The modern sales system is built a little differently than it was 20-25 years ago. Many interesting professions have appeared among the store staff, whose functions to this day remain a mystery to most people. One of these specialties is the merchandiser. If you ask most consumers who such a merchandiser is, then every tenth supermarket visitor is unlikely to give an exact answer. Meanwhile, a specialist in the field of merchandising works in large hypermarkets and supermarkets.
The profession of merchandiser appeared in Russia not so long ago, it came along with well-known foreign brands like Coca-Cola, Pepsi and others. In the West and in America, this specialty has existed for a very long time. It is known that sales of goods can be significantly increased if you use a certain technique. Merchandising just involves the use of such subtleties and tricks to increase the turnover of the outlet. Being a part of marketing, this direction is closely connected with all the plans that the marketing department builds.
Many people still have no idea what the merchandiser does. However, the work of this specialist makes consumers buy. Professionals in this category are divided into three types. The first type is stationary. This specialist is always at the point of sale. He is responsible for what happens inside the store. Who is a stationary merchandiser? This is the person who, first of all, monitors the shelves and the layout of the goods. By the way, this function was originally the main one for these specialists. It is noted that the special arrangement of the goods on the shelves, the width and height of the shelves themselves can affect the demand for the product and its purchase. Today, the duties of a professional in this field have also added advertising, various promotions, price adjustments, if necessary, expansion of shelves and their reduction, monitoring the assortment. Also, this person should help to conduct various promotions, maintain the appearance of products and improve the status of the brand.
There is another kind of merchandisers - mobile. Who is a mobile merchandiser? The functions of this specialist are different from the functions of a stationary employee. If the latter works at the point of sale and solves all issues on the spot, then the mobile works with competitors. Its functions can be compared with the functions of a spy. He comes to the supermarket of a competing company, but doesn’t buy anything there. His duty is to assess the availability of goods on the shelves, prices, the location of goods and the width of the shelves. The activities of this person does not go unnoticed, however, the security and administration of the hall belong to such "scouts" quite loyally. After all, the competitor also has its own mobile merchandiser, which from time to time comes into the stores of its neighbors.
Now it remains only to find out who the hybrid merchandiser is. This is the last category of professionals of this kind. Sometimes hybrid merchandisers are called universal. Their activity combines the functions of mobile and stationary specialists. One day they can do work at the point of sale, and the next day they can go to competitors and do monitoring. Most often, in a large network, all three types of specialists are present at once. However, sometimes it also happens that there is either one hybrid merchandiser per point, or stationary and mobile. Working as a generalist is quite difficult, but some professionals say that personal monitoring increases work efficiency.
Consumers entering the supermarket for shopping may not notice the modest merchandiser. But the result of his work will significantly affect the choice and quantity of goods in the shopping cart. Therefore, when coming to the store, do not forget that everything is already prepared there so that the visitor spends as much as possible. And the mysterious merchandisers are behind it.