• Printed literature. Printed leaflets, brochures, postcards etc.
• Cubes. Cardboard cubes of all shapes and sizes displaying your product and branding.
• FSDUs. Floor standing display units. Large display units holding product and displaying a wide range of creative and messaging.
• Wobblers. Small promotional items usually on wobbly plastic arms.
• Totems. Tall free standing units with 360 degree messaging and creative.
• Stickers. Regular or bespoke stickers on a range of substrates.
• Floor stickers. As above but hard wearing to take the footfall.
• Tickets. Cheap to manufacture and show product and pricing information.
• Posters. A most cost effective and simple way to promote product using wall and window mounts.
• Static/window clings. Clean-mount posters and stickers that don’t leave a mess.
• Shelf liners. Displaying product and pricing information on the shelf.
• Counter display units. Smaller product-holding units displaying messaging, creative and products often around the point of purchase.
• Bin skirts. An effective way to wrap product bins with promotional messaging.
• Strut cards. Smaller cardboard display boards that usually sit on a flat surface.
• Banners. Wall mounted, internal, external, fixed or pull up banners on a range of substrates.
• Flags. Particularly useful to free-stand outside and in entranceways.
• Display panels. A range of internal or external boards on a variety of substrates displaying promotional messaging.
• Shelf fillers. Promotional boxes that fill the empty shelf space.
• Header boards. Permanent or temporary boards above shelves or display units.
• Shelf strips. Found on the edge of shelves to highlight products and pricing.
• Pallet wraps. Printed wraps for pallets of products.
• PVC and foamex boards. Convenient, high quality and durable.
• Shelf talkers/barkers. Great to highlight products and offers on the shelf.
• Aisle fins/signs. Eye level messaging that catches the customer’s eye.
• Ceiling hangers. Handy messaging that’s suspended from the ceiling.
• Bollard covers. Messaging to cover unsightly bollards, usually outside the store.

POS often fulfils a variety of specific needs depending on the type of point of sale you need. That can include product descriptions, pricing information, SKU, platform, offers, options, brand name and logos along with product creative imagery. So, at its most basic level POS design needs to clearly and concisely fulfil all the basic requirements of any product communications.

On a more creative level, POS usually requires in-store impact. It should catch the eye, promote product curiosity and remind customers of the product’s availability. It should influence the purchasing decision and make them aware that it’s available to buy right here, right now.

Of course, getting your POS creative spot on isn’t done in isolation. Brands have specific requirements to promote their products and so do retailers. So, the whole process is a balancing act. Brands need to work closely with retailers to ensure their POS works for each store – within the overall store footprint as well as working with specific retailer’s fixtures and fittings.

POS ideally also needs to be easy to construct by in-store staff with minimal instructions.

So, when you’re working with a network of stores, it’s important to be hyper organised and have store information to hand to influence your designs and make sure they’re going to work on site.

But within those constraints, POS design can be one of the most creative processes and brand-promoting mediums around.

By its nature it has to be eye-catching and direct and usually conveys a single brand-enhancing message. Which means once they understand the parameters, designers often have a lot of fun producing creative treatments for POS.

Here’s a checklist of some of the elements we suggest you cover when planning a POS campaign or designing for POS display.

Understand your brand and products

If there’s a mood board, brand guideline or archetypes document, use it to inform your design. The more backgrounding you do, the better equipped you are to produce a POS design that works.

Understand in-store limitations and opportunities

Stores have specific requirements and restrictions for the use of your POS. And if you don’t work with them, your POS may well not get an airing. But stores are always on the lookout for opportunities too which can lead to some great promotional partnerships and creative design possibilities.

POS placement and location inspiration

It’s vital you understand the environment your POS has to work in, so it’s definitely worth making a day of store visits to get a feel for locations. There’s no substitute for on-site visits to get an understanding of the space, as well as seeing what competitors are producing. Which is why our designers always immerse themselves in both the brand and retail environment before designing.

POS: part of the omnichannel mix

Of course, Point of sale is a part of the media mix so needs to be a consistent and integrated part of the omnichannel campaign experience. If a designer isn’t involved with working on other channels, they need to familiarise themselves in other campaign elements to ensure their work integrates seamlessly with – and enhances – the overall campaign experience.

Understand your creative POS options – by working closely with suppliers.

We always strongly suggest that designers work closely with suppliers at the earliest stages, so they understand what their creative options are. POS has to be printed and manufactured and the best suppliers can not only show you a whole range of POS that has been manufactured to date, but can also advise on manufacturing limitations and opportunities that you can exploit.

Our POS designers will be only too happy to get involved in the earliest design brainstorming stages to advise on what’s appropriate and explore your options with a view to actual production and in-store installation.

Variable data-driven POS

Like all kinds of print, much modern point of sale can be digitally printed and data-driven to create bespoke installations that speak to local audiences. The rule of thumb is if it can be printed, then it can be variably printed, but the key is to understand the best ways to use personalisation to create impact and drive sales. This is a key area our POS consultants can offer you their expert advice.

Point of sale artwork, manufacture and beyond

When your designs are finalised, all but the most experienced point of sale designers will be happy to manage their project into production and beyond. Again, production is an area where it’s great to be helped through the process with an experienced POS project management team.

Our POS project managers advise on how your artwork should be supplied. They’ll deliver POS mockups for approval before helping take your carefully crafted designs into manufacturing, liaising closely with printers and POS manufacturers to ensure high quality is maintained and punctual delivery is achieved.

They also arrange warehousing and distribution, so your POS is delivered when and where your campaign requires.