Shelf Talkers: What They Are, Types, and How to Add a QR Code

A shelf talker is a small printed sign attached to a store shelf, right next to a product, that tells shoppers something the package can't: a lower price, a new flavor, a staff pick, a tasting note. It sticks out from the shelf edge or sits in the price channel, so it catches the eye at the moment someone is choosing. Most are card stock or plastic, and many now carry a QR code that opens a video, reviews or a coupon. With a dynamic QR code, you can change what the code opens after the cards are printed and see how many people scanned it in each store.

What a shelf talker does

A shopper standing in an aisle has a few seconds and a wall of similar packages. The package can say only so much, and it says the same thing in every store. A shelf talker adds one message at the place where the decision happens.

You'll hear other names for the same thing: shelf sign, shelf card, shelf wobbler, shelf screamer. In wine shops they're often called shelf cards or wine talkers. The job is the same: point at one product and give one reason to pick it up.

Types of shelf talkers

• Wobblers hang from the shelf edge on a short, flexible plastic arm and sway as people walk past, which is what draws the eye.
• Blades, also called aisle violators, stick out at a right angle into the aisle, so you can read them from the end of the aisle.
• Channel strips slide into the price channel along the front of the shelf and run under several products.
• Shelf cards and tent cards stand on the shelf itself, in front of or beside the product. Wine shops and bookstores use them most.
• Hang tags and neck hangers go on a hook or around a bottle neck instead of on the shelf.
• Digital shelf talkers are small screens or e-paper labels that can be changed remotely, at a much higher cost than card.

Retailers often have their own rules on size, materials and where signs may go, so check them before you design anything for a store you don't run.

What to put on a shelf talker

A shelf talker is read in passing, from a step or two away. Keep it to one message:

• A headline someone can read without stopping: "Staff pick", "New", "Back in stock", "Pairs with grilled fish".
• One reason to choose this product: a benefit, an award, a pairing, a local maker.
• The price or offer, if there is one, and when it ends.
• A call to action. If there's a QR code, say what it opens. "Scan for the recipe" tells people why to bother; "Scan me" doesn't.
• The product name, when the talker comes from a brand and sits among competitors.

Put anything longer behind the QR code.

Shelf talker ideas by store type

• Grocery stores use them for a recipe with the product, a new flavor, or allergen and sourcing details.
• Wine and spirits shops add tasting notes, a food pairing, a staff pick or a video from the producer.
• Beauty counters point to a shade finder or a short how-to video.
• Hardware and electronics stores link a comparison chart, an installation video or the full spec sheet.
• Bookstores print a two-line staff review and put the full review or an author interview behind a code.
• Brands that sell through retailers run a coupon, a contest or a loyalty sign-up in every store at once.

Why add a QR code to a shelf talker

The card has room for a headline. A QR code holds everything that doesn't fit: the video, the reviews, the recipe, the long spec sheet, the coupon. Shoppers already scan codes on menus and posters, so the habit is there.

The other reason is measurement. A printed card can't tell you whether anyone read it. A code that runs through a tracking service can tell you how many people scanned it, when, and from which city.

Use a dynamic QR code so the card outlasts the promotion

A static QR code stores its content in the pattern itself. To change where it goes, you print new cards. Scans of a static code also never pass through a tracking service, so they can't be counted. See Static vs dynamic QR code for the full comparison.

A dynamic QR code stores a short link instead, and the short link points to your page. When the summer recipe gives way to the autumn one, you change the destination and the cards on the shelves keep working. In CodeQR you can create dynamic codes on the Free plan, and you can change a QR code's destination after printing on every plan.

Give each store, aisle or version its own code

If the same code runs in 40 stores, Analytics shows the total and the cities, but it can't tell you which store a scan came from. Make one code per store, per region or per version of the card, and you can compare them.

• Name the codes the same way every time, for example "cider-wobbler-store-114".
• Add tags so you can find and filter a whole campaign. Tags are available on every plan, and folders start on Pro.
• For many stores, import the codes from a CSV file instead of creating them one by one.

In CodeQR's Analytics, every plan shows scans over time and where they came from, though Free shows only the top location. Starter adds the full location list and device breakdowns. See Track link clicks and QR code scans for what each report shows.

Tag the destination with UTM codes

If the code opens your website, add UTM parameters to the destination so your web analytics files the visit under the right campaign. For example: utm_source=shelf-talker, utm_medium=qr, utm_campaign=autumn-cider, and utm_content with the store number.

The CodeQR QR code editor has a UTM builder for dynamic codes. The UTM report inside CodeQR's Analytics needs Pro. UTM codes for QR codes covers naming and the mistakes that split your reports.

Set an end date for limited-time offers

Promotions end, and the cards often stay on the shelf after them. A shopper who scans one should not land on last month's offer.

Either change the destination when the offer ends, or set an expiration date on the code when you create it. After that date, people who scan see a page saying the link has expired, or go to a web address you choose, such as your current offers. Expiration dates are available on Starter and above. See Set an expiration date for the steps.

Print the code so it scans at the shelf

A shelf talker is small, and people scan it from arm's length or a little farther. CodeQR's guide to downloading and printing QR codes uses a common rule of thumb: the code should be about one tenth of the scanning distance, and never smaller than 2 × 2 cm (about 0.8 × 0.8 in). At 30 cm (about 1 ft), that's a 3 cm (about 1.2 in) code. A blade read from farther down the aisle needs a bigger code, or a headline that brings people close enough to scan.

• Keep a blank margin around the code, at least four modules wide (a module is one of the small squares). Don't let the card's edge, text or a fold touch it.
• Use dark modules on a light background.
• Download SVG for print and print at 100% scale.
• Store lighting reflects off gloss laminate. A matte finish is easier to scan.
• Print one proof on the real card stock and scan it with two phones, an iPhone and an Android, from where a shopper would stand.

To put your logo in the middle, see QR code with logo. In CodeQR, your own logo and frames with text such as "Scan me" need a paid plan, starting with Starter. See pricing.

How to make a shelf talker QR code in CodeQR

1. Create a dynamic QR code of the URL type with the page the card should open.
2. If it opens your site, add UTM parameters in the editor.
3. Make one code per store or card version, or import them from a CSV file.
4. Add colors, and your logo if your plan includes it, then download the SVG.
5. Print a proof, scan it from shelf distance, then print the full run.
6. Watch scans in Analytics and change the destination when the promotion changes.

For more ideas on in-store codes, see QR codes for retail and QR codes on product packaging.