful attention to be willing to experiment with what works best for your particular product.