The next giant leap forward in retail is Electronic Shelf Labels (ESLs). Pet store owners are recognizing these labels as a game-changing solution as they navigate the challenges of meeting customer expectations and maintaining competitive pricing. ESLs are digital price tags that are transforming more than just the look of pet store shelving, but also how pet stores manage pricing, promotions, and in-store efficiency, offering significant advantages over traditional paper labels.
Dynamic Pricing Updates in Real-Time
One of the most compelling benefits of Electronic Shelf Labels is the ability to update prices instantly across the store. Simply by logging into their POS, pet store operators can change prices for any or all items without moving from a single workstation. Whether the price changes are done as a reflection of a change in price from a competitor or a change in cost from a supplier, or simply in an effort to move a specific item, you can move quickly and efficiently to adjust pricing strategically across all of your pet store shelves.
This ability saves cost and time. Instead of manually updating paper labels, which can be a time-consuming and error-prone process, they allow you to sync pricing changes directly from your POS system, saving the time that typically would have been spent going from shelf to shelf changing every price for every single item on every single shelf.
Enhanced Shelf Management
Legacy price tags performed a single function: tell the customer the price. Electronic Shelf Labels can do a lot more than just display prices. Functionally, they act as an extension of your POS system.
We’ve already shown how prices can be changed directly from the POS but they can also perform other practical business functions. For example, ESLs can show sales, stock levels, or alert staff when inventory is running low on high-demand items like premium pet food or popular toys. With these labels working, pet store shelving can be turned into a proactive tool feeding you a steady stream of valuable information so that you can stay ahead of your business and work proactively.
Improved Customer Experience
Customers accustomed to having access to virtually unlimited amounts of information while shopping online, appreciate the additional information Electronic Shelf labels can give them. They can display QR codes on the labels that link to online product reviews, detailed descriptions, or video demonstrations, giving the customer the same e-commerce experience while shopping in person with the physical product.
Electronic Shelf Labels can also highlight key promotions or loyalty rewards directly on the labels. This tactic is perfect for encouraging impulse buys, increasing basket sizes, and improving overall sales. These promotions can be done without cluttering your store with expensive additional signage. All of the relevant information can be displayed cleanly with a professional look that matches your store’s branding on every aisle of your pet store shelving.
Sustainability and Cost Savings
Electronic shelf labels can eliminate the need for paper labels. While the contribution may be small for your individual store, ESLs can contribute to your sustainability efforts. Perhaps more importantly to the operation of your business, these savings will reduce operational costs.
Over time, the investment in ESL technology pays for itself through savings on printing supplies and labor. The goal is not to eliminate a job but to shift the roles and responsibilities to more meaningful and rewarding work for your employees. Replacing pricing tags is monotonous, repetitive work. Your employees can instead spend their time connecting with your customers, learning more about the products you carry, and improving the lives of your customers and their pets.
Future-Proofing Your Pet Store
Coupled with a robust POS system, Electronic Shelf Labels help create a modern, efficient, and customer-friendly shopping environment. These labels improve the look and feel of pet store shelving, help increase sales, and control costs.
Whether you’re a smaller independent store or part of a larger chain, investing in ESLs demonstrates a commitment to providing the absolute best experience for your customers. It also is one of the best ways available to you right now to streamline your business and take charge of inventory management and pricing control over your products. Does it make sense to ignore the potential benefits of ESLs? If not, click here to find out how ESLs can positively impact your business.
