French composer Claude Debussy once said that the beauty of music lies in the space between the notes. Debussy was suggesting that beauty needs a certain amount of emptiness to be appreciated. The space between the notes allows them to resonate, reverberate, and reach their full measure of expression. When it comes to using creative in-store displays to build brand awareness, it’s often the branding accents that make all the difference. It’s the branding accents that serve as the space between the notes or the visual elements that enable the brand to reach its full measure of expression. Welcome to today’s post, in which we will provide a number of examples of how POP display accents can be used to accentuate and build brand awareness.
When used properly, branding accents can make a meaningful difference in the impact and effectiveness of POP in-store displays. How so? Branding accents can:
- Contribute to the overall visual appeal of a POP display.
- Help to capture shopper attention in a highly competitive, busy retail environment.
- Reinforce the primary branding on a retail display which typically takes the form of a header sign or other types of primary signage.
Let’s take a look at a few simple examples of how branding accents can be incorporated in a POP display or used in conjunction with a creative in-store display. One of the most common types of branding accents are branded hooks. We are big fans of branded hooks since they are relatively affordable and really can help tie a display together visually. They are generally screen printed and often times are die-cut like the Tapout hooks shown below.
We used these hooks along with similar single peg hooks on the floor display below.
Here are a few other examples of branded hooks that we have done for various customers:
In addition to hooks, face-outs, waterfalls, and other accessories can also be branded. The iPhone face-out shown below is an example of how acrylic can be used in combination with a metal face-out to create another kind of branding accent. The acrylic box can also hold product literature.
The shelves below are an example of how a visual branding element can be used on a shelf to reinforce the brand without incorporating the full logo.
Branding end plates are another effective addition to a POP display and a good way to complement a header sign as shown in the Bulwark uniform display below.
So far, we have shown examples of how branding accents can be incorporated into a display, but equally importantly, they can be used in conjunction with or along side a POP display to serve as secondary branding reinforcement. For example, we made the Sig Sauer scope demo display to be used long side some countertop gun in-store displays.
Logo blocks can also be used effectively as branding accents. The wood and acrylic logo block examples shown below are excellent ways of capturing shopper attention and reinforcing the brand awareness in retail spaces that might be adjacent to or away from the main POP display.
Hanging accent signs can also draw attention to items that are merchandised on walls while helping to build the brand as illustrated by the Sanosan slatwall signs shown below.
Finally, counter top branding signs, which are very similar to logo blocks, can serve as secondary branding placement and help to draw the shopper attention back to the brand. A couple of examples are shown below.
Before you start your next POP display project, make it a point to consider the opportunities for branding accents as a way to improve the visual impact of your display while increasing your brand awareness.
Jim Hollen is the owner and President of RICH LTD. (www.richltd.com), a 35+ year-old California-based point-of-purchase display, retail store fixture, and merchandising solutions firm which has been named among the Top 50 U.S. POP display companies for 9 consecutive years. A former management consultant with McKinsey & Co. and graduate of Stanford Business School, Jim Hollen has served more than 3000 brands and retailers over more than 20 years and has authored nearly 500 blogs and e-Books on a wide range of topics related to POP displays, store fixtures, and retail merchandising.
Jim has been to China more than 50 times and has worked directly with more than 30 factories in Asia across a broad range of material categories, including metal, wood, acrylic, injection molded and vacuum formed plastic, corrugated, glass, LED lighting, digital media player, and more. Jim Hollen also oversees RICH LTD.’s domestic manufacturing operation and has experience manufacturing, sourcing, and importing from numerous Asian countries as well as Vietnam and Mexico.
His experience working with brands and retailers spans more than 25 industries such as food and beverage, apparel, consumer electronics, cosmetics/beauty, sporting goods, automotive, pet, gifts and souvenirs, toys, wine and spirits, home improvement, jewelry, eyewear, footwear, consumer products, mass market retail, specialty retail, convenience stores, and numerous other product/retailer categories.