Sticker Marketing for Small Businesses

21/02/2022

Sticker Marketing for Small Businesses

Sticker marketing was hugely successful in the ’90s, stickers we’re a great way to deliver a marketing message for a low cost that could potentially reach hundreds if not thousands of people. 

Over the last couple of years, stickers have started to make a comeback. During the huge push to vaccinate the UK, everyone who had a vaccine felt like they should wear their sticker provided by the NHS to show off their newly vaccinated status. They were used like a marketing tool to get people to speak about the vaccines and let others know where they stood.

If that can work for a big health care organisation it can for a small business too. If someone likes the product or design of a sticker it could lead to attracting more people through the door or onto your website.

Using a Sticker Marketing Strategy

Stickers can act as another form of word-of-mouth, providing a glowing endorsement from someone who loves your offering, values or products without them having to say a word. Of course, you want them to shout about your business, but a subtle endorsement is better than none at all. 

There are a couple of ways you can leverage stickers for your small business, one of which is using a kiss cut or die cut sticker of your logo. These types of stickers are usually most effective if you have a brick and mortar store with signage outside. People could remember your sticker, put two and two together and come inside your store. 

Successful Sticker Marketing

As the consumer experience evolves so do their wants and needs, people are more likely to shop at a store they identify and share values with, you could potentially add your values and ethics to stickers, a great example of a brand leveraging their values is Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics, they use the tagline “Fighting Animal Testing”.

People have rallied behind that aspect of their business as they happily carry the tagline around for free on tote bags, stickers and even notebooks. Lush used to offer stickers to their customers however they have since stopped due to their environmental impact. 

Another great example of people using their logo as a sticker and having their sticker marketing campaign become wildly successful is Obey. The stickers were provided to the right people and they did the rest. Nice and easy sticker marketing that took a small start-up business to the international stage.

Some brick-and-mortar stores like vintage stores have chosen to parody instantly recognizable stickers and offer a discount if people bring them back the next time they shop in the store.

Social media and stickers

Influencer marketing and stickers marketing could go hand in hand, if you manage to get your sticker in the right place at the right time by sending out some PR boxes an influencer might put your sticker on the back of a phone case or somewhere similar if they like your product.

What does that do?

It could potentially get your business in front of millions of people for a relatively low cost for an indeterminate amount of time. 

An issue you may face is that your product offering may not suit the influencer lifestyle, that's completely fine. You can leverage stickers in a completely different way.

You could also add a QR code to your stickers to promote a website or your social media channel.

Packaging stickers with your orders

This handy little tip works with both brick and mortar stores as well as online businesses. 

If you’ve just started a business our article on starting an online business may be of use to you too.

Everyone loves a freebie and that also goes for your customers. Something as simple as an extra sticker in a parcel can make a huge difference to someone's experience with your store. 

Stickers included can be general, or order specific, you could create a batch of stickers per product you supply. For example, if someone buys a custom made succulent pot you could supply a sticker of a cute cactus with a discount code for their next order. To you, the business owner this may seem like a pointless waste of resources, however to the customer it could make a huge difference.

Guerilla Marketing Stickers

Guerilla marketing is using the process of surprise or catching people off guard to convey a message for a business. Over the years most big brands have played their hand in guerilla marketing. It can be simple but effective. 

The best guerilla marketing is thought out and simple and uses its surroundings to create an unforgettable statement. 

Brands have been known to use stickers on things like zebra crossings, manhole covers, escalators and even bus stops to convey their guerilla marketing messages.  

Sticker Marketing for a Service Businesses

Brick and mortar stores aren’t the only type of business that can leverage stickers to market their business. Custom made stickers can be used by just about anyone. 

Plumbers or electricians can leave stickers on appliances they’ve installed to remind customers when they need to be serviced along with their website and social media, these stickers could even prompt people to leave a review on Google or Facebook.

If you are an electrician, you may also need to use stickers for PAT tested products.

Sign Language Stickers

Sign language stickers could be an amazing way to drum up awareness for business as well as educate people within the community about sign language.  Sign interpreters or educators could print designs with certain easy to remember words in BSL, ASL or ISL and leave them around the community or give them to their students to provide them with a good way to influence the people around them.

Nightclub Promotional Stickers

Stickers for nightclub owners

Night clubs are notorious for their various marketing tactics. They’ve been known to draw swathes of students and adults alike all across the globe. A nightclub could create a set of promotional stickers with information on how to get free drinks and or other promotional items. 

Stickers could have a nightclubs logo, address and a set of instructions such as a post this sticker on your story and tag us for a free drink. Sometimes nightclubs use promoters during freshers' weeks and outside their clubs, they could use stickers as drinks or free entry tokens. 

Dog Walkers

Dog walkers usually have an area that they service and walk around every single day. This allows them to figure out where potential customers are walking their dogs and place stickers on dog waste bins and lampposts. As long as the stickers are eye-catching and well presented it's likely a dog walker would drum up more business.

Starting Your Sticker Marketing Campaign

Starting a sticker marketing campaign could not be easier. There are a lot of forgotten advantages to sticker marketing these days that get lost in the hustle and bustle of the digital world. Does your business take advantage of both the physical and digital world?

Our advice would be to start small with your sticker marketing strategy and build it out. Test the waters with your customers or potential customers and go from there.

We have plenty of guidance on our website for the best way to design your own stickers. Our team of experts are on hand to guide you. Order a free sample pack so you can see your sticker material options before buying. Alternatively, contact us using the form on our website or call us on 01275 460516.

Sticker marketing with Handy Labels sticker maker