Hang Tag Marketing Strategies

Hang tag marketing is a retail staple and for good reason. Hang tags can attract attention to sales and make the difference between the purchase of one product or another — or even both! Like all marketing materials, hang tag marketing is a science. You have to do it right to get results. Here are some hang tag marketing strategies you can employ for your business success:

Keep it simple

Your hang tag should attract attention, tell a story and project an image. It should build brand recognition so that once a customer sees one of your hang tags, they associate its image with all of your products. What is your company all about, and what can your customers expect from your products? Your hang tag should answer those questions.

Go big

Large hang tags are difficult to ignore, so go big whenever possible. Consider where your products are displayed to determine the best size. Showroom motorcycle hang tags could be much larger than clothing rack T-shirt hang tags, which if too large could get caught up and torn. If you want to put more information on your hang tag, consider folding it in two and placing additional text on the inside.

Detail specs

Use the back of your hang tag or the inside of a fold to include detailed product specs. An outdoor jacket hang tag could include a photo on the side with bullet points of benefits with arrows drawn to their corresponding features. Dyson once put similar hang tags on its sweepers denoting the important aspects of vacuum operation. This is an excellent way to demonstrate how your product is different and better than the competition's.

Use big numbers for sales

If you use hang tags to denote sales, go big and use large numbers, dollar signs, percentage points and images to get attention fast. You want your customers to be able to see your sales while they're browsing other products across the aisle. Bright colors complement this strategy.

Add value

Consider perforating your hang tag to make it into a coupon for the next purchase (with one previous proof of purchase) or a gift certificate; perhaps 20 percent for both the customer and a friend when presented. You can also use perforations as a vehicle to upsell or engage in cross-promotions with complementary — but not competing — businesses. Finally, you can use perforations to create a mail-in or drop-box survey that is redeemable for a special offer to collect valuable demographic information. That's double duty for your hang tags! Hang tags are not limited to clothing and accessories. Toys, games, sports equipment, guns, motorcycles, boats, novelties, electronics and just about anything else you can put on a showroom floor or retail shelf can benefit from well-designed hang tags. Hang tags can do what so many other marketing materials can not: They can promote your products while your customers can see and physically feel them, simultaneously reinforcing your hang tag's message and your company's image. For retail purchase inspiration, nothing beats a great hang tag.