Create the Ultimate Hangtag

THE MARKETING TOOL THAT ACTS AS A "SILENT SALESPERSON"

by Laurie J. Huttunen

A personalized hangtag can help generate sales at shows and in galleries. Book and paper artist Susan Lightcap developed a personalized hangtag that slips over the pages of her books. The front of the hangtag (left) has general information about Lightcap and her work, and the back (right) has specific details about that particular book.

Walk into a department or specialty store and pick up almost any item; attached to it somewhere, in addition to the price tag, is the hangtag. This is retail-speak for "the piece of paper that accompanies the merchandise and tells you what you need to know." Long considered the province of mass-produced goods, the hangtag is often omitted and usually under-utilized as a sales and marketing tool for craft objects.

Whether the setting is a gallery, shop, craft fair booth or artist's studio, the hangtag can serve as an educational tool about the object, the medium and the maker. If thoughtfully designed, it can prompt intelligent questions from the customer, informed answers from the salesperson, or special or custom orders for additional work.

No more excuses
"Why do I need a tag if I'm there to explain everything?" ... "The gallery owner has bought from me for years and knows my work." ... "Where can I hang a tag on a ceramic plate?" ... All are legitimate, if shortsighted, questions.

Even at a craft fair, there are times when you are away from the booth or engaged with another customer, and you may not be able to converse immediately with everyone. Your favorite gallery owner's new salesperson may never have seen your work before, and he or she won't have the same insight that the owner does. And ... where and how to "attach" the hangtag is an issue to address, not an excuse for not using one.

All excuses are irrelevant when the craft item is purchased as a gift; the recipient (and often even the giver) will never have met the artist. So, as a method of communicating with the eventual owner, there is no better method than the hangtag.

Creating a hangtag: setting your work apart
If you need more reasons for creating a "silent salesperson," consider these. Today's customers want, expect, demand information; if it's not forthcoming, they'll go elsewhere. Also, think of the imported American-craft-look-alikes available in the marketplace. If the sellers and promoters of this look-alike merchandise do not tell the whole story (and they won't), it is up to the makers and sellers of American crafts to loudly proclaim it -- attached to the merchandise, so there won't be any confusion.

Now that you've decided to create a hangtag, what should it look like? What should it contain? There is no single format that will work for everyone. Size and shape will be determined by the amount of information required, the manner in which it will be displayed, and whether or not it fits into a gift box, as well as the aesthetic sense of the maker and the object.

In order to determine what information should be included, I suggest setting aside some time to consider the following elements. Use lots of paper and get help from several people who know you -- a cross-section of ages and genders, and other craftspeople who work in a variety of media.

Whether the setting is a gallery, shop, craft fair booth or artist's studio, the hangtag can serve as an educational tool about the object, the medium and the maker.  

Product Content

  • Think about your body of work in terms of materials, techniques and objects.
  • List all the elements in words or phrases, without regard for relative importance.
  • Be specific about things that are distinctive (e.g., hand-turned wood buttons).

    Reassurance

  • What questions or hesitations might a customer have about your work, based on its appearance or function, or based on its care requirements or perceived fragility?
  • What terms or phrases will eliminate those hesitations or answer the questions (e.g. lead-free, oven-safe, hypo-allergenic)?

    Care and Feeding

  • How should customers care for your products?
  • Does it vary based on object or material?
  • How can you express it most succinctly?

    Legally Required Statements

  • Check on potential legal requirements; regulations apply for garments, bedding, stuffed articles, and almost anything meant for use by children.
  • List using appropriate language.

    Suggestions for Use

  • List ideas for the use or display of your work (e.g., how to tie a scarf, different ways to wear a garment, recipes for bakeware).

    Identity
    Which of the following do you want to use? Will it reinforce the image of your work? Will it coordinate with your other promotional materials?

  • Logo
  • Photo or image -- Will a picture be "worth a thousand words" to: a) illustrate a technique? or b) point out a unique feature about you, your work or your studio?
  • Signature
  • Artist name
  • Studio name

    Artist's Statement
    Write a brief statement using the who, what, where, why format.

  • WHO you are
  • WHAT you do, and how you do it
  • WHERE you are from, where you do your work, where you learned your craft
  • WHY do you do what you do -- what inspires you

    Once you have done this exercise and have all the technical jargon out of your system, review each element to be sure it is complete. To design your "ultimate hangtag," consider the following:

    Size and Shape

  • What is the best size for your hangtag?
  • Are there restrictions or limitations based on type of work or manner of display?
  • To attach or not to attach?
  • To fold or not to fold?
  • Will it fit in a gift box?

    Content
    Review the product content, reassurance, legal, care and feeding, and suggestions for use sections. Which terms/phrases:

  • Are factual and necessary?
  • Add value to the work?
  • Explain the un-obvious?
  • Eliminate hesitations?
  • Will prompt further contact?

    Format

  • Do you need to break down the information in a different way?
  • Do you need different tags for different product lines?
  • Will a checklist format work? What should be on the checklist?

    If the idea of using a checklist to describe your handcrafted limited-production or one-of-a-kind objects seems almost sacrilegious, consider this: It's not practical to have a tag preprinted for every variation in material, technique and object. Why not let a checklist inform the customer about the variety of techniques you have mastered and the breadth of materials available to them, as well as let them know which of these are used in the product they are purchasing.

    Benefits of a checklist format
    While you are away from your booth, an appropriately labeled dinnerware display can prompt a customer to order a serving piece that is not on the shelf. In the case of a new salesperson in a gallery, a customer allergic to wool can look at a well-tagged garment and realize that the same style can be ordered in rayon. The recipient of a much-appreciated and well-labeled gift of placemats does not have to wonder or hesitate, but can call immediately to order the matching table runner and extra napkins.

    The notion of the checklist as an educational tool is particularly appropriate for elements of your work that are not common knowledge. A maker of fine wooden boxes may be surprised (or not) by the public's unfamiliarity with different woods. Why not avoid the customer's embarrassment and the maker's frustration by providing a checklist and prompting an informed discussion?

    Several years ago, I worked with Susan Lightcap, well-known book artist and member of the Southern Highland Craft Guild. Each of Lightcap's books involves many different materials and techniques. She was frustrated with the limited amount of information she could write on a small card that she attached to each book. Not to mention the cramped hands and the hard-to-read script when it came to the last days before a show or a delivery!

    Together, we came up with a checklist that included the possible choices for four major elements -- the cover, text paper, embellishments, and binding style. (All included, of course, an "other" line on which to write.) This made the tagging of books much faster, more complete and less painful. It also gave the customer a far greater appreciation of the ingredients in a handmade book, and prepared them to understand the price. Almost 10 years later, Lightcap is still using the same format, with only minor changes to make it easier to attach to each book.

    With all of these reasons for creating this invaluable piece of paper, perhaps artists' hang-up about hangtags is simply the name. I challenge you, after you have developed your own perfect sales and marketing tool, to work on a name that befits the creativity of the American craftsperson.

    Laurie J. Huttunen is director of HandMade in America Services, Inc., where she manages the organization's consulting division, community programs, craft registry and heritage tourism guidebook sales. She has 25 years of professional retail management and marketing experience.

    JULY 2000: TABLE OF CONTENTS