When you see ads in the newspaper or online for merchandiser jobs, if you are not familiar with this field, you might need some information on the type of work these jobs entail. It is quite possible to ask someone you see stocking the shelves in a store for assistance and to be told that this person doesn't work in the store. So what is this person doing sticking the shelves? This is one of the jobs of a merchandiser. A manufacturer will hire merchandisers to make sure their products are attractively displayed in a store. While merchandising does entail different types of jobs, the main goal is to make sure that certain products are well displayed so as to attract the attention of customers to increase sales.



Some of the various jobs you may have as a merchandiser include giving product demos, providing training for the retail sales staff of a store or resetting the display areas. Merchandisers are those people who give demonstrations of products at various times in a store and then direct you to the area of the store where you can purchase the products. Quite often they offer a short time period after the demonstration when you can purchase the product at a reduced price.

When new products come on the market and are for sale in a particular store, a merchandiser may be hired by the store or the manufacturer to provide training for the staff of the store so that the staff can answer customers' questions or demonstrate how the product works. This is usually the case when the manufacturer releases a completely new product and wants to make sure the product is in the eyes of the consumers as soon as possible. The company will send representatives to various stores to give the staff instructions on how they can advertise and market the product and to make them aware of all its features and benefits.

Resetting refers to cases where the products have all sold off the store shelves. This is a bigger project that the other two types of jobs. All the old displays are dismantled and replaced by new and improved displays that may have a mixture of older and new products. This is usually done store by store, so that a merchandiser finishes the job in one store and then moves on to another one.

The schedule of a merchandiser can be very varied and flexible. Unless the manufacturer has a specific time of day when you need to do the job, youc an pretty well set your own schedule. Most of the time, the manufacturers give you a date by which the job must be completed and it is up to you to decide when you are going to do the work. This is true when you are an independent contractor, but if you work full time for a company, then you will have a 9-5 job. For the most part, you have to be in the store during its opening hours and most prefer you to be finished by 3 or 4 P.M. each day. There is rarely any weekend or evening work associated with this field.