Best Practices for Leveraging Event Traffic: River Festival Edition

Summer brings plenty of visitors to downtown through festivals, markets, and community events. These days create a great opportunity to introduce new people to your business and reconnect with returning customers.

A few small adjustments can help make the most of the extra foot traffic:

• Make Your Business Visible
  • Bring your business outside with a small display, sale rack, sample table, or product demonstration (where permitted).
  • Have yourself or an employee stand outside to welcome passersby.
  • Keep your door open when possible so people can easily see inside.
  • Place a sign outside that tells people what you sell or highlights an event day special.
• Give People a Reason to Stop
  • Offer an event day special, such as a one day discount, free gift with purchase, or featured item.
• Promote Before the Event
  • Post on Facebook and Instagram before the event so people know you'll be open.
  • Highlight any event day specials, new products, or activities happening at your business.
• Make the Most of Event Hours
  • Try to stay open for the entire event if possible. Some of the busiest times happen later in the day as visitors continue exploring downtown.
• Turn Visitors into Returning Customers
  • Invite customers to follow your social media.
  • Encourage them to sign up for your email list.
  • Hand out business cards or coupons to make it easy for them to visit again.

Remember, people can't shop if they don't know you're there. Even small changes can help turn event visitors into paying customers.