What sort of banner should I use on my stall? Great question! Your brand name is the first thing customers look for at a market – and stall banners are a great way to make it obvious. You could choose to have a sign instead, or another alternative.
Nicki will be exploring more on this topic in our upcoming YouTube series – click here for details.
Here we take a deep dive into different types of banners, what you need to show your customers, things that you need will make you stand out and more. We’ve included plenty of photos of our stallholders’ market stalls and their banners too, so you can see what kind of banners other small businesses have and get some inspo!
What do you think of market banners?
When you hear the term ‘banner’, it conjures images of a slightly tatty plastic or UPVC banner, with faded images and an information overload. However, banners have come a long way in recent years – and it’s time to rethink them.
If you’re thinking ‘What sort of banner should I use on my stall because I don’t want a big plastic one’, please know that you don’t need to have a traditional banner on your stall; in fact, many stallholders have moved away from using these. Look at the picture of Crafted in Chaos’ banner above – it’s a waterproof fabric banner which is much more modern and simply has their business name. The other business details can be given via business cards or a QR code (which you can attach to your Pedddle board, as a Pedddle stallholder – click here to find out more about that more sustainable method).
Many long-standing stallholders may even have an internal chuckle at their first ever banner, with lots of fonts in many sizes and images; definitely information overload. Luckily, modern printing methods have saved us and there’s now a much more diverse range of banners than there used to be.
Advertising your brand name is a pretty essential aspect of your stall and your stall deserves its own identity – and banners now come in myriad different forms.
Once you’ve decided that a stall banner is a vital piece of market kit, you’ll be asking yourself – what sort of banner should I use on my stall?
What sort of banner should I use on my stall?
Keep a banner simple, whatever form that might take. It only needs your brand name and logo to catch a customer’s eye – any other information will just overload any passers by. You can save that for your business cards or stall postcards.
Here are our 4 top tips:
- Consider the fabric – UPVC banners are hardwearing and are especially useful for stallholders operating outside. Having a waterproof, heardwearing fabric could be essential if you’re mainly at markets outdoors. Alternatively, if you mainly sell at indoor markets, you may prefer a softer fabric that ties in with your brand theme better. Perhaps you’d prefer a wooden board – consider whether you do mainly indoor or outdoor markets, how big it needs to be, and exactly where it will stand or tie on to your stall.
- Make sure it’s on brand – Use your brand colours and fonts, keep them simple and avoid using images, as these can date. Include your logo – or consider a QR code that can link to your website, where you can easily update the things it links to.
- Make sure it works – You’ll need to tie your banner onto your stall, so make sure you order one with eyelets and take ties to a market to secure it. Consider the types of tie you want to use, how large the eyelets need to be, and exactly where it will tie onto your stall.
- Think about where it will be displayed – Will it be secured at eye height? Will it be at the front of the stall? These decisions will impact the size of your banner, the size of your logo and the font.
What should a banner include?
- Your logo
- Your business name – in a font that’s on brand
- Your business colours – make sure it stands out but is also on-brand
- Social Media handles / your email address / website address – We do recommend keeping it as simple as possible, but you could add these extra details (or save them for your business cards).
- A QR code might be a good idea – click here to see how joining Pedddle could benefit you.
Where can I buy a good banner?
- Make your own – you’re a creative, right?! Why not stitch together some bunting with your brand name, paint a sign, do a screen print or even hand paint a wooden palette – there are so many ways you could create your brand name and logo to make it really stand out at a market.
- Get another small business to do it – we’ve seen lots of wooden and acrylic etched or laser cut boards at markets, and there are plenty of small businesses who offer these services. Check Instagram for ideas – some creative makers that make signs for small business include For Me and For You Designs @formeandforyoudesigns , Rosa Pietsch @rosapietsch and Darwin & Gray @darwinandgray.
- Looking for a UPVC banner? HFE Signs are a great company and they will help you design your banner too if your Photoshop skills need work.
Take a look at our makers’ banners
