Sept. 20, 2022 – A heat map is a visual representation of what and where consumers eyes are attracted to when looking at a packaging or a shelf in the retail environment. This type of data helps marketing professionals understand not only the functionality of a store but how consumers are visually interacting with their brands. What are they gravitating towards when looking at a product or a shelf set? Is it branding (logo), key messaging, colour blocking at shelf?

This is an important tool to help you get inside the head of the consumer to see what they are seeing in the retail environment and how you can adjust your marketing communications to ensure that your brand stands out at shelf.

Here is what a typical heat map looks like:

Research shows that when a customer interacts with a product, it increases the likelihood of purchase, making it crucial for marketing professionals to understand shopper behaviour before planning their POS solution.

With a store heat map, marketers can harness data to understand what is or isn’t working in store. For example, Manhattan-based retailer STORY utilized heat map technology to reveal that despite having a SpongeBob Squarepants Rolex merchandise in its own ornate glass case, the product was getting little attention. Heat map technology uncovers valuable insight into what consumers want from a brand.

Do our consumers interact with a 3-shelf display most? Will a modest pole topper get their attention in our desired store location? Will a gift with purchase or value-add on a bottle help us get noticed on the bottom shelf? These are all questions that can be answered through the analytical data provided by a heat map.

Heat mapping shows where within a single store shoppers gravitate to and what products they interact with the most, making them a key tool in the development of a POS solution. Knowing how your shopper navigates the store will help narrow down the type of solution that’s best for your brand.

Understanding in-store activity and how consumers navigate their shopping experience is the first step toward a successful POS campaign. Heat maps show retail marketing professional things like the locations shoppers gravitate to, what items they interact with, and what shelf they grab product from. They give an inside look at campaign performance and help you understand the changes needed to get the attention of consumers and validate the ROI of their point-of-sale (POS) solutions.