Today, I learned how boring all my store display ideas are from Bob Phibbs, "the Retail Doctor", at the Apple Specialist Conference in Austin.

Why Merchandise?

• It raises your average purchase amount by silently adding-on to every sale.

• Turns mission shoppers into browsers and makes them curious about what else you offer.

Great Merchandising...

• Is simple and fast to understand.

• Slows down a customer's eyes

• Is coherent and logical (you don't put diapers next to vodka)

• It groups products that a certain type of customers are likely going to buy (you put products for seniors in one display, not mixed with products for parents and teenagers)

What is the message you want to send?

• We have this in five colors?

• We have sales stuff?

• Here's the full picture of what you need.

4 Types of Bad Displays

• Illogical groupings of products that don't work together.

• Crammed displays with too many choices.

• Half empty displays where the fixture stands out more than the product.

• Add more signs (if the first signs didn't work, add more).

6 Types of Good Displays

• Complimentary displays: paper towels with window cleaner or waffles with pancake syrup.

• Coordinated displays: all the things you need to do "X" (all the accessories you need to paint a room).

• Environmental/lifestyle displays: Shows the products in use or reasons to buy the product visually. Garden bug spray with big panels on what type of damage bugs do and how to use the spray.

• One product type displays: Can be strong but are often dangerous. All the belts hung together are great if you're looking for a belt but you're going to skip it if you didn't intend to buy a belt.

• Stand out displays: Intrigue the mind by putting something unexpected. Hang 30 light bulbs and turn one on.

• Stop displays: Displays that make you stop to figure it out but don't have anything to do with the product you're selling.

How to Do Great Merchandising

• Start at the Front Door: Make a front window display that makes it clear there is something new (or arrange the old product in a way that makes it look different).

• Plan Inventory: Make sure you have inventory to support the sales of whatever you feature.

• Find one Thing to Unify: A theme or purpose that everything works together on.

• Build the Biggest Add-on: Accessorize a complete outfit.

• Pay Attention to Color: Add more color or coordinate colors if possible.

• Vary Heights: Put products at multiple levels. Products on counters encourage customers to touch them. Customers are more likely to buy anything they touch. Products on walls have less engagement.

• Consider Something Different: A "pig in the window" is something that engages a customer with color, movement, or oddity. Put a moving train in your window and people will watch it. Put a toilet in your window to sell waterproof iPhone cases. Generic signs kill good displays. If the copy doesn't provoke a reaction, you've failed.

• Lighting: Focus on what you want to sell the most. Show the customer where to look.

• Proper Signage Helps Educate Your Customer: Make the customer feel smart. Anytime a customer has a question or feels intimidated they won't buy.

• Sell the System: Put all the accessories you need together. All the ingredients for a recipe put together.

• Keep It Sparkling: Clean all the your displays daily. Clean your front doors hourly.

• Monitor Sales: Decode whether placement or product drove sales. Move a display every two weeks to different parts of the store and monitor the sales in different locations. You'll find you have hot spots and cold spots on the floor for placement.

• Clear Pricing: Don't make anyone guess what your products cost.

• Brand Your Signage: Young customers are likely to take pictures of fun displays, make sure your branding shows up with it.