The question of how to encourage shoppers back to retail spaces with so many closed units is an important one. Without increasing footfall and getting the numbers up for the remaining retailers, the problem just gets worse. But how can we encourage shoppers back when there is less to do? When the space feels less inviting and energised?
The good news is there are lots of things that can be done and in this blog we cover some of those. You can use our free tips or utilise our amazing services to increase footfall and encourage shoppers back to the site in a sustainable way.
The Solution to encourage shoppers back
There are many solutions you can use to encourage shoppers back to the site, but here is our guide to what we think are the best options .
- Great Communication – Take charge of your social media and use Engagers and Inciters to get the community talking about what you’re doing at the site and why they should visit.
- Reasons to engage – what are you offering to the community that encourages them to come you the site? What are the features and benefits of your site over others?
- Increased Value – what additional value can you offer the local community to encourage footfall, visits and revisits? What will drive them to you rather than another site?
- Grow the Community – People buy from people and they want to be together. Consider what can be done to increase the community feel and to build on that.
- Keep it up – ensure you build the community but also keep it up! Look at what you can do to increase traction and revisits on a regular basis. There’s some great ideas below.
What services can encourage shoppers back?
What can BID’s, Shopping Centres and Retail Spaces do with closed units? How can these closed units be transformed into an opportunity to increase footfall?
We have devised a range of medium to long term Retail space Installations and Activations to help retailers re capture the hearts of their local communities. Our installations help boost the local economy and engage communities whilst offering unbelievable value.
Installations can take a section of a unit or an entire unit as desired. Find out how encourage shoppers back below.
Retail Space Installations & Activations
We have separated up the Retail Space Installations and Activation options into sections to make it easier for you to go over. If there’s a combination you’d like that’s not listed, please just ask. For all these activations we offer an all inclusive solution, with props, theming and design.
Staffed Experiences – Our team manning the installation supporting the activation to improve the look and feel of the venue and increase footfall. Staff can be there 2-7 days per week for anything from 4-8hrs per day. These can be FREE or Revenue generating activities, but don’t worry, we’ll handle it all.
Unstaffed Free Experiences – These unmanned installations generate footfall improve the venue, can be FREE to use, opened up and left for people to enjoy on their own terms. Promote it with signage and social media. Want a secondary benefit? Checkout the Add on options.
Unstaffed Revenue Generating Experiences – Unmanned self running activities that support increased footfall and improve the site, but also have a range of Revenue Generation options. This not only increases footfall and benefits the site, but also the opportunity for revenues from the installation.
Retail Space Installations
Staffed Experiences
The Staffed Experiences can be Free to use for your visitors or we can run with an element of Revenue Generation. The benefit to the Free to use version is it encourages visitors regularly to use a zero cost activity, but the running cost has to be covered by the site. With a Revenue Generating version, the site can claw back some or all of the costs depending on how it’s priced. Want a hybrid option? We can do that too, see below for more information.
Dino Safari Park: Petting Zoo – Mini Experience
The Dino Safari Park Petting Zoo is a smaller version of the hugely successful Dino Safari Park experience, redesigned for Retail spaces. Think of it like almost like a soft play or mini immersive theatre, but with our amazing Dinosaurs and performers.
The Experience is available in varying formats and levels budget dependent. Included as standard is set dressing, theming and photo opportunity points as well as multi media experiences that make the space look and feel wonderful. This is a huge footfall draw for families and a massive benefit for Retail spaces and Retailers.
Options Available
- 2/3/4/5/7 days a week 4-8 hrs per day
- Available as a Free or Charged activity
- Available at different size and scale levels
- Flexible duration from 1 week to 1 year
- Check the Add on options at the bottom of this section
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email us for a Quote
Safari Ranger Club: – Mini Experience
The Safari Ranger Club is a wild experience designed for Retail spaces. Similar to Dino Safari Park in terms of structure, think of it like almost like a soft play or mini immersive theatre. At Safari Ranger Club, the visitors go on safari and meet our amazing Apes, hippos, Rhinos, Lions and more with our amazing performers.
We offer the Experience in varying formats and levels,with options that are budget dependent. Included as standard is set dressing, theming and photo opportunity points as well as multi media experiences that make the space look and feel wonderful. This is a huge footfall draw for families and a massive benefit for Retail spaces and Retailers.
Options Available
- 2/3/4/5/7 days a week 4-8 hrs per day
- Available as a Free or Charged activity
- Available at different size and scale levels
- Flexible duration from 1 week to 1 year
- Check the Add on options at the bottom of this section
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email Creature Events for a Quote
UR Game
UR Game is an experiential game focused installation that turns a closed retail unit into a fun family friendly mini arcade. Transform a closed, dark and dull shop unit into a striking and exciting world of neon and fun, with an installation that suits your local demographic. We offer the highest end experiential games including Immersion VR and also simpler variations, to fit your needs perfectly.
Our awesome installation can be a either a Free or Chargeable activity staffed by our Team members or alternatively, in some variations available unmanned (see below). We have 40+ game options available, let us know what kind of thing you’d like.
Games Available Include
- Immersion VR Multi Player Combat Environment – be in the game
- Virtual Racer – race through a variety of environments in VR
- FLY VR – fly through the skies in VR while the machine title
- SingBox – sound proof karaoke pods that keep the fun within
- Virtual Bowling/ Darts – play the games without equipment
- Virtual Shooting Range – practice your skills in in a safe fun way
- React AR – interactive AR wall
- PingPong & Air Hockey – Simple but effective Games the old school way
Options Available
- 2/3/4/5/7 days a week 4-8 hrs per day
- Available as a Free or Charged activity
- Available at different size and scale levels
- Flexible duration from 1 week to 1 year
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email Creature Events for a Quote
Add on
We love giving our clients exactly what they need, so here’s a bunch of Add on’s that are an easy addition to the above Installations. For example, if you’re looking to offer a Free activity a simple Add on can support you with some revenues. Do you need something more? Ask us we are happy to help!
- VENDY Vending Machines for revenue generation – we manage, you earn
- Merchandise – we manage, you earn
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email Creature Events for a Quote
Retail Space Installations
Unstaffed Free Experiences
We offer a range of Unstaffed Installations that are perfect for Free Experiences that Retailers can offer to the local community as a draw to increase footfall. The increased footfall and loiter time supports local stores and encourage shoppers back on a regular basis. The activations keep the area feeling lively and positive. Checkout the sections below for more information.
Immersive Art Exhibition
Turn a closed retail unit into a stunning Immersive Art Exhibition and add a sense of style and class to your space at an incredibly low installation cost. Our Immersive Art Exhibition couldn’t be easier to set up and is perfect for an Unstaffed Experience as it runs itself. But how does it work? We set up the space to look like a Gallery, and hang canvas or frames with QR codes. The visitors come in and scan the QR codes with their phones camera to open stunning art pieces and have a wonderful experience. The pieces can be still image, moving image and video or Virtual Reality and it all works without the need for an app or and hardware. Just a simple scan of the code with their phone to enter a truly Immersive Art Exhibition.
The exhibition pieces can be changed and updated regularly by simply updating the QR codes.
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email Ultra Reality for a Quote
Relaxation Zone with QR code activated VR
Turn a closed unit into a chill out zone with bean bags, mood lighting and relaxing sounds that take your visitors to a place of total relaxation. Want to teleport yourself to a beach or yacht? Scan the QR codes to open up a Virtual world on your device and relax while you enjoy the experience. Want to get away from the device? Sit back and listen to the relaxing sounds or watch a hypnotic projection.
These Relaxation Zones are a low cost, low maintenance offering that make a huge difference to a site.
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email Creature Events for a Quote
Experiential Themed Installation
We will take the closed unit and turn it into an an enticing Experiential Themed Installation. From staging to decor, props and multi media experiences, we have it covered. These Installations are designed to be unmanned and just allow people to come in hang out, see the elements and take pictures. They are simple cost effective attractions that draw visitors to the site time and time again. Whats more we can regularly rotate the theme to keep it fresh!
Themes include:
- Dinosaurs
- Dragons & Fantasy
- Safari
- Pirates
- Winter / Ice
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email Creature Events for a Quote
TheeMee
TheeMee is a fun installation for all those wannabe influencers out there looking for the perfect pic of them in the coolest places. But what if those cool places were actually in your unused Retail units? You can increase footfall and loiter time with fun retail space installations that give everyone the chance to get the perfect shot for the Instagram and Tiktok.
Be it life on a private jet, yacht or at a luxury travel destination, with TheeMe your visitors can be anywhere. But don’t worry they can also get a shot with your branding on the Red Carpet Media Wall as if they are at a premiere for the latest movie.
Sets Available Include:
- Private Jet
- Yacht
- Beach
- New York
- Film Premiere
- Ski Village
- Paris
- Vegas Casino
- Supercar
- Castle
- VIP Helicopters
- Celebrity Life posing for Fans
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email Creature Events for a Quote
UR Game – Unmanned
UR Game is an experiential game focused installation that turns a closed retail unit into a fun family friendly mini arcade. What is the benefit? Transform a closed, dark and dull shop unit into a striking and exciting world of neon and fun, with an installation that suits your local demographic and drives footfall. We offer the highest end experiential games including Immersion VR and also simpler variations, to fit your needs perfectly.
Our awesome retail space installations can be a either a Free or Chargeable activity that can be run without the need for our Team members. We have 40+ game options available, let us know what kind of thing you like.
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email Creature Events for a Quote
YourStudios – Remote Work or Space Hire
Have you thought about offering your closed units to the community? Either as a pop up or remote work location? What about as a rehearsal space? Why do this? The answer is simple, engage the community, increase organically driven footfall and turn a dead space into a living one that the community want to come and use..
With our friends over at YourStudios.com you can temporarily list your unit as a space for hire. Be it by the hour, day, week or month you can list your space for whatever people need. Whats more you can list with with them for FREE hire and just use it as a one stop booking system OR you can take a fee. This is a fantastic way to encourage shoppers back in new ways. We’ll talk more about that in the section below,or reach out to them direct.
For YourStudios CLICK HERE or for our solutions CLICK HERE to find out more or Email Creature Events for a Quote
Retail Space Installations
Unstaffed Revenue Generating Installations
UR Game (R)
UR Game is our experiential game focused installation that turns a closed retail unit into a fun family friendly mini arcade. But more than that you can use it to automatically generate revenues as well as footfall. Turn a closed, dark and dull shop unit into a striking and exciting world of neon and fun, with retail space installations that suit your local demographic. As can be seen, we offer the highest end experiential games including Immersion VR and also simpler variations, to fit your needs perfectly.
Our awesome retail space installations like UR Game can be a card tap Chargeable activity that can be run without the need for our Team members. We have 40+ game options available to encourage shoppers back and to increase loiter time significantly. Let us know what kind of thing you like and let’s set up your retail space installations today.
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email Creature Events for a Quote
TheeMee
TheeMee is a fun installation for all those wannabe influencers out there looking for the perfect pic of them in the coolest places. But what if those cool places were actually in your unused Retail units? You can increase footfall and loiter time with fun retail space installations that give everyone the chance to get the perfect shot for the Instagram and Tiktok. But would you like to add an element of Revenue Generation to it? Either by adding a camera system that takes the images for the users or a Tap to Enter system you can increase revenues and make the attraction self sustaining. What about adding a VENDY vending machine to capture some sales opportunities while people visit TheeMee?
Be it life on a private jet, yacht or at a luxury travel destination, with TheeMe your visitors can be anywhere. But don’t worry they can also get a shot with your branding on the Red Carpet Media Wall as if they are at a premiere for the latest movie.
Sets Available Include:
- Private Jet
- Yacht
- Beach
- New York
- Film Premiere
- Ski Village
- Paris
- Vegas Casino
- Supercar
- Castle
- VIP Helicopters
- Celebrity Life posing for Fans
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email us for a Quote
VENDY – Vending Machine Installation
VENDY is a Vending machine offering that can be utilised anywhere within our other installations,simply around your site OR as an installation. But lets’ look at how!
As an entire Installation VENDY is a bank of vending machines that offer a range of products, supported by enticing design elements. Or if a VENDY machine is placed within another installation or around the site, it’s simply a well stocked and enticing vending machine. Why have a VENDY on your site? Have none of the responsibility of it and instead take the benefit. Take 35% of the profit and our team will provide ALL the responsibility of provision, maintenance and supply.
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email Creature Events for a Quote
YourStudios – Work or Space Hire
Have you thought about offering your closed units to the community? Either as a pop up or remote work location? What about as a rehearsal space? Why do this? The answer is simple, engage the community, increase organically driven footfall and turn a dead space into a living one that the community want to come and use..
With our friends over at YourStudios.com you can temporarily list your unit as a space for hire which can encourage shoppers back to retail spaces. Be it by the hour, day, week or month you can list your space for whatever people need. Whats more you can list with with YourStudios and make great revenues on hire with their one stop booking system. Reach out to them direct.
Go to YourStudios.com to find out more OR for our solutions CLICK HERE OR Email us for a Quote
The Retail Space Installations service was born out of working with clients to help them overcome the challenges they have encourage shoppers back. Ultra Reality and Creature Events are passionate about helping businesses and communities thrive and are proud to support them with our offerings.
Want to see more of what we do for individual activation and entertainment? Checkout the range of products and services we have here.
Want to see more of what we do? Talk to me on INSTAGRAM or FACEBOOK or Contact me here
CLICK HERE to find out more! OR Email Creature Events for a Quote
Want to know more about what Creature Events do? Check Creature Events out on INSTAGRAM or FACEBOOK