In retail signage, all surfaces are fair game, but are they all effectively messaging? When you fill up your car with gasoline this week, will you be tempted by the graphic of the Snickers bar on the gas pump handle? We are all curious about something new and different from the “norm.”

Recently, I walked through a retail store and my interest was peaked; out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a floor talker/cling that was new to my regular shopping route. The cling used brilliant colors and it grabbed my attention. After identifying the new stimuli, the rush was over and I was no longer interested in what the floor talker had to say. Did the medium accomplish its goal or was it just noise?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/redjar // CC BY-SA 2.0

I have always been enamored with the genius behind the concept of floor clings, yet rarely impressed by their effectiveness, quality, and durability. It’s such an efficient use of retail space and fairly cost effective the morning it is installed (just before the first cart, stroller, or shoe begins to beat it up).

After the first day, the floor clings that are especially designed to be trampled, abused, and destroyed by retail traffic pose operational challenges including customer safety, store product remerchandising, and ultimately removal and disposal. Like any item exposed to wear and tear, the corners will peel, the graphics will scuff, and your message will continue to be trampled, literally!

Even though floor talkers are recommended for short promotional periods of time, human nature dictates that we will try to get our money’s worth from advertising, and personally, every floor talker that I’ve ever seen has been on the ground “one day too long.”

The real question remains: does that grimy graphic of the candy bar on the gas pump or the image of the trampled turkey and dressing floor ad entice you to purchase their product?