Where Merchandising Ends, Marketing Begins

My Retail in Detail partner and merchandising/analytics expert, Mark Yates, wrote last week about arming yourself with a merchandising plan after dissecting your analytics. So, now, you’re at a pivotal point in your retail strategy—transitioning from gathering analytics to activating them through a marketing plan that works in harmony with your merchandising efforts.

Now it’s time to extend that intelligence into a cohesive marketing plan that drives sales, boosts traffic, and supports what’s happening in-store and online. Where do you start? What are your next steps?

• Define Your Objectives

Begin by understanding what you want to achieve with your marketing efforts. This could include increasing sales, improving customer retention, expanding into new markets, or launching new products. Take a very defined approach when it comes to your marketing plan. Create very specific objectives and goals.

• Identify Target Audience Segments

Segment your customer base into distinct groups based on demographics, buying behaviours, and preferences. This segmentation will allow you to tailor your marketing messages and campaigns to specific audiences, increasing their effectiveness.

• Competitive Analysis  

Analyze your competitors' strategies, product offerings, pricing, and promotional tactics. Identify their strengths and weaknesses to develop a competitive advantage. Differentiate your retail store by highlighting unique selling propositions and areas where you excel.

Then comes…

• Setting Marketing Goals • Determining Marketing Tactics • Setting Your Budget • Developing a Promotional Calendar • Evaluating Your Execution and Measuring • Gathering Customer Feedback and Maintaining Retention • Asking Yourself and Your Teams How You Continuously Improve

Always keep in mind when creating your plan: 

1. Omnichannel Shoppers Are the Norm  

• 73% of shoppers use multiple channels before making a purchase. (Source: Harvard Business Review)

• Unified messaging online and in-store leads to 3.5x higher customer retention. (Source: McKinsey)

2. Personalized Marketing = Higher ROI 

• Personalized emails deliver 6x higher transaction rates. (Experian)

• Retailers that use data-driven personalized marketing see a 10–30% lift in revenue. (BCG)

3. Influence of Local Marketing  

• 88% of consumers who do a local search on their phone visit or call a store within a day.(Google)

Bringing together your analytics, merchandising, and marketing isn’t just a best practice — it’s a necessity in today’s competitive retail landscape. You’ve done the groundwork by analyzing your data and creating an informed merchandising plan. Now, the challenge — and opportunity — lies in executing a marketing strategy that amplifies your in-store and online efforts in a measurable, meaningful way.

As Mark Yates emphasized, data gives you the “why” behind your merchandising decisions. Marketing is your “how.” By marrying the two, you ensure your retail business isn’t just reacting to customer behaviour, but actively shaping it. Whether you’re building traffic, moving inventory, or enhancing loyalty, success lies in your ability to align every channel, every tactic, and every team behind one cohesive strategy. Start with clear objectives, stay focused on your audience, and don’t lose sight of your store-level realities. When marketing and merchandising move together — driven by data — results follow.

Ready to Maximize Your Success? Don’t let your data go to waste. Let’s turn it into your greatest competitive advantage.

- Paul Birmingham, Partner, Retail in Detail & Studio 11 Creative Group