4 Ways to Improve Shelf Visibility for FMCG Brands

Trying to improve shelf visibility for your FMCG products? You went from booking larger in-store space to offering lucrative promos? Tried almost every trick in the book? And now you’re keeping fingers crossed and hoping your merchandise gets noticed? Still, your products get overlooked in the aisle.

Hate to break it down for you, but this approach is a gamble. And what you need is a planned tactic. Keep reading as we roll out our winning FMCG shelf visibility strategy. 

Why Improving Shelf Visibility for FMCG Brands Matters

On the shelf, FMCG brands run in survival mode. Products compete for attention and for that one-on-one moment with customers. For this to happen, you need more than placing products on shelves and walking away. It takes proper positioning, placement, and following through. 

Down the aisle, you are not just competing for sales. You are working to block your competitor’s visibility, which means cutting down their sales.

And beyond today’s sales, you want shoppers to keep a visual memory of your products. Even if shoppers bypass your products this time, you want your merchandise to look familiar and remembered. Since familiarity builds trust, you’ll be leaving an open door for future sales.  

4 Ways to Improve Shelf Visibility For FMCG Brands

As we explored with you earlier, the angle-and-wait approach won’t work. What actually works is: perception + positioning + engagement = sales. But how to implement it in a real FMCG marketing strategy to dominate the shelves of GCC supermarkets? 

Our recipe relies on 4 core foundations

Proper Shelf Placement 

In supermarkets, eye level = buy level. To encourage that impulse buying moment, you need your products to sit where shoppers notice them easily and clearly. These high-impact areas are often called the bullseye. The fierce competition for bullseye spots comes from their ability to capture shoppers’ eyes faster than other shelves. 

While shelf placement is under a retailer’s control, you have the leverage of planogram negotiations and space rentals. For instance, you can rent the bullseye shelves in high-traffic zones during a campaign’s period to increase FMCG product visibility. 

Invest in Catchy Designs 

Beyond occupying space, products should be truly eye-catching. This is possible if the packaging has bold, memorable, and relatable visual elements. From material and shape to logo and branding message, every detail counts. Each of these components contributes to how shoppers perceive products’ value and quality. 

In a survey by Sapienza, participants found that packaging, colors, and fonts play a significant role in their purchase decisions when shopping for perfumes in Oman. 

But while improving the visual elements, don’t let creativity drift away from the brand’s original values. Stay consistent and loyal to these core fundamentals because they allow shoppers to instantly recognize your merchandise. 

Go All in with Activation 

When trying to improve shelf visibility for FMCG brands, don’t settle for the backstage player role. Take the spotlight and show up for your audience wherever they are. It’s one thing to impress from a distance. But letting shoppers have a glimpse of your products is a whole other thing. 

Through activations, like in-store sampling and brand ambassadors, shoppers get to try products first-hand. On one hand, this two-way interaction can improve shelf visibility for FMCG brands. On the other hand, you get to collect first impressions live. These direct, first impressions are valuable, especially when you fine-tune your future campaign and overall FMCG marketing strategy. 

Combine Online & Offline Marketing Strategies 

All your marketing efforts should move in one direction: increasing sales. That’s why harmonizing your paid and organic campaigns along with your online and offline strategies is not optional anymore. This integration strengthens your brand’s presence across every touchpoint. Eventually, it ends with achieving shelf visibility for FMCG brands. 

For instance, you can let online content establish your brand’s image and emotional bond with shoppers. Then, reinforce this perceived identity when they encounter your products across GCC supermarkets 

If you want to improve shelf visibility for FMCG brands, leave nothing to chance. The rule is not to just occupy space on GCC supermarket shelves. It’s more about owning a space in shoppers’ minds. Using these 4 methods, your FMCG brand can rise above the usual aisle noise and turn visibility into measurable growth. 

Struggling to turn these ideas into a reality? Contact us to claim your free consultation and let our experts walk you through the winning FMCG shelf visibility framework.