What is a Point-of-Purchase (POP) Display?

Have you ever heard the term “pop displays” and wondered what it meant?  A “POP display” doesn’t stand for a carbonated drink display; it refers to “point-of-purchase” displays.  So, exactly what is a point of purchase display?

Point of purchase displays are commonly used by retailers and vendors to attract attention to a specific product or display area of a store, table, register tops or shelves. The displays include banners, signage and other visual elements to help push new products, sales and other high margin items that can be bought right near the display.

It’s important to note that POP displays and Pop-Up displays, although often confused or thought of as one in the same, are two very different display types with different uses. Pop Up displays refer to larger, quick set up displays that are generally used at trade shows and other large events as backdrops. While they can be used as part of a large advertising display at a store, they aren’t generally used as point-of-purchase advertising.

Where and When to use POP Displays

Think of a point-of-purchase display as a store within a store. Smaller, more mobile banners, signs and displays used to be commonly set up near registers and checkout areas, which is where the term “point of purchase” was derived from. However, the effectiveness of point-of-purchase displays has caused many retailers to set up more display areas throughout stores that aren’t directly near checkout points. Using shelves and tables with these smaller, more mobile signs to grab consumer’s attention can be effective when placed throughout stores rather than limiting the promotion of sales items to just checkout areas.

Placing these displays in strategic areas with proper signage helps with point of purchase displays effectiveness.

Other Point-of-Purchase Options

Table banners and signs are just a few point-of-purchase display examples. There are plenty of other ways to use signage and display setups to create an effective point-of-purchase display.

Hanging signs over displays are usually good attention-grabbers and as an added benefit, they take up less space on the product display itself and no space on your sales floor.

Window hanging advertisements can also be used to save money and space on point-of-purchase signage.