Do you remember the stickers the Grateful Dead distributed (and sold!) to their fans? Those dancing bear stickers were so popular that they were even mentioned in Don Henley’s hit song, Boys of Summer. These stickers offered a fun way for people to identify themselves as fans of the Grateful Dead. Not only that, but they also spread the word about the band. Catching a glimpse of those iconic dancing bear stickers reminded people to listen to the band’s music or buy an album. However, it was a very subtle reminder. Fans remember that the stickers were simply fun and barely even realized they had an underlying promotional message. The Grateful Dead got it right – they knew how to be subtle in their promotional efforts. They exclusively targeted their fans and insiders with a sticker that doubled as a secret handshake.
This is the number one thing to remember when creating your sticker campaigns. Be as subtle as possible! This is why promotional stickers are such an effective way to build your brand. When designed and distributed correctly, people are excited to take part in the fun. Here are a few tips for creating fun stickers that offer subtle messaging:
View Stickers as a Gift
One glimpse at the sticker should make customers smile when thinking about your company. That’s because they should look at the sticker as a special gift that was made just for them, not as a marketing tool. This will help facilitate the special bond between your business or organization and your fans.
Create a Code for Insiders
The Grateful Dead’s dancing bear stickers helped create a special message that only insiders understood. In fact, the band had many stickers – some included the dancing bear and some didn’t. Very few of their offerings even mentioned the band name. However, fans knew exactly when they were looking at a sticker that was associated with the band. How can you apply this principal to your own business? This is subtle branding at its finest. Since the promotional message isn’t blatant, it helps spread the word about your brand even faster.
Encourage Group Identity
By creating stickers that are subtle, you help create a collective group identity. When fans use these stickers, they’re saying, “I belong with this group.” When the “group” happens to be your business or organization, this helps build your brand in a natural and fun way. That’s because they’re not promoting you in any way – they’re promoting themselves. They’re telling others that they belong to something. When they display your stickers they’re inviting others to join them. When designing the sticker with this in mind, you’ll help encourage people to become part of this special club!
When creating your sticker campaign, remember that it isn’t about you, it’s about your customers/fans! Ultimately, the subtler the campaign is, the more effective it will be.
Jeff Nicholson is the founder and Creative Director at 
