20 Ideas To Attract Customers To Your Store (2026)

Physical retail is more vital than ever, but its role has evolved. Today’s customers don’t just visit stores to buy—they come for an experience they can’t get online. This shift presents a massive opportunity for retailers who are ready to transform their brick-and-mortar locations into dynamic brand destinations.

Buyers now need a compelling reason to make the trek to a brick-and-mortar store—otherwise, those customers can get the job done online in just a few clicks. It begs the question: How can retailers increase foot traffic and boost sales at their physical stores? This guide—with 20 ideas to bring customers in store—shares the answers. 

Elevate the in-store experience

1. Create a multisensory shopping experience

If your in-store experience doesn’t activate all five senses, you could be missing out. Creating a sensory experience elevates the buyer’s journey.

Chicago French Press is a coffee destination where customers can buy freshly roasted, ready-to-drink coffee. Founder Kris Christian offers questions that merchants can ask themselves as they work to cultivate a sensory experience for shoppers:

• How do you greet customers? 
• Does your store feel open and inviting?
• Does the music at your store create an upbeat vibe?
• Is there a particular scent that attracts your potential customer?
• If you’re not already in the food and beverage industry, is there a special treat that customers can nibble on while shopping? (Maybe a branded mint or cookie?)
• What incentives can you create for new customers to return as they exit? (Think samples, discounts, rewards programs, etc.).

“The most traveled-to destinations are those that the visitor never forgets,” Kris says. “When I first opened Chicago French Press, creating a company vibe was very important, which encompassed small efforts that created a big wave with our customers: warm and inviting employees, a clean and fresh aesthetic, aromatic atmosphere, branded coffee ice cubes, and a nostalgic classic soul playlist.

“A memorable experience that entices every sense can forge an addictive culture that customers don’t want to miss out on.” 

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2. Invest in standout store design

Well-designed spaces draw people in, and brick-and-mortar store owners are wise to invest in thoughtful, memorable store layouts. From hiring interior designers to introducing engaging visual merchandising, there are many ways to elevate the in-store experience.

Store lighting can be an impactful part of building ambiance, shaping how customers feel—consciously and subconsciously. It can help create an atmosphere and guide customers through your sales floor, as shown by luggage and travel accessories brand July. 

“Our thing is using design as a pull to the store,” says Athan Didaskalou, co-founder and chief strategy officer at July. “The interior architects we use to design the store create beautiful spaces that people want to be in. 

“One of the key things is lighting design: Those bright lights when you go into places just feel awkward. We like to think that we’re designing retail experiences people feel comfortable walking into. If they feel comfortable walking in, they’ll feel comfortable asking questions, and then everything else is a bonus after that.” 

When retailers achieve a strong brand image paired with impeccable design, they win. 

3. Welcome customers (and their pets)

Welcoming pets can go a long way toward building loyal customers. However, just saying that your store is pet-friendly isn’t enough. Put out some water bowls and offer treats for the animals. 

Keep in mind that there may be legal limitations you need to consider. Check with your local health and safety boards to make sure you’re not breaking any rules.

4. Design “Instagrammable” moments

Social media is changing the retail design industry, with some retailers transforming their stores into content studios, enabling visitors to create social media, blog, and website content in-store. 

The best part: Retailers can later leverage the ready-made, authentic user-generated content for their owned channels. 

Wish’s Atlanta retail space is a perfect example of an Instagrammable store. Its displays almost turn the shop into an art gallery, and the products into unique works of art.

5. Offer a lounge space for shoppers to relax

From snacks and arcade games to massage chairs and rock climbing walls, merchants are going the extra mile to create “stay a while” experiences for in-store shoppers. 

The direct-to-consumer furniture brand Yardbird, for example, has showrooms that offer a laid-back space for shoppers to relax in. Staff give white-glove service to each customer, and use Shopify POS to take orders and manage checkout wherever shoppers are in the store.

“Having showrooms makes all of our furniture a lot more accessible for our customers,” says Yardbird’s head of marketing, Justin Sucher. “Instead of going online and trying to imagine what this could look like in your outdoor space, you’re able to come in, work with a sales associate—even work with a designer to complete your outdoor space—and learn more about our products and what might be best for your space.”

The overall vibe in Yardbird’s showrooms reinforces its brand image and lifestyle—and also creates opportunities for social media content creation. 

6. Host interactive product demos and issue free samples

People love free things. Use this as a lever to drive customers in-store with interactive product demonstrations and free samples. 

The novelty of a gift, combined with the chance to try a product without putting financial skin in the game, can also influence sales. One recent report found that sampling campaigns can boost product sales by a whopping 95%. 

Take the idea further by personalizing the samples you offer repeat customers. Z Skin Cosmetics, for example, offers miniature trial sizes of every product it sells. 

“We base which sample to put in with the order based on what they ordered,” says co-founder and CEO Ryan Zamo. “For example, if they ordered our eye cream, we might include a sample of our neck cream, products that we recommend using together.”

Build a community around your brand

7. Turn your store into a community hub

Humans are social beings. We love meeting people and gathering with friends and family. In other words, we need that sense of belonging—to a group, to a place, to a community. 

Local businesses that can build a community around their brand can expect higher foot traffic. The “store as a community hub” model enables merchants to interact with their customers regularly to educate, gather feedback, share experiences, host VIP events, and launch new products. 

Athleisure brand Gym+Coffee recognized this opportunity and used its stores as hubs for community gatherings. It began hosting a running group from each of its eight clubhouses in the U.K. and Ireland every Sunday morning, even partnering with a charity.

8. Host exclusive events and product drops

Leverage product drops for new or limited-edition items that customers can only access by visiting the store. You can use customer data to alert loyal or high-value customers and build buzz about community events.

Say you run a streetwear boutique and plan to drop an exclusive collection of limited-edition sneakers. Your POS data shows that your most valuable customers are sneakerheads who spend more than $2,000 a year, mostly on weekend afternoons. These are the customers you’d want to reward with early access.

You could set up a tiered release: VIPs get first dibs at 9 a.m., regular customers at noon, and everyone at 3 p.m. Your POS data would help you stock the right sizes, too. If you know most premium customers wear sizes 9 to 10.5, you’d adjust your inventory accordingly.

💡Tip: Shopify is the only platform to unify POS and ecommerce on the same infrastructure natively. Customer, order, and inventory data—initiated from either sales channel—funnels back to the same platform for a 360-degree view of your entire business. 

9. Partner with other local businesses

Join forces with other retailers to reach new audiences and generate more foot traffic. The concept is straightforward: You simply partner up with another retailer to sell your products under the same roof. 

Local business partnerships work well for many retailers. Direct-to-consumer (DTC) mattress brand Leesa partnered with West Elm to place its products in retail stores. Customers can experience the comfort of Leesa mattresses firsthand, making the purchasing decision easier. And they can also browse the rest of West Elm’s furniture and home goods offerings. 

At the same time, West Elm becomes a one-stop shop for all home furnishing needs.

10. Support a local cause

Today’s consumers want brands to be positive contributors to society. Supporting a local cause does precisely that, and can be a powerful way to drive customers in-store. 

Bellwoods Lifestyle Store, for instance, partners with local charities during the holiday season rather than launching Black Friday promotions. In 2024, it donated 10% of retail sales to a children’s nonprofit.

11. Host seasonal events and experiences

Seasonal events give customers a time-specific incentive to visit your retail store. 

Here are some examples you could bake into your seasonal marketing calendar:

• Offer gift wrapping stations and exclusive in-store bundles that help shoppers find a gift for Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, or Father’s Day.
• Host back-to-school fittings before the school term starts.
• Display winter wonderland setups with Instagrammable photo spots during December.

Personalize the customer journey

12. Leverage one-to-one interactions with Shopify POS

Shoppers are more likely to make repeat purchases with brands that offer excellent customer service. But brick-and-mortar retailers have a significant advantage in customer service: the chance to provide human interactions. 

Modern point-of-sale systems make a real difference. With Shopify POS, store staff can step away from the counter and help customers anywhere in the store. They can use unified profiles to:

• Quickly look up a customer’s purchases
• Check if an item is available at another location
• Help someone complete their online shopping cart from earlier that day

Companies using Shopify POS report their sales grow by 8.9% on average when they connect their online and in-store systems. Staff spend more time actually helping customers instead of managing different systems or searching for information.

Both new and existing customers want undivided attention and personalized advice when shopping. The result is often on-the-spot purchasing.

13. Offer in-store gift customization

Adding in-store gift customization services can be a draw for customers looking to buy something special for their loved ones. 

Sequoia Soaps, a Quebec-based brand, does this well. Along with its handmade soaps and skin care products, it also offers customizations to attract visitors. In-store shoppers can build their own gift baskets and mix and match products to create a perfectly personalized present. 

“We’ve found great success with our custom gift packaging,” says founder Michaelee Lazore. “We offer a variety of gift sets online, but in-store, we offer custom gift baskets where a customer can come in and select any combination of products. Customers love putting these together, and it adds that extra personal touch to the gift.”

14. Create a cross-channel loyalty program

Customer loyalty programs encourage customers to spend more. You can build out your own by incentivizing purchases. 

Offer loyalty points or rewards that customers can earn and redeem both online and in-store, encouraging them to engage across channels. In-store visits could yield exclusive “bonus points.”

Omnichannel resort-wear brand Kenny Flower has a loyalty program, Island Society, to drive repeat purchases. If it wants to drive more in-store visits, it can run a campaign to reward customers for store visits and purchases.

15. Send personalized offers to drive store visits

Personalization builds stronger customer relationships, which in turn can lead to more sales. Thanks to POS technology, you can offer personalization in-store, not just online. 

A mobile POS or app can track customer activity and present that information to your associates, enabling them to offer thoughtful, customized suggestions and service. 

You can also run promotions and campaigns personalized to your audience based on their history with your brand. For example, if you sell bathing suits and launch a new print for a style, you might send an offer to everyone who’s purchased that style before. 

💡Tip: Add and manage customer profiles directly in the Shopify POS app. This feature allows you to unify customer data—such as past orders, loyalty program participation, and preferences—in a single profile accessible anywhere in the store.

Apparel brand RUDSAK, for example, uses Shopify POS to offer personalized promotions. Shopify POS also helped cut in-store transaction time in half, averaging less than a minute per purchase and making the in-store experience even more enjoyable. 

16. Offer appointments or consultations

High consideration products take customers a long time to purchase. Ease those concerns and drive them to your store with services such as appointments, personal consultations, or repair and maintenance. 

Electric transport brand Weebot, for instance, combines product sales with repair and support services inside its retail stores. Since the team migrated from outdated Excel sheets and manual transactions to Shopify’s unified commerce platform, customers can book appointments through its ecommerce website.

The results:

• 15% increase in retail revenue driven by upselling and cross-selling
• 50% reduction in order processing times 
• 50% better customer satisfaction 

“Shopify POS gives us real-time visibility into stock and operations,” says operations director Pierre Asteix. “Our team can see exactly where a product is and manage transfers easily, which has been essential for running four service centers smoothly.”

💡Tip: The Shopify App Store is home to appointment booking apps that integrate with POS and ecommerce—no coding required. 

Use local store marketing ideas to drive foot traffic

17. Run geo-targeted ad campaigns

Use location-based customer data to run targeted paid advertising campaigns. Push special in-store promotions to nearby customers, inviting them to visit with personalized local deals. 

To make the most of geo-targeting, use Google Ads, Meta Ads, and other ad networks that offer precise audience segmentation based on store proximity. Tailor your messaging to highlight in-store events, limited-time discounts, and exclusive products.

By using location-specific callouts like “just around the corner” or “available today in [city name],” you can create a sense of urgency and raise brand visibility. You can also integrate your geo-targeted ads with your loyalty program or personalized offers to further incentivize in-store visits.

18. Collaborate with local influencers

Influencers can be effective partners for building brand awareness and driving in-store traffic. Collaborate with local influencers who align with your brand values and target audience.

You can invite influencers to host events at your store, provide exclusive previews of new products, or feature your store in their content through shopping vlogs or social media posts. Encourage them to share the experience with their followers, highlighting what makes your store unique. You might also team up with an influencer and offer to sell their products in your retail space. 

Hill House Home launched its black Nap Dress and sold $1 million worth of inventory in 12 minutes. Influencer retail marketing has been a key component of Hill House Home’s path to success—it now has its own retail shop where it can test new concepts and build deeper customer relationships. 

19. Offer flexible pickup options like BOPIS

Retail stores are more than just shops. They’re the destination for customers to address all sorts of needs—discovering your products, purchasing your products, learning about your brand, returning purchases, picking up online purchases, and more. Retail stores are now brand hubs. 

One way to drive traffic to your hubs is to offer flexible pickup options, such as buy online, pickup in-store (BOPIS). Likewise, you can offer in-store return drop-offs for online orders, too. 

Since implementing BOPIS with Shopify POS, Offbeat Bikes’ year-over-year bike accessory sales have increased by 400% and kids’ bike sales by 100%.

20. Make your store a multipurpose retail space

Mixing retail and café experiences opens the door to new audiences who wouldn’t normally walk into your store. It also creates community-building opportunities. 

Forth & Nomad is a Texas-based retailer that uses its retail space for community. The curated lifestyle boutique features home goods, apparel, and accessories. In its Houston location, customers can shop, take a workshop, and grab coffee. 

A customer might come in for a coffee and browse retail items while waiting, or purchase home goods as they leave a candle-making workshop. 

With more to do, customers have more reasons to stay. Instead of a quick 15-minute shopping trip, customers might spend one or two hours enjoying different experiences.

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How to measure the success of your efforts

Not all of these ideas will drive hundreds of customers to your store; what works for one retailer might not be the optimal strategy for another. 

Implement a variety of these ideas and track which is most effective using:

• Foot traffic data. Usefoot traffic counters to track how many people visit your store. The Dor app, for instance, uses thermal sensors to track how many people enter your store and where they spend the most time.
• In-store conversion rates. Use a store performance dashboard to compare foot traffic to conversion rates and determine whether a strategy that got people in the door also attracted paying customers. 
• Customer lifetime value (CLV). Compare the CLV of customers acquired through different seasonal events or promotions to identify who drives repeat orders rather than one-off purchases.

💡Tip: Shopify Analytics unifies data from every sales channel and retail store to accurately track marketing performance. Choose from over 60 prebuilt reports, or customize your own dashboard to display your most important metrics in one place.

Bring more customers in-store: put these ideas to work

Stores have always been an asset for retail businesses, and they will continue to be. However, the strategic importance of these spaces has shifted toward delivering engaging experiences—and that’s the best way to bring customers in-store.