Markets are some of our favorite times of year—the anticipation of showcasing long-awaited new products feels a bit like our industry’s Super Bowl. And after the last few “off” years, it’s been especially exciting that the last few markets have felt like pre-Covid times as brands returned to unveiling new collaborations, collections and products to buyers.
But of course, rolling out new products at a show is just the beginning. After all that build-up, the next most important part is getting those products in front of the end customer. For the online channel, that means making the process of publishing and marketing products as smooth and swift as possible.
Let’s talk about a few tactics that will help ensure an efficient product rollout to your online retail partners.
Finalize Product Data Beforehand
Gathering and verifying product data is one of the most challenging parts of a new product release. It takes time. But it’s what kicks off getting products published on your ecommerce channels—another time-consuming process—so the sooner this piece gets moving, the better.
This means ensuring you have all product data, from dimensions to romance copy to shipping weights, in order before you present those products at market. Why so early? Without product data, it’s a gamble to promote those new releases to retailers and hope they’ll include them in their marketing. Retailers are planning campaigns months in advance, and if a product or collection isn’t close to being ready to publish, they’ll be hard-pressed to count on including it.
To achieve this, manufacturers should back into the deadlines around a new release and plan 2-3 months ahead. Whether you have in in-house team or are working with a company like BrandJump, successfully preparing data for online channels takes time. Plus, retailers have queues for getting products published to their site, which can add to the timeline.
So if you have product arriving in March and you want to see it online in February for pre-orders, product data should be ready in December or November.
“It takes a lot of planning, but it makes the process so smooth,” said Christie Lomanov, BrandJump Senior Brand Manager. “We’ve seen brands on both ends of the spectrum, and those who are able to organize and execute around a launch date have really successful rollouts.”
Offer a Sneak Peek
There’s nothing like the in-person presentation of new products, but manufacturers can build on the anticipation by giving buyers a preview of what they’ll be showing at market.
Create a deck you can share with them, with images and some high-level detail about key collections that will be debuting at market.
“This gives buyers the opportunity to start thinking about marketing and opportunities to promote the new products,” Christie said.
Engaging with your retail partners in this way helps build relationships with them and can be a great conversation starter for how your new release fits into the content and timing of their upcoming campaigns.
Have Resources Ready for Retailers
Having an arsenal of assets will only make it easier for retailers to promote and tell the story of your products. Lifestyle imagery is an especially important one.
“Many brands make this a secondary task, but then you lose the opportunity to capitalize on the momentum that a new release brings,” Christie said. “Give them everything they need to feature your product, and give it to them up front.”
Schedule Trainings with Sales Teams if Possible
Manufacturers can also use the momentum of a rollout to offer a training for retailers’ sales teams. The training doesn’t have to be only about the new products, but it creates relevant timing to ensure those folks know and understand your products on a deeper level.
“It’s a way to tie it all together and make sure you are firing on all cylinders,” Christie says.
You could also consider pairing a training with a spiff or sales incentive to encourage teams to use what they learned when working with shoppers.
Thinking beyond the next market will maximize the opportunities that come with your product release. With careful planning and thoughtful retailer communication, home furnishings manufacturers can ensure a smooth, efficient and well-promoted product rollout that builds excitement and starts the sales engine for new collections.
