There is something about a good sticker that tickles my millennial heart.
If you grew up in the 90s with a sticker book, a mirror or a bedroom door that your parents definitely did not approve of, you already know what I’m talking about. That little hit of “ooh, I want one” is still very much alive. It never left. It just grew up and got a credit card.
The other day, my husband brought a hat, opened the box and inside was a branded pencil and some cool AF stickers. Where did they go? Straight on his toolbox coz that’s his man version of a grown-up sticker book.
Me? It’s my drink bottle, that’s where all the cool sh*t goes. And when I have to upgrade my drink bottle I get a bit sad staring at the blank basic looking thing until she gets some miles on her.
Stickers are one of the lowest-cost, highest-impact brand touchpoints IMO. They are tactile. They are collectible. They make people feel like they got a little bonus when they open a package, pay at a counter, or grab a takeaway bag. Nobody’s throwing away a sticker with personality. They save it. They stick it somewhere. They carry your logo around – promoting you… for free.
It’s a marketing strategy disguised as something fun.
For product-based businesses, stickers in your packaging are a no-brainer. Not just your logo though, make it fun. Done right, they become part of your brand identity. People start associating that little visual hit with your brand the same way they associate a good unboxing experience with quality.
For service businesses, stickers work differently but they still work. They are conversation starters. They show up in co-working spaces and on laptops in cafes. They get handed to kids at appointments while parents sign paperwork. They end up on the back of phones and the inside of notebooks. A well-designed sticker is a silent little brand ambassador that costs next to nothing.
For people looking to expand into merch, you don’t have to start with fully branded gears (although those are super cool too if you have the budget). And you do not need a whole merch store. Just a couple of fun designs that people will want to put somewhere in their life.
If your brand has even just a hint of personality, a sticker is one of the easiest ways to let that personality off the leash and into the wild. I’ve used StickerDot to make a bunch of stickers over the years – and there’s so many styles and types to choose from!
So yes. This is me telling you to get stickers made. Put them in your packaging. Leave them at your counter. Hand them out at markets and events. Send them with invoices. Stick one on your laptop so people ask about it.
Your 8-year-old self will do a little happy dance.
Oh that gives me an idea, if you have an 8-year-old… send them to school with a bunch of stickers to hand out to their friends.