A Global perspective on POP display

By Carla Bridge

Trends in the point of sale display evolve annually, and 2018 is no different. The USA is a good indicator of the trends we can expect to see in Australia over the coming years, and at GlobalShop 2018 in Chicago, USA, POPAI got first hand insight into what we can expect in the coming years.

GlobalShop is the US’ largest design and merchandising trade show, encompassing an annual expo and conference, and is run in conjunction with POPAI ANZ’s US parent, Shop!. As part of the event, Shop! runs its annual Awards program, including global Awards, at which Australia took home five of the 14 prizes.

A look at the entries in the US Awards provides some inspiration for Australian retail display. The top US entries used movement, technology and design in interesting and eye catching ways, and proved you don’t have to break the mould to be successful.

The US doesn’t have the same height and size restrictions as Australia, and as a result, displays tend to be larger, often catering to warehouse style operations such as Costco or Walmart, which operate from larger footprint premises, meaning displays must be larger to stand out from the backdrop of product. The largest, display of the US Awards was for Transformers The Last Knight movie, and was a striking life size replica of Optimus Prime for Walmart stores.

Among the trends that stand out when looking at US display, is the high number of licensed promotions and movie or gaming tie ins. In the US, these partnerships occur on a much more frequent basis than Australia and NZ, owing to the proximity, and influence of Hollywood.

Another stand out was the proliferation of sports tie ins. Everything from college football to golf and NASCAR is embraced by brands - FMCG and beyond, to draw attention to product promotions and attract sport fans to their offerings.

In terms of design trends, movement in displays was more prominent that in recent years. The market can be quite cyclical in some respects, and this is a prime example of the way some aspects of design will wax and wane over the years as preferences change. Movement can be great to catch the eye of shoppers, but be warned, movement for the sake of movement can be equally polarising.

For example a large Dr Pepper Wonder Woman Wall supporting a $5 movie ticket promotion was a fantastic example of how movement should be used, with swivelling panels to communicate the message and promote the movie, however, a bobbing mascara wand display didn’t show quite so much panache, instead looking like a waving boom handle rather than the makeup instrument it was intended to represent.

The same can be said of digital. If you are adding tech to a display without giving thought as to why, perhaps its use should be re-evaluated. As with any execution, digital in POP displays should be used to add value, engagement or enhance storytelling, and if it does not serve any of these purposes, can end up an expensive exercise in alienating shoppers.

The liquor displays entered into the US Shop! Awards program were particularly notable. High end and unique, even the semi-permanent (six months use in store) displays were of a quality the likes of which is usually reserved for permanent longer term displays. A couple of standouts are mentioned below.

There are a few things that Australians excel at over the Americans though, and one of these is calls to action. A noticeable proportion of US displays failed to adequately display a call to action, something that Australian designers and brands do a good job of.

Finally, cross promotions are also a key ingredient of the US display industry. These were often occasion-based, focusing in on the popular US summer past time of barbequing, Halloween, or sporting events. One of the more successfully executed cross promotions included hot dog buns, ketchup, beer and barbeque briquettes merchandised on the one display to encourage those who may be barbequing to also grab themselves some beer or buns for their hot dogs.

Let’s take a look at some of our favourite US displays from the Shop! USA 2018 Awards.

Maggi Grill Display

The best thing about this display was that it actually looked like the real deal, and of all the BBQ displays (there were many!), it stood out as the sleekest. This particular display was an example of the cross promotion trend, and was designed with the aim of increasing sales across Maggi and Cross & Blackwell products.

Schick Hydro Disposable Edge Floor Display

This display was unique in that it included both movement and video, designed to tie in with the release of Transformers The Last Knight in Walgreens stores (hailing back to the licensing trend). The touch of a button saw the ‘robot’ razor on the top of the display move, while a second button began playing a trailer of the movie. The display was made using corrugated cardboard with 100% recycled liners and mediums – an increasingly important consideration for all displays both in Australia and abroad. The two month long promotion ran in the lead up to Father’s Day, and was used in conjunction with limited edition Transformers packaging.

Call of Duty WWII Display

An example of one of the larger scale displays, 501 of these interactive point of purchase displays were produced for Walmart. Built to resemble a World War II fighter aircraft to promote the launch of Call of Duty: World War II, shoppers could enter the structure and be photographed in the display as a WWII fighter pilot (to be shared on social media). Additionally, it included space for PS4 consoles and Call of Duty merchandise to be stocked.

Heineken Standalone 4 ways

As the main sponsor of the UEFA Champions League, Heineken produced a unique display for liquor stores in Argentina. In addition to the production of special packaging featuring the championship logo, the display focused on the emotional aspects of the event, recreating the stadium and its atmosphere in a top dome, while a life size cut out of a star player dominated the side of the display. The dome, which was the highlight of the display, included a mock up of the field and crowds, with real lights around the edge. A sound playing device was also installed which continuously played the UEFA Champions League song.

Boost Mobile Augmented Reality Piggy Bank

While it doesn’t look like much at first glance, this was one of the more sophisticated digital pieces of work POPAI saw in the US. A physical counter display of a piggy bank was brought to life using the Boost Mobile app, allowing users to interact with features using augmented reality for the chance to in a prize. Sent to 7800 stores, the AR app swung into action when used with the display, transforming the screen into an interactive slot machine. As a result, more than 3500 new users were introduced to the app with an increase of app session duration of more than three minutes throughout the promotion.

Hendricks Hot Air Balloon Display

One of the higher end semi-permanent liquor displays we described earlier, this Hot Air Balloon display was devised just three weeks ahead of the instore date and was designed to promote Hendricks Gin on World Cucumber Day and tie in with the Hendrick’s Air campaign. The display was assembled instore and comprised both hanging balloons and pole toppers to allow for flexibility instore.

Dr Pepper Wave 2 College Football Faux Wall

As a brand, Dr Pepper excels at instore display and its faux wall this year was the perfect illustration that effective instore display does not have to be detailed or digital. The simplicity of this design is that it uses the product itself to create the display. Cases of 12 packs of Diet and Cherry Dr Pepper were used to drive purchase frequency of Dr Pepper during the college football season. This display minimised costs, given it was only the cost of the product itself, and was able to be assembled instore in 10 minutes, replacing a can wall that can take three to five times longer to build and presents safety issues instore.

POPAI ANZ’s own Awards close for entries July 16, with winners to be announced at the annual Awards Gala Dinner in Sydney on September 13. For more information on how to enter our local Awards or to attend, visit www.popai.com.au.