Line To Your Cash Register

As much importance as anglers put on which lure to use, just as many put that same importance on which line they spool their reels with. Yet, there are others that will take whatever is on sale and spool up with it. There is also a large contingent that do not understand the science of new super lines or braids and just enjoy using monofilament.

Fishing line is not only a key component to fishing, but also to the fishing retailer. How many times have you had a customer come in only to get a reel spooled with line but then walk out with a year’s supply of fishing tackle as well. Many times buying fishing line is the only reason the casual angler comes into your store. These anglers are not the ones you can count on to keep the lights on, but they are the ones that you can count on to spend extra money if you play your cards right.

A recent study by Southwick Associates shows that mono is still king, and over a third of all anglers choose that as their line of choice. Nothing is wrong with monofilament; it is still the backbone of many line manufacturers. When in doubt mono is the best choice for fishing.

The next most popular line according to the survey was Superline or Braid. This shows that more anglers are in the know and are paying attention to what tournament anglers are using and the commercials that line manufacturers are running. More advancements in the last ten years in this segment of line has been made than any other. Anglers, even your casual angler, knows this and wants to use this to their advantage.

Fluorocarbon came in third, and this shouldn’t be a shock to anyone who fishes. Fluoro seems to be used by more anglers as a leader material than to spool their entire reel with it. Tournament anglers will keep multiple rods spooled up with different line material, but most anglers have only a few rods and will just change out their leader material depending on what lure they are throwing.

The final two pieces to Southwick’s pie chart show that anglers reported buying other fishing line or had no clue what they bought. This isn’t shocking – having worked a counter in a fishing tackle retailer there were many anglers who had no clue what strength line they wanted let alone what type.

So how does knowing all of this make your cash register ring?

Simply, you need to make sure that your customer leaves with more than just fishing line. One local shop does a great job of ensuring you pass by almost everything before you get to their fishing line. As soon as you enter you can see the line displayed on a back wall, and it goes from ceiling to the floor. Getting there is the fun part. You need to walk by rows upon rows of lures, and terminal tackle. What angler can stay focused on line when they see all of those lures in their vibrantly colored packages?

Even if you don’t need something, they are sure to catch your eye and make you linger a bit longer. Once you linger and look, something else will catch your eye, then another and soon your hands are full of lures. They also smartly have shopping baskets at the end of the aisles to assist you. Rarely has a customer made it to the line without picking something else up.

There is another store that keeps their line close to the front door, right next to the cash register. You can be in and out in less than five minutes if there isn’t a group of customers ahead of you. This store surely sees very little additional sales to anglers looking for line.

How does your shop display its fishing line? More importantly where is the line displayed? Line can also be an item that is stolen from time to time by disrespectful individuals, so you need to also make sure the displays are visible to your employees so it doesn’t walk off.

Line accessories are as plentiful as line options today. You can buy any number of line “juices” to help remove the memory of the line, or to de-scent it. You can sell line-tying accessories to assist your customers, or even spooling machines to help them spool their reels at home. You can also sell or giveaway line tying books. No matter if these are a free giveaway from you, or you sell them, make sure you put your store’s information on them. Even if it is just a sticker or a stamp, anglers will turn to these and see your name and remember you. Make that additional impression on them and you will see a nice return on your investment.

The most commonly sold line accessories have to be lures and terminal tackle. They literally go hand-in-hand. No matter how your store is laid out, whenever a customer comes in for new line, suggest new hooks, weights, lures, anything you can think of that they can tie on to the new line. See if they need a new reel as well – you can’t sell additional items if you do not suggest them, can you? Train your sales staff to always suggest an add-on to the sale. Even the few dollars you may make from the additional sale will add up. A few hundred sales of a few dollars more can make a difference in your store.

What are your best methods of selling more than just line to customers when they come in? Do you have a unique way of displaying your line, or a way to almost always ensure they buy more than just line? If so, please share it with us all on our Facebook page. The more we all share, the more successful we all will be.