In this present age of electronic data that flows without ceasing, digital marketers have made extraordinary advances in audience targeting with online advertising. The advertising industry’s ability to reach target audiences on a microscale is nothing short of astonishing. For example, Android smartphones come out of the box configured to operate as keyword-driven wiretaps that attempt to sell their owners’ products and services that they haven’t even shopped for yet.
While the ability of smartphones to capture the public with ever greater precision using personalized advertising is impressive, there is another, much lower-tech but often a far more effective way for businesses and other advertising clients to reach large groups of people who comprise similar clientele: yard signs.
City organization encourages similar types of people to cluster in far greater density than in rural areas. Unlike phone ads that often create unintentional resentment for the product, people often find their attention drawn to lawn signs of purpose, especially if they are well-placed. There are five things that everyone should know about highly effective yard sign leveraging.
Use Distinguishing Colors
Set your sign apart from those of the competition. This is important for anyone that is a political candidate in an election. Yes, red, white, and blue may be the most patriotic colors, but when everyone is using those colors, it’s hard to stand out. Choose a color that pops. This is especially important when candidates share similar or the same name.
Locate Signs Where The Targeted Audience Is
Place yard signs in places that attract the targeted demographic. Every city has something special about it. The places, landmarks, and attractions within a given area have much to do with the people who come through that area. Imagine a sign that advertises a home-delivery service for a pharmacy or a mobility scooter for the disabled. Where is the best place to put it to draw the attention of the people who stand to benefit most from the info? Try locating signs near a bingo hall, WMCA, VFW, or American Legion Post. A sign that advertises a daycare, little league, dentist office, or tax preparation service will perform well near community parks, greenways, grocery stores, and recreation centers. Always seek to place signs where they’ll be most effective.
Include A Visual Representation Of The Product Or Service The Sign Offers
This isn’t possible with every single sign, but even taking one sign to the next level is apt to increase sales. For example, a landscaping company would be smart to put their sign right next to an outstanding sample of their work, such as a freshly manicured lawn. If that isn’t possible, put it near a related object. When potential customers can visualize your service, they will be more inclined to work with you.
Outperform Your Competition With Precision Placement Instead Of Unproductive Excess
One of the greatest challenges of advertising with yard signs is that there will be times when your competitors will have thoroughly, and sometimes excessively, covered the same areas where you plan to place your signs. In cases such as this, it is best not to respond the same way. Signs that perform well in over-saturated areas have distinctive features, are larger than their peers, or have an advantage because of their placement. In a sea of small ground signs, a larger sign at the back on a pole will always shine brightly. A single, well-placed sign has the potential to be the one that a passersby remembers because it stands out from the others so well.
Create Associations With Yard Signs
Associate yard signs with anything that naturally draws onlooker’s attention. Something with enough visual appeal that it naturally draws the attention of a passing motorist is an ideal place for a yard sign. Therefore, if you are placing yard signs on a winding neighborhood road, take care to place them in front of the nicest homes. Keep an eye out for attention-grabbing landscape features and pop a sign there. Statues, murals, and landmarks are all optimal places for yard signs.
It’s easy to assume that adequate communication requires technology, but sometimes, just the opposite is true. Yard signs are a tried-and-true method of effective advertising. Don’t wait to see if someone will open your email advertisement—place an order for your custom made yard signs today.
Business owners are constantly thinking about how to better advertise their business and increase their revenue stream. They will often try a variety of advertising methods without seeing much of a return, which is a waste of marketing dollars. Relying on ostentatious roadside signs may seem like a good investment, but there are a fixed number of people who will pass them each day, limiting the amount of exposure a business can get from them.
Benefits of Car Magnets
Car magnets are a way to use a vehicle’s available real estate to advertise a business. The average person spends 40-90 minutes in their car each day. During that time, a vehicle can pass over 1,000 cars. Car magnets put a business’s name in front of thousands of eyes, making them a valuable advertising resource. Below is a list of reasons business owners should invest in car magnets.
Budget-Friendly
A car magnet could reach up to 30,000 people every month just by being displayed on the side of a vehicle that is driven every day. To get that many impressions through Google or social media advertising, businesses would need to spend a lot of money. Car magnets cost less, making them a bargain compared to digital marketing costs.
Mobile Advertisements
Billboards are stationary, so only people in the same location will see the advertisement. The average cost of a billboard is over $6,000, making it a costly way to advertise to a limited number of people. Car magnets bring the advertisement to several areas, increasing the number of people who see it and increasing awareness of the business in a larger geographical area.
Low-Maintenance
Car magnets have some maintenance requirements, such as cleaning underneath them to prevent scratches on the vehicle or washing them if they become dirty with road salt. However, aside from gentle cleaning, car magnets are easy to use. Removing them is just a matter of peeling it off the side of the vehicle.
Cross-Channel Marketing
When people think of car magnet design, they often assume it will be a business’s logo and phone number. However, car magnets can be used with other advertising platforms to increase the effectiveness of a larger campaign. For example, car magnets can display a 5-digit shortcode that individuals can send a text message, allowing them to opt-in to a larger marketing initiative.
When business owners use car magnets in this manner, they can easily track the magnets’ effectiveness. By using a unique code or URL on the car magnet, business owners can see how many of their customers found out about them through the car magnet, allowing them to calculate their marketing return on investment.
Gets People Talking
Car magnets get people’s attention. Business owners who display them proudly on their car notice that others will approach them with questions about their business. Once the conversation is started, business owners can use the opportunity to give a short sales pitch or invite the person to visit the business’s location.
Designing a Car Magnet
Not all car magnets are created equal. There are specific design elements that, when used correctly, can maximize the magnet’s draw. Below are some tips on designing a high-impact car magnet.
Make the Business Name Prominent
While many people see car magnets every day, most have little time to look at them. It is important that the business’s name is the most prominent feature on the magnet, ensuring that the public remembers them.
Use High-Contrast Colors
Bland colors or colors that match the vehicle are likely to go unnoticed. Using high contrast colors that stand out from the vehicle ensures people notice the magnet and pay attention to the information that is on it.
Keep it Easy to Read
Most people have driven behind a car with a bumper sticker that made them squint to read it. Not only is this ineffective, but it is also dangerous, too. Car magnets should be easy to read, with bold text and a prominent call-to-action that only takes a glance to understand.
Car magnets are a versatile, low-cost way for business owners to increase awareness around their brand. They are more effective than traditional advertising methods, such as billboards and print ads, and have a better return on investment.
While there was a time when it seemed like every person couldn’t hand out their business cards fast enough and everyone had a collection of various cards gathering dust in their wallets, it seems that the popularity of business cards is finally starting to wane. While the explosion of business cards a decade ago was at times overwhelming and oversaturated, by no means are business cards dead today. In fact, there are many situations, settings, and cultures where business cards are still relevant. The way society uses business cards now, however, has slightly evolved in the past ten years.
Businesses are choosing quality over quantity of transactions.
A decade ago, entrepreneurs may have handed out their business cards to every person they met in hopes that a few of them would convert. After years of trying this method, it’s apparent that a one-dimensional card isn’t the only factor that potential clients or network partners use to determine whether or not they will work with you. Today, a personal connection is often made before a business card is ever passed off. People who have experienced a positive interaction with someone are more likely to keep the card than those who haven’t.
Creative designs are helping businesses stand out.
Business cards used to be quite basic. After collecting a myriad of similar looking white cards, they all start to blend together to a potential client. To stand out, businesses are now getting creative with the design and look of their business cards. Not only is color a big deal now, but different shapes, interactive cards, and even see-through cards are more popular now than ever before. Unexpected and creative touches to a business card help clients remember the giver and can help promote a brand even further. Especially unique cards may even get shared dozens of times on social media, furthering brand promotion.
Information shared is evolving.
Most business cards contain basic contact information such as phone number and email, along with the name of the person, the name of the business, and the website. However, with the rise of social networking, professional social media accounts are a must-list for modern business cards. People are more likely to find a company on a social media channel than keep a business card anyway, so many businesses are using their cards to bridge this gap instead. Professional headshots and calls to action are also commonly included on business cards today, as they are still widely used in a business’ marketing plan.
Touched on above, handing out business cards to everyone and anyone is no longer considered an effective strategy. Businesses are now focusing on creating personal connections before passing off their contact information to a potential client or network partner. Instead of having a business card be the beginning, middle, and end of an interaction with someone, they are saved for the good-byes after a conversation has been had if the person wants to keep in touch. A decade ago, business cards held little value because everyone got one. Now, business cards are mainly given to people most likely to keep them and use them.
Business cards are still viewed as the most professional hand-off of contact information, and it can be embarrassing to a business owner when they are caught without one when asked. Even with digital sharing of information, business cards are still the quickest and easiest way to exchange information, especially with certain audiences and in certain settings.
Business cards are used within rather than outside of a company.
In large companies, employees are often given their own set of business cards. This can be helpful for promoting the business when they are off the clock. However, they are also helpful for a quick exchange of information with co-workers in other departments. Increasingly, it is becoming common for employees to utilize their business cards this way, especially if they are somewhere away from their computer or phone.
The way business cards were used in the past is certainly dead, and we are probably better off because of it. However, today’s adaptive business cards are still very much useful, especially when a unique element is incorporated into the design or they are given to the right people. If business cards aren’t working for a business, it may be time to update them!
You just bought a box of 10,000 business cards (because that’s what all business owners do, right?), but now what are you supposed to do with them? Some entrepreneurs feel awkward handing out their business card at networking events, while others are naturals at it. Are you supposed to give your business card out to everyone you meet, or should you target certain audiences? If you aren’t sure how business cards can be implemented into your marketing strategy, take a look at four unique ideas below to help you get started.
Partner with Related Services
The easiest marketing is when someone else does it for you, right? If you have worked with partner companies in the past, and they aren’t direct competition, it may be worth contacting them about displaying your cards for customers in need. For instance, a web design company can display cards for an online marketing company, and vice versa. If you’ve already built a trusted relationship with the company, they will naturally promote your business anyway. Give them a stack of cards to make it easier!
Include Special Offers or Discounts
When designing your business cards, think about who you will primarily be handing them to. Will they be new prospects, repeat customers, potential network partners, or perhaps all three? You may consider including a promotion or special discount on a percentage of the cards for potential customers so they are more likely to keep your card for future reference. People love saving money and finding a deal. Give them a reason to hang on to your card rather than toss it in the trash.
If you want your discount to be flexible based on seasons or holidays, you can include a basic discount code (such as the name of your business) that customers can enter and you can change depending on what you want the discount to reflect. If the discount always stays the same, such as 10% off for every new customer, then the clarity can help customers remember exactly what they are keeping the card for. Punch cards or referral discounts can also be applied to the back of a business card, and be all the more reason for a customer to hang on to the card.
Include Landing Page Link
As part of your marketing strategy, you may have already created a landing page that is designed specifically to draw new customers into your brand and lead them to conversion pages. Instead of listing the basic home page of your website on your business cards, why not perform double-duty and list the landing page instead? As long as the landing page has a readable URL and easy for customers to type in (especially think about mobile users!), then this can be a great way to integrate in-person and online marketing strategies.
Get Creative with Placements
Not every business owner has time to attend a dozen networking events, conferences, or trade shows every year. Instead, they may have to find other creative ways to get their business cards in the hands of target prospects. Luckily, there are plenty of opportunities in every day life to strategically place a business card.
Community boards at coffee shops and grocery stores are easy and free ways to market a business. You can also head to a local bookstore or library and stick your business card in a few industry-related books (as long as the people in charge are cool with it). Or, you can hide a few of your business cards around town and make a scavenger-hunt type game out of it where the customer gets a discount if they find all of them.
There are tons of creative ways to get your business card out there rather than spending hours talking to strangers at an event. The four ideas listed above are a few of the more unique ones to get the creative juices flowing. Business owners can also utilize friends and family, friends, neighbors, past clients, and co-workers to pass out cards, or include their cards in a mail marketing campaign. While in-person connections are always the most effective when it comes to a business card exchange strategy, it doesn’t mean you can’t get your information out there even when you can’t be physically present!
Nearly every modern business utilizes business cards to promote themselves, yet they are often tossed in the trash by their recipients by the end of the week. While business cards continue as a staple in the business world (and it’s nice to have one available when a client asks), businesses need to adapt their cards to fit ever-shifting trends and stand out amongst the competition. Otherwise, the expense and hassle of creating a business card is a total waste.
What inspires a client to keep your card in their wallet rather than toss it when they get home? For one, your business card must be eye-catching. You can achieve this through fonts, brand-colors, phrases, imagery, or even the shape of the card itself. Of course, the most important goal of a business card is to convey useful information to the client, such as name, email, website, and professional social media pages. If you aren’t sure where to begin in your business card design brainstorming session, take a look at the top seven on-trend business card designs of the future below to spark an idea or two.
Minimalistic
A business should convey some information on their business card, but overstuffing and overwhelming a card can be overkill. A customer doesn’t need to know details about specific products or services on a business card. They do need to know your website to find that information, however. Keep it short, sweet, and simple when it comes to how many lines of text you decide to include on your cards.
Along with the amount of words on the card, minimalistic amounts of color, fonts, and images are also on-trend right now. A single-color background with just the business name or logo on the front can help a card look clean, fresh, and professional. You can play around with foiled lettering or different textures to make it unique and un-boring. The important business information can be listed on the back without cluttering up the simple and bold advertisement on the front.
Transparent
Another interesting design idea that has been recently floating around is that of transparent business cards. A specific brand color or pattern can be applied to the transparent paper, but the uniqueness of the see-through design can help it stand out amongst competitors. Of course, transparent cards don’t work with every type of business, especially since transparency conveys a certain message. For instance, a data privacy company may not want see-through associated with its name. However, it may fit the theme of a window company. The takeaway is that businesses are no longer limited to traditional cardstock for business card backgrounds, and they can experiment with different types of material.
Out-of-the-Rectangle
Businesses are no longer limited to the traditional rectangle shape for business cards either. To stand out, some businesses are experimenting with different shapes and sizes for their business cards. Of course, business cards should still serve the practical purpose of storing until future need and easily fit inside a wallet or card carrier.
Interactive
Depending on the type of business, interactive cards can be a fun way to hold the attention of a client or future client. Cards that fold into different objects or have hidden pull-and-slide messages are unique and fun for clients to fidget with when they are familiarizing themselves with your contact information. If anything, these types of cards will definitely be remembered for their distinctive designs.
Social
Just like other types of marketing, business cards should display professional social media accounts as a way for customers to connect with a business. Even if they don’t use the services or products right away, they may want to connect digitally before tossing a card. If a business spends a lot of time marketing and/or selling on social media, this is essential information to include.
Humorous
Humor is a universal language, and it can stand out and intrigue just as much as a color scheme, font, or design. Humor, puns, and sarcasm especially resonate with younger target audiences. Whether it’s through clever imagery or a play on words, many businesses are now incorporating humor into their business card designs to help make a lasting impression with their clients.
Multi-Purpose
A business card can serve two or more functions if you get creative. Instead of handing out multiple cards for different purposes to potential clients, why not just hand them one? If you offer 10% off to new clients, you can include this deal on the card. Or, if there’s a page on your website specifically created for potential clients, you can put this URL on the card in place of the standard homepage. You can even turn a business card into a “frequent customer” card and offer a free product or service for every 10 punches on the back. Businesses are consolidating some of this information onto one card that increases the chances that a customer will keep it longer than a day or a week.
When it comes to reaching an audience, posters are one of the most fruitful and surefire means of capturing someone’s attention. All you need to make a powerful visual impression is a tactful design and clean layout that is memorable but does not cost a fortune. No matter what your business objectives, custom posters are an effective means of promoting your cause while simultaneously imparting a little aesthetic flair. If that idea sounds enticing, here are some more reasons why economically priced custom posters are a must.
Posters Are Cost Effective
Whether your goal is to market a business or decorate your home, posters are extremely cost-effective. Compared to print ads, posters will save you a lot of money and, in the case of marketing your business, could potentially result in more exposure.
Compared to print ads, posters are a decidedly more economic solution. Typical print ads can range anywhere from $500 to over $15,000, which is much more expensive than an ostentatiously large poster with high-quality graphics. On top of that, keep in mind that a print ad will restrict your audience to those who read or subscribe to those particular publications. On the other hand, a cleverly placed poster will incur no such restrictions.
First Impressions Are Everything
While posters are certainly convenient for your budget, they are also an excellent means of generating positive first impressions from prospective customers. This is why high-quality materials and extensive color options are so important. Fortunately, quality is easy to find at Super Cheap Signs. In addition to providing photo-quality, large format printing, they offer the option to customize your entire poster. You can even upload custom designs for inclusion wherever you see fit. Whether you want to create something completely new or riff on an old idea, their team of experts is ready to help you every step of the way.
Posters Are Flexible
One of the most convenient aspects of posters is their seemingly endless range of possible shapes and sizes. So whether your goal is to create hundreds of smaller promotional posters for a particular ad campaign, or several larger posters for branding purposes, the inherently flexible capabilities therein should give you peace of mind in knowing that your options are wide open. Additionally, posters are convenient because they can be customized to suit your audience’s desires and expectations. For example, you can incorporate a QR or coupon codes to engage tech-savvy consumers. Beyond that, posters give you plenty of room to play around with customized sizes.
Posters Promote Visibility
Posters are a marketing savant’s dream because they can be hung just about anywhere. From coffee shops to bookstores to banks, posters can add some needed depth to just about any setting. When hanging your posters, try to think as strategically as possible. You will want to ensure they are spread out in locations where people’s eyes frequent, as opposed to cluttered together in a corner somewhere. However, be sure to check with your local laws and regulations prior to hanging anything, as there may be some rule particular to your location that escapes the scope of this article.
Posters Are a Great Way to Gain Exposure
This may seem obvious, but the mere act of hanging a poster in a walkway or public location means that someone is bound to see it. As mentioned, this directly contrasts with print ads, which are only available to a specific subsection of the population. Additionally, placing a poster in a high traffic area is a great way to capture engagement and attract prospective customers. If you are planning to use your posters for a prolonged period of time, you could even opt to frame or laminate them to ensure their longevity.
Posters and Marketing
Even in today’s increasingly digital world, posters still remain one of the most intuitive ways to market a business. Expounding on the reasons listed above, posters are:
Affordable
Versatile
Portable
Flexible
Engaging
Using posters for marketing purposes is an economical way to amplify your brand’s visibility and gives you a strategic leg up on the competition, especially if they are ignoring posters in favor of social media advertising (though this is still important in its own way). In terms of affordability, posters are economic enough to suit just about any budget. Even if you just need to test some ideas, purchasing some custom posters in bulk and running an A/B test for font colors, sizes, designs, and image content is a cost-effective solution.
As far as portability is concerned, posters are very easy to install and transfer from location to location. Even better, some posters can be used repeatedly no matter the timeframe. This also speaks to their versatility, which makes it easy to reconfigure in accordance with the needs of your target audience.
When it comes to capturing engagement, a seasoned marketer could have a field day with just about any poster format. Combining psychological techniques, branding techniques, color theory, and tactful language is a surefire way to engage your target audience and drive engagement. To this extent, posters are available in an astonishing range of sizes, all of which can be customized to fit your aesthetic inclinations.
Finally, posters can be strategically placed just about anywhere you can think of, including indoors and outdoors. This makes them an ideal means of driving traffic. In fact, several recent studies show that calculated poster placement can drive targeted engagement of specific products. So be sure to do your research and place your posters as strategically as possible.
Around the Clock Marketing
Unlike commercials or print ads, most posters are visible 24 hours per day (though this obviously varies in accordance with where they are located). Consequently, they are not limited by budgetary or spending constraints. This means that people will always have a chance to familiarize themselves with your businesses. How’s that for around the clock marketing?
Science Has Spoken
One of the biggest hurdles in advertising and marketing is getting an idea to stick in someone’s mind. However, before an idea can be incepted, you need to make sure your subject is paying attention. A 2013 study published by the Health Information and Libraries Journal discovered that posters are the primary means of relaying information in academic and public health industries. Further, it shows that posters can effectively condition attitudes and influence behaviors. This insight has been incorporated into the medical and dental industries to great success.
The aforementioned success isn’t just applicable to health industries. Posters have been used to successfully convey and instill information across a variety of professions. As an entrepreneur, you likely do not have a lot of time on your hands but have critical information that you need to convey. In this situation, many people would opt for a slideshow presentation or a PowerPoint.
However, that basically just gives your employees and colleagues a break from their daily tasks and in no way ensures they are retaining any of the information presented. Instead, research shows that whipping up and displaying a custom poster that succinctly conveys the information is a much better means of promoting active learning. Additionally, an effective poster will inspire viewers to ask questions. In the context of a meeting or presentation, this will likely result in a meaningful discussion that will illuminate everyone’s understanding of a particular topic. Needless to say, this is much more effective than the passive experience facilitated by slide shows, PowerPoints, and worst of all: presentations with no visual aids whatsoever.
Super Cheap Signs Is Your Best Source for Custom Posters
Taking the above information even further, while the information conveyed in slideshows and Power Points vanishes from sight the second the next slide occupies the screen, posters remain present until you physically move them. When combined with high-quality material, such as the Postermax paper used by Super Cheap Signs, posters appear authoritative and are likely to inspire positive comments.
If you are on the market for economically priced custom posters, Super Cheap Signs has everything you need. In addition to providing a wide variety of templates, they also offer complete customization, which is a great way to convey more specific messages. Even better, they accept custom images, meaning you can incorporate your own art and custom graphics into your poster. They also offer discounts if you choose to order in bulk quantities, which ultimately saves you time, effort, and money.
All of their posters are made with high-quality Postermax paper, feature one-sided print, and are strong enough for any indoor use. They also offer an array of poster and sign accessories, including wireframes, stakes, spin handles, flyer boxes, suction cups, and more. No matter the application, the seasoned professionals comprising their team are more than ready to assist with all of your poster-related needs.
When it comes to advertising your business, it literally pays to maintain mobility. Sure, there are few things as effective as a well-placed sign or banner—however, there is one medium of advertising that is able to go where those mediums cannot: vinyl stickers.
Custom stickers are one of the most cost-effective means of promoting any business or cause. Simply place them on a vehicle in a well-chosen spot and you will have people all over town registering your brand in no time. Still not convinced? Read on to learn about some of the other advantages of vinyl stickers.
The Benefits Of Vinyl Stickers
When it comes to advertising and promotion, vinyl stickers have some clear benefits as opposed to other approaches. For one, vinyl stickers are much more durable than stickers constructed from paper. Additionally, they are resistant to tearing, fading, and degradation—properties which make them ideal for outdoor applications and public displays.
The benefits of vinyl stickers are directly correlated with the beneficial properties of the vinyl itself. These include:
Affordable and durable material
Environmentally friendly
Easily removable with no harmful residue
Moisture and humidity resistant
Available in matte
Vibrant images on a mobile platform
Potential Uses For Vinyl Stickers
The potential uses for vinyl stickers are virtually limitless. Whether you use them to advertise specific aspects of your product or as a warning label, vinyl stickers are a cost-effective means of conveying your message. This versatility is amplified by their inherent ability to be customized with specific lettering, colors, shapes, and messages that provide pertinent information to your target audience.
Using Vinyl Stickers For Mobile Advertising
Mobile advertising is one of the most practical uses for vinyl stickers. With some clever placement and a little luck, vinyl stickers could open your business up to an entirely new customer base. This is especially advantageous if your stickers include your contact information such as an email address or phone number. Even if you opt not to include contact information, a colorful, eye-catching logo is sure to garner some attention and amplify your visibility. Pairing with a seasoned signage company like Super Cheap Signs is an excellent idea, as they have everything required to create quality vinyl stickers that are adherent to a variety of shapes and sizes. So if you have specific questions, do not hesitate to get in contact with a member of their team.
Vinyl Stickers Cheap To Produce In Large Quantities
When it comes to mass appeal, one of the most advantageous aspects of bumper stickers is their inexpensive cost when produced in large quantities. Thanks to advancements in technology, printing is now largely automated, which has substantially driven down costs across the board. So before you spend an arm and a leg on that gigantic billboard, ask yourself if that is really a better way to achieve brand recognition than having thousands of instances of your logo all over town.
Using Vinyl Stickers Means Easy Distribution
To put it succinctly, people love putting stickers on things. Whether for artistic or psychological reasons, something about affixing stickers to things is resolutely appealing. As far as advertising is concerned, stickers essentially automate the entire process. As a quick tour of any social media profile will demonstrate, people will not hesitate to show others what brands they associate themselves with. Vinyl stickers ensure that you are able to use this proclivity to your advantage.
Don’t Just Introduce Your Brand, Reinforce Its Identity
Any seasoned entrepreneur will tell you that building a reputable brand identity is no easy task. From finding the perfect logo to developing a comprehensive message and strategy, conveying the best aspects of your brand requires a lot of hard work and dedication. Fortunately, once you have successfully developed your brand, you can use vinyl stickers to drive your message home. No matter whether you give them away for free or sell them, you are conveying that your brand has value. In the long run, this will facilitate closer relations between your brand and your target audience. What’s more, you will get free advertising when any of these people affix the sticker to their vehicle and drive around.
When it comes to today’s advertising landscape, few things are more important than establishing a trusted brand identity. This is why it is so important to have customers sporting your logo. When their friends see that they trust your brand enough to put your logo on their vehicle, they are more likely to trust your company. Needless to say, this gives you a clear advantage when it comes to growing your business and expanding your customer base.
Never Underestimate The Power Of Word-Of-Mouth
With the rising popularity of social media, many people seem to think that successful marketing must take a decisively digital direction in order to maintain relevance. Fortunately, these people are wrong. Several recent studies have demonstrated that most of the world—over 85%, in fact—trust word-of-mouth recommendations from their friends and acquaintances. To this extent, most word-of-mouth conversations take place on-site and offline. Rather than appealing to one side or the other, stickers occupy the middle ground by encouraging people to discuss your brand both online and offline.
Stickers Are A Great Way To Reach People Who Do Not Like Advertising
Given the influx of advertising these past few decades, it is not surprising that most people are becoming resistant to traditional methods. Consequently, this has forced advertising and marketing professionals to adopt more connection centric approaches. In this regard, stickers are extremely effective thanks to their ability to be displayed without seeming like an outright advertisement. In this context, a sticker is mobilized more like an endorsement or recommendation than an advertisement.
Stickers Can Be Used For Inexpensive Branding
Although giving away stickers for free certainly comes with its own advantages, they can also be used to brand your products and related packaging or signage. Rather than solely relying on your audience to put your message out into the world, you can ensure that some of that ground is covered before your product even hits the shelves.
Use Stickers To Compound Your Marketing
While increasing your brand exposure is certainly something you should remain focused on, you can also use stickers to strengthen your marketing efforts. For one, stickers make great giveaway prizes. All the better if they contain pertinent information or some kind of message on the reverse side. Additionally, you should always be sending stickers if you operate by direct mail. That’s because stickers have been shown to increase the open rates of direct packages. Even better, stickers serve as a crucial linchpin in cooperative campaigns by keeping costs down and garnering more impressions.
Stickers Can Help You Develop Future Marketing Efforts
As you have likely learned from this article, a lot of time and effort should go into creating the perfect sticker design. The nature of this process affords ample time to develop a comprehensive understanding of your brand’s message and how to convey it. In turn, this knowledge will inform future marketing efforts, including future logo designs, business card ideas, website ideas and features, press releases, and more. So when you are engaging in this process, pay close attention to what you learn. Specifically, understand who you want to communicate with, how to find them, what their interests are and how you can appropriately address them, and how you can clearly and succinctly convey your message in the most effective but least intrusive way possible.
Can’t I Just Make Stickers Myself?
Many people have purchased expensive printing machines and attempted to make their own vinyl stickers only to find out that the process is much more arduous than it seems on the surface. Problems typically tend to arise when die-cutting, coloring, or applying adhesive, and can prove to be rather time-consuming in the event that anything goes wrong. This is why many professionals opt to order their stickers from seasoned signage companies like Super Cheap Signs, who use powerful machines and software to produce a variety of custom images with expedient turnaround times.
The professionals at Super Cheap Signs understand that marketing is all about developing and maintaining relationships. It is about forming a symbiotic relationship with people who will ultimately benefit from your services and support you in the process. As far as these relationships are concerned, stickers signify trust and understanding. Consequently, equipping the right people with your stickers could potentially spread brand awareness much faster than any expensive advertising campaign, and lend your brand an air of authenticity in the process.
In addition to providing a comprehensive array of fonts, shapes, and colors, stickers from Super Cheap Signs can be completely customized using their convenient website. Beyond that, their impeccable team of seasoned professionals is ready to help with any questions or concerns you may have along the way. The process is so smooth you’ll wonder why you ever thought about doing it yourself in the first place.
When you’re running a local business, it can be a challenge to stay ahead of the crowd. In the digital age, a two-pronged approach is necessary – companies need to invest in both traditional marketing and the latest online strategies.
Potential customers in your local area need to be aware that your business exists and that you can offer them the products and services they’re looking for.
And while local businesses are making a comeback (with more and more people choosing to shop where they are), many now find the most relevant stores through a web search.
What this means is that your marketing strategy needs to reach people both online and offline. You need a physical presence, as well as a virtual one.
Here are four marketing hacks for local businesses that will help point more customers straight to your door.
Optimize For Local SEO
When people search for goods and services online, they generally do it through their mobile phone. As long as their location settings are on, the search results will point them towards local stores.
But how can you make sure you appear near the top of the pile? There are a few things you can do:
Make sure you have a Google My Business account and enter as much information as you possibly can. You should always include your business’s opening hours, a link to your website, photos of your premises and a detailed description of what you do.
Do the same for Bing Local and Yahoo Local.
Show Google that you are relevant to the searcher’s inquiry by optimizing your description for the search terms (keywords) they might use to find you.
Go one step further with optimizing for keywords and set up a Google Places account. You can enter all of your relevant keywords here and they should be optimized for your location. For example, use ‘tire fitters Bradford’, rather than plain old ‘tire fitters’.
Ideally, you will only use high-resolution images and make sure the information you have on Google My Business, Bing Local and Yahoo Local is the same as on your website. You can add some keyword tools to your website builders, or use free web applications like Google Search Console and Suggestion Keyword Finder.
Create An Online Presence Through Reviews
Online consumer reviews play a key role in driving traffic to your business and boosting your search engine rankings. An astounding 93% of all consumers report that online reviews have a significant impact on their purchasing habits.
You can’t ignore the numbers. Harnessing the power of word-of-mouth by requesting reviews from your customers is one of the best things you can do for your business. You can start by:
Providing links to prominent review sites in customer follow-up emails
Mentioning reviews on receipts
Placing posters within your premises that point to places to leave reviews
Asking your staff to request reviews from the customers they serve
Encouraging your customers to leave reviews on Google, Bing and Yahoo can drastically increase your online visibility and make it more likely they’ll visit you when you come up in map search results.
Use Local Signage
To reach a wider audience, you need to expand your online presence. But tried and tested local advertising should not be ignored. Investing in local signage is one of the best ways to drive foot traffic to your business, especially if you’re not located within the main shopping area.
It’s also a great way to reinforce your company’s brand and make your business instantly recognizable to local people. Alongside the internet, signage is a 24/7 solution. It works on your behalf all day, every day.
For anyone attempting to find you from an internet search, some measure of signage that points to your premises is essential. Adding your website URL to your it can increase the ROI from your signage investment since a lot of people prefer to check out a business online before trekking out to their local store.
Some of the best signage solutions for local businesses include:
You can even mix up your strategy across your signs. On some, simply promote your business’s name and contact information. On others, advertise any local events your business is holding, or special promotions you’re running.
Final Thoughts…
They say diversity is the spice of life and this also rings true for advertising. But you don’t have to stay up into the small hours or be constantly on call to make a real difference to your online and offline presence. Both local SEO and physical marketing tactics work for you, even while you sleep. So get yourself on Google maps, invest in some local signage, and watch as the customers roll on in.
About the Author:
“Jodie is a passionate writer and editor (MSc BA Cantab) partnering with UK Web Host Review. She loves to translate dense material into information everyone can access and explores design, branding, and market psychology. Connect with her on Linkedin“
For anyone who’s been working in the print industry for some time, it would be easy for them to tell the difference between a screen-printed sign and a digitally printed one. If you’re new to the industry or if you just want a better understanding of what these differences are, then you’ve come to the right place. Instead of asking yourself which method is better, you should be asking which is better for the way you plan on promoting your signs. What you need your signs for, will help determine which option is better for you. As we jump into the different techniques, we will discover the pros and cons of each method and highlight which attributes make them worthy competitors in the industry. For this particular comparison, we’re going to assume the same material (corrugated plastic) was used for both formats.
Screen
Screen printing has been around for a very long time. It has proven to be one of the most reliable ways to get the job done and at a decent price. This technique requires a fine mesh screen that gets coated with a chemical known as an emulsion. Once dried, a stencil can then be made to print with. It then gets placed into a machine or some form of printing table where ink is added and the print can begin. The image then gets transferred to the correx, (the material commonly used for yard signs) with the swipe of a squeegee that has a good amount of pressure on it. After printing is complete, it goes under a UV light to cure the wet ink, and boom, you got yourself a sign.
Most screen-printed signs are printed with a standard color selection of UV inks, so they can be cured quickly, and they will last longer against outdoor elements. Because of that feature, they are most commonly used outside. The ink used in screen-printing also has more of a gloss finish when completed. A big reason why people use screen printing is that higher quantities can be printed at a lower cost. One downside to printing in this manner is that full-color signs cannot be done. That means you can only print with a maximum of 4 colors in one design. However, most print shops that do screen-printing limit it to 3 colors. On average, signs done with this style tend to last about 3 – 5 years, enduring the weather that all the seasons have to offer.
Digital
In the other corner, we have digitally printed signs. Digital-printing presses have become more popular lately and are commonly used for their faster turnaround times and the ability to modify an image. These signs are printed in the way the name implies, digitally, meaning a big printer that usually uses Inkjet or Laser printing to lay down a design onto the sign. It’s like a desktop printer, just on a larger scale. An image is loaded into the machine’s queue, along with the desired material, and then the print can begin. As it prints, a giant print head moves back and forth, putting down the image one band at a time, also curing the ink being used at the same time. Once finished, the sign comes out ready to use; no extra drying time needed.
Digitally printed signs are used more in an indoor setting rather than outdoor. Although the ink used is also UV ink, it’s only rated for 2 – 3 years of prolonged outdoor exposure. On the plus side, digital printing can allow full-color signs along with full bleed. Full bleed means the image goes to all edges of the sign. In screen printing, a 1/3 of an inch blank border is left on the sign. Due to these benefits, digitally printed signs are more expensive per unit than screen-printed ones.
Conclusion
Depending on your needs for signage and where you plan on having your business or campaign signs placed will be the biggest determining factor when it comes to choosing which of these methods is the best fit for you. If you have a simple design, that you need a lot of copies of, and want to put them around the neighborhood, then screen-printed signs are the way to go. On the other hand, if you need just five duplicates of an intricate layout, we would recommend the digital option for that. Let’s say you have a full-color design and need a high quantity. You’re going to land at a middle price point but might have to pay just a little extra for your signage. The same goes for a small quantity with a simple design. Since it takes more resources to make a screen-printed sign than it would for a digitally-printed one, it’s more cost-effective for any customer to go digital for an order like that. This should help give you a better understanding of the two formats and aid you in your purchasing decision.
If you have any further questions or are still apprehensive of which way to go, feel free to contact our customer service specialists who are ready to help.
As the political campaigning season has come to an end, it seems the use for large campaign signs has dwindled down. Or has it? There are still other opportunities out there that we can grab by the horns and take full advantage of. We’re going to elaborate on those options and explain how big campaign signs can also make a big impression on your potential customers.
Business/Restaurants
Let’s say you have a new restaurant or business that you want to get more attention for. With a sign the size of a big campaign sign, you’re surely going to grab some attention, but using them closer to the actual location has proven to be more effective than just in the neighborhood. On the other hand, these are also effective from great distances. A sign for your establishment, saying that its 10 miles away and which way to head, will make it a lot easier for future patrons to find their way to you. Plus, it sure beats getting a billboard! Not that there’s anything wrong with billboards, but corrugated plastic is more budget-friendly, costing hundreds to thousands less depending on your area.
Real Estate
Another use you can find for these signs is for real estate. Now there are other options that may have worked for you in the past, such as yard signs, but why not add to your arsenal by having a big real estate sign for you to show future clients where to buy on a plot of land? Maybe a new subdivision is in the works and you need to bring some attention to it. One of these can certainly do the trick but keep in mind that MDO plywood signs are usually used for this kind of thing. A big corrugated plastic sign is still very worthy when displayed correctly and is significantly cheaper.
Promotional
You could be having an event special or a seasonal sale that you would like to advertise. Something like a firework stand or a Christmas tree farm. You can display some of these bad boys in likeness to the big business/restaurant signs but since you’re only going to have these signs up for a short period of time, your signs should last longer than your non-seasonal competitors.
Large Campaign Signs are made from a 4’ x 8’ or a 4’ x 4’ sheet of 4mm corrugated plastic and are digitally printed. That means that a large format, Inkjet or Laser printer will be used to print your signs. Think of how your desktop printer works, just on a much larger scale. They are printed with UV ink and are rated for 3 years of prolonged outdoor exposure. You can always display them indoors but because of their large stature, outside may be more fitting. Don’t forget that you’ll need posts that are sturdy to keep these big boys up, U-Channel Sign Posts are a great reliable solution.
Whatever the purpose of your promotional efforts, it’s a good idea to consider big campaign signs as a new, more creative approach to help with your promotional needs. We hope you find this information useful and that you can capitalize on some of these ideas. Who knows, you may even come up with your own use for these signs; the possibilities are endless.
