We aim to crush sales every single demo. We bet you do too. But sometimes the weather is crummy, your local baseball team is in the playoffs, or there’s a zombie apocalypse right outside the retailer’s front door. Ok – for that last one, we just wanted to make sure you were paying attention. But, in all seriousness, no matter how well you plan, sometimes your retailer will be slow on the day of your demo. On these days, it’s important to shift your focus to things you can do instead of things you can’t. 

Need some ideas on how to make the most of your demo rep’s time? Check out the list below! 

1. Educate the store staff.  

When the store is slammed, your brand ambassadors don’t have the chance to spend much time with the store employees. The employees are focusing on stocking the shelves and your brand ambassador is focused on product sampling. Slow days provide a unique opportunity to sample and educate store employees on what makes your product different from the rest.  

2. Ask if you can sample folks waiting for pick-up orders. 

Most of the time, walking out to the parking lot to sample the curbside pickup customers would be frowned upon. Stores want the demo table manned at all times. But that means the online shoppers almost never receive product samples. Slower days are a great time to ask the store management to allow you to sample these shoppers, many of whom might be the target demographic for your brand! 

3. Merchandise. 

Today is the day to provide detailed merchandising. Take the products off the shelf, dust the shelf. Then put them back on the shelf, making sure that those with the nearest expiration dates are at the front. Position all the products with the label facing forward. Not only will your product look great, but the retailer will also appreciate this level of service.   

4. Spend more time educating each customer. 

When you have fewer customers, you can speak longer with each individual. Take the time to ask more questions than you would otherwise. Try to understand where exactly your product could serve this customer’s needs. Interestingly, we’ve found that for some products, specifically those that require more education to sell, our sales do not go down in proportion to the number of customers. When brand ambassadors are able to have a longer engagement, they often have a higher conversion rate. 

5. Dive into competitive research. 

Take a hard look at what kind of signage, packaging, and pricing your competitors are offering. Are there any new products you haven’t seen before? Take the time to compare the nutrition labels between the competing product and yours. Does this study bring up any questions? Are there any competitive advantages your customers may ask about you that you will need to address? Are there signage opportunities your competitors are taking advantage of that you could incorporate? The time spent here to assess your competition could pay off outside the walls of retail. 

Sharing this list with your brand ambassadors can help your brand make the most of their demo when the opportunity for product sampling is limited.  

Do you have other ideas on how to productively fill the time? Share in the comments below!