Cross merchandising is the

retail Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and t ...

practice of

marketing Marketing is the process of exploring, creating, and delivering value to meet the needs of a target market in terms of goods and services; potentially including selection of a target audience; selection of certain attributes or themes to emph ...

or displaying products from different categories together, in order to generate additional

revenue In accounting, revenue is the total amount of income generated by the sale of goods and services related to the primary operations of the business. Commercial revenue may also be referred to as sales or as turnover. Some companies receive reven ...

for the store, sometimes also known as add-on sales, incremental purchase or secondary product placement. Its main objective is to link different products that complement each other or can logically be used in association. This strategy also aims to improve overall

customer experience Customer experience (CX) is a totality of cognitive, affective, sensory, and behavioral consumer responses during all stages of the consumption process including pre-purchase, consumption, and post-purchase stages. Pine and Gilmore described the ...

by allowing them to pick up related goods at the same place instead of having to spend time searching for them.

Forms

Cross merchandising generally exists in several forms:

Displays

Displays involve exhibiting a series of related products which together offers a complete package or solution to the customer's needs. This technique explicitly demonstrates the way multiple different products displayed complement and interact with each other. Common examples include a clothing store featuring outfits and accessories ensemble on a mannequin, or a department store presenting a full set of furniture and electronics in a showcase window.

Secondary placements

Secondary placements or

merchandising Merchandising is any practice which contributes to the sale of products to a retail consumer. At a retail in-store level, merchandising refers to displaying products that are for sale in a creative way that entices customers to purchase more i ...

are carried out by showing products of different categories to the same shelf, pegs or aisle. This enables customers to link the related products at the time of purchase, saving their time of travelling down another aisle or luring them into buying additional items that they would not have done otherwise. This strategy is most typically realised in supermarkets where Italian bread can be found directly in front of the butter and margarine aisle.

Link suggestions

Link suggestions or redirections describe the attempt of e-commerce platform to encourage additional purchases by displaying a link to complementary goods on the page of a specific product. The advantages of this online product placement approach are the absence of physical constraints and the ability to tailor product suggestions according to individual consumption history. The use of the section titled "Customers who bought this item also bought..." on the online shopping website

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is an illustration of link suggestions and how they can constantly adjust with transaction patterns.

Products

An effective cross merchandising programme creates a linkage between the products involves to appeal to customers, and the source of that correlation differs depending on the products themselves. The products being displayed often change over time. Stores regularly adjust merchandise according to season, sales target, consumption pattern and many other factors to maximize impact. A common type of product used in cross merchandising is

complementary good In economics, a complementary good is a good whose appeal increases with the popularity of its complement. Technically, it displays a negative cross elasticity of demand and that demand for it increases when the price of another good decreases. I ...

s, which are products that are consumed in conjunction with one another. Electronics and batteries as well as printers and ink cartridges are examples of products that exhibit complementary properties for customers to connect. Pairing products that offsets the unwanted effects of another is also a conventional strategy often found in cross merchandising. Examples include placing chewing gums next to cigarettes and putting toothpaste beside chocolates and sweets.

Applications

The technique of cross merchandising is not exclusively introduced by supermarkets and department stores. Examples can be found in a wide range of markets, as brands explore new markets and boost sales by cross merchandising their products with each other's. Markets that frequently adopt cross merchandising include: * Food and beverage *

Household goods Household goods are good (economics), goods and product (business), products used within households. They are the tangible property, tangible and movable personal property placed in the rooms of a house, such as a bed or refrigerator. Economic ro ...

– electronic devices and appliances, and furniture * Fashion and beauty – clothing, footwear, cosmetics, and personal products * Supplies – stationery, paper and plastics products *

Entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have developed over thousa ...

– television, music, games, and live performances

References

{{Reflist Marketing techniques Merchandising Retail display Retail processes and techniques