6 Appealing Promotions You Can Offer to Increase In-Store Foot Traffic

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April 24, 2025 Marketing

Brick-and-mortar stores rely heavily on consistent foot traffic to thrive. This is especially true for smaller businesses, as they don’t have the space of larger stores to easily attract the attention of passers-by. However, increasing and maintaining foot traffic can be significantly challenging as there are many variables that prevent people from visiting your store in the first place.

The most obvious challenge in attracting customers is the location of your store. If you have poor accessibility—being located in a remote area or not having parking space, for instance—then many customers will find it inconvenient to reach your store and thus not bother altogether. Lack of marketing is also a culprit for low store traffic. After all, customers won’t visit your store if they don’t even know it exists. In addition, even if they did manage to visit your store, bad customer service may turn them away and reduce repeat visits.

One great way to increase foot traffic is by introducing promotions or store features that can appeal to existing and potential customers alike. Here are some that you can implement in your own store:

1. QR Code Payments for Faster, Easier Transactions

A top reason why customers prefer shopping online is because it offers more convenient payment options. If you can bring that same convenience to your store, then customers may be encouraged to drop by more frequently. One way to do so is to set up a QR code payment option at checkout so that customers can seamlessly pay for their purchases using their mobile banking or e-wallet app.

If customers know that they can count on quick transactions from your store, then they’ll be more likely to shop from you as they wouldn’t have to worry about long checkout lines. Setting up cashless payment options powered by trusted providers like Maya also helps your store appeal to more tech-savvy customers, especially the younger demographic who are more used to carrying their funds via apps instead of cash.

2. Exclusive In-Store Discounts & Flash Sales

Sales and discounts are always a great way to attract foot traffic, especially if they’re exclusive. So, set up discounts for in-store purchases or occasional flash sales to give people incentive to visit your shop. Make sure to promote these on your business’s social media or website as well to attract more visitors.

This type of promotion can appeal greatly to budget-conscious customers who’ll want to take advantage of the discounts they can get from shopping in-store. Many customers may also find the urgency of flash sales exciting, pushing them to pay your store a visit just to see if there’s something they could buy before the sale ends.

3. Host In-Store Events & Experiences

In-store events and experiences can make a trip to your store much more worthwhile for many customers. Depending on your store’s niche, try to arrange product demonstrations, workshops, book signings, or live entertainment so that visits to your store have added value for customers.

Through engaging activities, customers are more likely to return to see what next event they can participate in. This also functions as marketing for your business as more people talk about their experiences from these events, leading to higher sales opportunities.

4. Loyalty Programs with In-Store Rewards

Another way to attract foot traffic is by having an in-store rewards system where customers can earn points they can eventually redeem for vouchers or gifts. You may also implement loyalty programs that incentivize repeat customers by offering them various rewards. A physical store-exclusive rewards system ensures that customers will still visit your store rather than do all their shopping online.

5. “Spin the Wheel” or Scratch Card Promotions

Adding gamification elements such as a prize wheel or a scratch card that customers can get for a certain amount of purchase makes shopping in your store much more exciting. Customers will also feel that each visit is rewarding because they can get a chance to win something. The prizes don’t have to be grandiose, either; you can simply offer small discounts, freebies, or small gifts. Often, the thrill of winning is enough to make the experience worthwhile.

6. Photo Booth or Social Media Challenge

Setting up an aesthetic photo booth in-store can encourage customers to visit just so they can take photos with it. You can also add mechanics such as asking customers to post their photos on social media with a certain hashtag for a chance to win a prize. People love shareable experiences, so having the chance to participate in this social media challenge can certainly drive up visits to your store.

This promotion also doubles as a marketing opportunity. The more people post about your photo booth or use your hashtag, the more visibility your business gets. This can then entice more visitors to check out your store out of curiosity about the posts they’ve been seeing on social media.

The key to increasing your brick-and-mortar store’s foot traffic is by delivering a more engaging, convenient, and rewarding shopping experience to each visitor. With the help of the promotions discussed above, you can make the shopping experience in your store much more fulfilling. Thus, customers are more likely to not just visit but keep coming back in the future as well.