Our shop windows and front entrances are the most important real estate in our businesses. We have seconds to grab attention and get noticed.

Getting a passer-by to turn their head is a bankable result because a percentage of those who notice will come in and a percentage of those will purchase. We are competing with other retailers plus we are competing with mobile devices people are spending more time looking at while walking today.

The sole role of the front window and/or entrance of your shop is to get noticed. It is to get people turning their heads, stopping and walking towards your store because of what they have seen.

Newsagents in every situation face this same challenge for attention: in shopping malls, on the high street and in rural and regional locations.

We need to offer stunning displays and use light and sound to catch attention in our stores – especially at Christmas when every retailer lifts their game chasing the attention you want.

Average displays will deliver average results. Displays that are the same as other nearby businesses will not help us break away from them and achieve our own greatness.

Our front of store traffic-generating display is just about the most important marketing statement we make yet too often retailers don’t treat it as such.

The photo shows the display on the main table facing into the mall at one of my stores. The tree-shaped display is a computer controlled display standing 182cm tall. Each small rectangular box is a light box. Each character lights up. There are multiple coloured lights per box. It plays Christmas songs and lights up in sync to the music. We are the only shop in the 250 or so shops in the shopping centre with anything like this. It’s attracting terrific attention.

The display cost us £125 and two hours to assemble. Already we think it’s a valuable marketing investment for the business.