The making of our new homepage video 

Our [home page](https://www.stickermule.com/) is the first interaction most visitors and customers have with our brand. Our previous home page video showed the ordering process, but lacked a story that focused on our customers. Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at how we created our new homepage video.

<WistiaVideo videoId="qwwgsbtbav" />

## Script
Instead of making a basic “how-to” video, we wanted to make something that was more inspirational and persuasive. To do this, we knew we had to tell a story – one that revolved around our customers. One blessing & curse with our business is that we have all sorts of different customers: big businesses, small businesses, non-profits, hobbyists, do-it-yourselfers, developers, designers... the list goes on. There isn’t just one “target customer” we go after, so we decided to focus our story on three: a startup, a do-it-yourselfer, and a designer.

With our personas selected, we focused on a few key features of Sticker Mule that we wanted to highlight in the script:

### Ease of use
- No file restrictions
- Mobile friendly

### Proofing
- Online proofs within 4 hours
- Unlimited revisions

### Speed
- Quick turnaround
- Free shipping

It was important to highlight the minor differences in how each person used Sticker Mule. For example, if we only showed someone uploading a photo from their phone that might turn away the designer who wants a pixel perfect print. But if we only showed the designer uploading a vector image that might turn away someone who doesn’t have graphic design skills.

After showing the entire ordering process, we focused on how each person used their stickers in real life. Easy ordering and fast shipping are great, but how they plan to use the stickers is the main reason people buy in the first place.

## Storyboard

A storyboard is a scene by scene drawing of how the video will look. We created a storyboard to plan the shoot and fix any potential pitfalls before we shot anything. We kept things simple by limiting the video to 4 different locations: Aaron’s office, Jess’ workspace, Brian’s desk, and a location that would tie in all three of them.

![Storyboard vs finished video](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/2f46e23cb97fb91c553a40b3324fcb9f1df24f76)

## Voiceover
We used the same voiceover pro to remain consistent with our other videos. One big advantage of using a voiceover (as opposed to on-camera dialogue), is that we didn’t have to worry about sound once we began filming. This made shooting and editing much easier and faster.

## Shooting
We shot the entire video in one day. This required a tight schedule for each location and set call-times for the actors. Luckily, each location was relatively close together, and everyone showed up on-time.

We kept the storyboard on hand as a reference to make sure each shot fit what we had envisioned.

<WistiaVideo videoId="rpcmc9d01e" />

For the final scene, we knew the timing was key. So we played the voiceover through an iPhone, which kept our camera movement and actors all in sync.

## Editing
We used a combination of Premiere Pro and After Effects for all the post production work on this video.

Since the ordering process is a key part of this video, we knew that whatever took place on the screens in the video had to look really good. But shooting a screen isn’t always easy and doesn’t always look as sharp as you would want it to. For this reason, we decided to overlay screencasts on top of the screens shot in the video. For the MacBook and iMac this was relatively easy, but the iPhone took some motion tracking and masking work to have it look realistic.

![Editing Sticker Mule's home page video](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/3e55e77faff205857f231219d199327935598642)

Instead of using straight-up screen capture footage, we recreated each scene and animated it in After Effects. This made all the movement perfectly smooth, and helped us with the next step: translating.

## Translating
Since the whole video was narrated via a voiceover this made translating very straightforward. However the on-screen scenes needed to be updated to have the localized versions of the site in each language. To make this easy, we used the Templater Rig After Effects plugin from Dataclay.

![Homepage video text](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/2f826187fe6b95ad4856ba701df6d7719033742c)

The Templater plugin allowed us to update each layer of text via a Google Sheet. We only had to animate the screencasts once, and we could easily change languages with a click of a button.

If you’re interested in seeing our homepage video in different languages here are the links. Just make sure you switch back to English (bottom right) when you’re done!

[Italian](https://www.stickermule.com/it#video)

[French](https://www.stickermule.com/fr#video)

[Spanish](https://www.stickermule.com/es#video)

[German](https://www.stickermule.com/de#video)

[Dutch](https://www.stickermule.com/nl#video)

[Portuguese](https://www.stickermule.com/br#video)

[Japanese](https://www.stickermule.com/jp#video)

## Conclusion
We’re thankful to have 100,000 customers that trust us to print their custom stickers, magnets, and poly mailers. It’s impossible to capture everyone’s unique story, yet we aimed to capture a representation of many stories in one minute and fifteen seconds.

And if you liked this video, you should [subscribe to our channel on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/user/stickermule?sub_confirmation=1).

A behind the scenes look at how we made the video on our homepage. From script to post-production. 

Introducing custom size roll labels

Sticker Mule first launched circle roll labels in March 2016 and since then, it’s become a hit, especially among small business owners. 

Sticker Mule first [launched circle roll labels in March 2016](https://www.stickermule.com/blog/introducing-circle-roll-labels). Now, we offer four additional shapes: [oval roll labels](https://www.stickermule.com/products/oval-roll-labels), [square roll labels](https://www.stickermule.com/products/square-roll-labels), [rectangle roll labels](https://www.stickermule.com/products/rectangle-roll-labels)and [rounded corner roll labels](https://www.stickermule.com/products/rounded-corner-roll-labels).

Let’s get it rolling and learn more about roll labels, shall we?

## What are roll labels?

Roll labels are sticker sheets with printed labels or logos. As the name suggests, they are rolled up so they can easily stick on cylindrical surfaces such as bottles or jars. 

### How are custom roll labels used?

You can use personalized roll labels on a lot of things. While most people use it for commercial purposes such as labels and packaging, you can also use it in your home to label your mason jars, refillable shampoo or soap bottles, and essential oils.

Customized roll labels are also used for return address label rolls and identification tags.

## What are the different types of custom roll labels?

Roll labels are the gift that keeps on giving! Did you know that there are different types of roll labels to choose from? We recently updated our custom labels to feature custom sizes. 

Previously, we offered 5 fixed sizes for each shape of the label. Now customers can enter an exact size when ordering their roll labels.

Custom sizes allow customers to get the exact size needed for product labeling, packaging, and other specific uses. We’ve found that small businesses and new e-commerce shops use roll labels when they expand their customer base and begin focusing on scaling their production. 

Customized roll labels are perfect for bottles or jars or different sizes, especially small ones like essential oil roller bottles!

### Circle roll labels
[![Custom circle roll labels from Sticker Mule](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/ddecb2c2faf66cbdddbbe47f5c931b6b1612d3af)](https://www.stickermule.com/products/circle-roll-labels)

Our first roll label and our most popular, [custom circle roll labels](https://www.stickermule.com/products/circle-roll-labels) have an unlimited number of uses. From labeling jar lids, to the products, circles are versatile and work for any surface  — curved or straight.

### Oval roll labels
[![Custom oval roll labels from Sticker Mule](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/b0b4bd8de0a6a82769de4812a2fe528539dfe849)](https://www.stickermule.com/products/oval-roll-labels)

[Custom oval roll labels](https://www.stickermule.com/products/oval-roll-labels) offer a protective laminate and strong adhesive, which makes them ideal for beverage, food, and cosmetic applications. Like all of our roll labels, these are easy to peel and can speed up production and shipping for small shops and large businesses. 

### Square roll labels
[![Custom square roll labels from Sticker Mule](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/5cdceca0deba3dd76e238384410e1b0123920cdf)](https://www.stickermule.com/products/square-roll-labels)

[Custom square roll labels](https://www.stickermule.com/products/square-roll-labels) are ideal for product labels, gift and box packaging, events and more. We’ve seen a number of merchants and small shops use square labels to add an extra layer of customization to their packaging; in some cases turning a standard box into a custom unboxing experience. 

### Rectangle roll labels
[![Custom rectangle roll labels from Sticker Mule](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/58d6acab0f775c1194e2df76960209f3780efbab)](https://www.stickermule.com/products/rectangle-roll-labels)

[Custom rectangle roll labels](https://www.stickermule.com/products/rectangle-roll-labels) are most often used to label products like bottled drinks, cosmetics (including beard oil) and also for shipping. Each rectangle label is precisely cut and made with a matte finish that is perfect for bright colors and crisp designs. A protective laminate and strong adhesive make them able to stand up to production.

### Rounded corner roll labels
[![Custom rounded corner roll labels from Sticker Mule](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/069b620ed228ed55160e619945bf63491901fe2f)](https://www.stickermule.com/products/rounded-corner-roll-labels)

[Custom rounded corner roll labels](https://www.stickermule.com/products/rounded-corner-roll-labels) are ideal for labelling products like wine bottle, spice jars and as address labels or for packaging. As with all of our labels, rounded corner roll labels are made with a matte finish that is perfect for bright colors and crisp designs with a waterproof protective laminate.

## How to make your own roll labels without a roll label printer? 

The good news is that you don’t need your own roll label printer to make your own personalized roll labels! Simply follow these steps: 

### Step 1: Create your design 

The first step is making your own logo or label. You may use your preferred design software. If you don’t know how to design yet, you may also read our [tutorial on designing stickers](https://www.stickermule.com/blog/how-to-design-stickers). 

### Step 2: Upload your design

Use the Sticker Mule website to upload your customized roll label design. [Upload the roll label design here >](https://www.stickermule.com/custom-labels?ref=blog) 

### Step 3: Order your roll label 

Specify what type of roll label you need, the quantity, and get a proof of your design. If you’re happy with it, Sticker Mule will ship it to you faster than you can say *let’s roll*! 

Our roll label quality exceeds anything on the market today. We use the latest generation of print technology that's currently unique to Sticker Mule and offer the highest quality materials available to deliver roll labels that are durable, waterproof and feature a beautiful matte finish. 

Printed in full color with a matte finish on [BOPP material](https://www.stickermule.com/blog/what-is-bopp). Each label has a laminate that protects them from moisture making them ideal for beverage and food applications.

<ButtonCta text="Try our roll labels today" size="large" variant="secondary"  align="center" href="https://www.stickermule.com/custom-labels?ref=blog" />

We recently updated our custom labels to feature custom sizes. Now customers can enter an exact size when ordering their roll labels. 

Omit needless words 

Every needless word you omit is an investment in the foundation of your organization. Here’s why: 

## People don't read

People [read 20% of the words](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/how-little-do-users-read/) on a web page. A concise message is more likely to be absorbed. 

## Save time 

Extra words waste time ~~for your customers and coworkers~~. 

## Simplify translations

Be concise in your native language to make translating content easier. 

## Strengthen your brand 

Search engines may like more words but customers appreciate fewer.  

Content grows exponentially which makes it harder to maintain quality. The sooner you start [omitting needless words](http://www.bartleby.com/141/strunk5.html#13) from your organization the better. 



Every needless word you omit is an investment in the foundation of your organization.

Where to buy customized poly mailers

If you’re a business owner or if you’re running an e-commerce store, you’re no stranger to shipping troubles. Aside from doing all you can to [lower shipping costs](https://www.stickermule.com/blog/save-on-shipping-costs), another point of concern would be the actual packaging. You do want some branding in there, right? And, for sure, you also want to excite your customers? (We could hear the resounding “Yes!”) 

Usually, there is a tradeoff between on-brand packaging and the weight of the packaging itself, which can lead to more shipping costs. So, is there a solution to this? Is there a lightweight alternative that can also put a spotlight on your brand? 

The answer, my friends, is a [poly mailer](https://www.stickermule.com/products/poly-mailers). 

![Introducing poly mailers by Sticker Mule](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/f6079e1231b33bf4037d7cc43fdeb52178444c57)

## What is a poly mailer? 

Poly mailers are elastic-like envelope packaging. They are made from 100% polypropilene material which makes them lightweight, durable, and tear-resistant. Because of this, they are ideal for shipping apparel and non-fragile goods as they also come with a self-seal adhesive strip and an easy-open tear tab.

So for e-commerce store owners asking if you can mail a gift bag or a package in a plastic bag, this can be a good alternative to bulky boxes. 

### What are poly mailers used for? 

Poly mailers are used for shipping products, especially soft goods like clothes. Of course, since it does not have the same protection as a box, it would be better if items placed inside poly mailers are those that are not too fragile. 

### Are poly mailers recyclable?

Yes, poly mailers are recyclable! Most poly mailers are made from eco-friendly materials. Here at Sticker Mule, our poly mailers are made with 100% polypropilene material. They are identified by recycling code 4 and this symbol is printed on the bags. Many local community recycling centers accept code 4 as a safe form of plastic. 

![irl-poly-mailers-1](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/95439fa9333a74c889404b5921dda121e9e55e07)

## How much does it cost to ship poly mailers? 

So if you’re already considering poly mailers (we hope you are!) you may have some questions about shipping. The first being -- Is a poly mailer a large envelope? Well, shipping companies consider a poly mailer a package or a large envelope, depending on its dimensions. 

As a general rule, however, poly mailers are frequently shipped by the United States Postal Service as First Class, Priority Mail, and Media Mail. The service used would be Package or Thick Envelope. Make sure to check with your local post office for more details.

### How much does a poly mailer weigh?

Most people ask how much weight they can put in a poly mailer. Again, this depends on how big the poly mailer is and how much stuff you’re putting inside. 

At Sticker Mule, our poly mailers are available in two sizes (7.5" x 10.5" and 10" x 13"), so you can find the perfect poly mailer for your product. 

Here’s a handy table that can tell you which items can usually fit in the different-sized poly mailers:

| 7.5" x 10.5" | 10" x 13” |
| ---------- | ---------- |
| Socks       | 1 T-Shirt  |
| Napkins     | Dress shirt|
| Washcloths  |            |
| Tea towels  |            |

Take note that this is only a rough guide and the fabric used in the clothing can affect how much would fit in the poly mailer. 

## How to make poly mailers 

Making your poly mailer stand out from the rest can now be easy peasy. Instead of sourcing plain poly mailers and customizing each packet one by one, we have a better solution for you.

Here at Sticker Mule, we’re offering poly mailers to support customers who run small businesses, online shops and e-commerce sites with custom packaging. Our poly mailers also use the same easy checkout and proofing process as custom stickers.

### How do I print on poly mailers?

There are many ways to print on poly mailers, including screen printing, offset printing, inkjet printing, and more. However, this process can be quite complicated because you need the necessary machinery. But don't worry because Sticker Mule is here for you. Simply upload your design and we'll take care of the rest.

Sticker Mule’s custom poly mailers can be printed in full color on one-side. With no restrictions on the artwork, you can fully brand your packaging experience for your own customers regardless of your business size — order as few as 50 units of one design. All orders ship within 4 days after proof approval and include free shipping in the U.S. Free worldwide shipping is also available. 

### Where to buy custom poly mailers 

You’ve come to the right place! Every mailer we print at Sticker Mule is completely custom. Simply choose your quantity then upload your artwork. With no limits on the artwork, you can upload high-resolution photography, an artistic reproduction, a company logo, and more.

Within 4 hours you'll have a free digital proof that you can approve online or request changes to the design. Once approved, we’ll begin production and within 4 days ship your poly mailers directly to you.

![irl-poly-mailers-2](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/a66faa8423802da82131e2c3ea509447d7107a13)

## Ordering poly mailers

Are you ready to get started? Check out this video that tells you the many ways you can use poly mailers and some sample designs. 

<YouTubeVideo videoId="Q3jLkg9Xt_k" />

Go ahead and try our tear-resistant, waterproof, eco-friendly, and customized poly mailers for your next shipment! 

<ButtonCta text="Try poly mailers today" href="https://www.stickermule.com/products/poly-mailers?ref=blog" />

Poly mailers are ideal for shipping apparel and other products. Fast turnaround. Free shipping. 

Customer service principles 

Our aim has always been to be the internet’s favorite printer. To that end, we respond quickly and effectively to our customers to help them be as successful as possible. 

Although we can’t plan for every scenario in customer service, we use principles to give our team a framework for replying to customers. They are:

__1. Avoid negatives__

Avoid saying sorry, can’t, won’t, not able to, unfortunately and so on. People become adversarial when they read these words.

__2. Avoid patronizing__

Avoid saying anything that seems patronizing or insincere. Words like “sorry” and “appreciate” often seem insincere. Also, use exclamation points cautiously! 

__3. Be concise__

Respond in the fewest words possible. Practice by editing your responses after you write them to see if any words can be omitted. Practice editing your responses to omit needless words.

__4. Be comprehensive__

Do not leave anything to wonder, but do not overwhelm the customer with needless information.

__5. Ask coworkers for help__

Practice replying to difficult conversations with help from coworkers. 

__6. Don’t respond when upset__

Some customers are rude. Get help from a coworker or take a break if you're upset.

__7. Use saved replies__

Saved replies ensure consistency and we can report on their use to prioritize improvements.

__8. Tailor saved replies to fit the conversation__

Do not use saved replies exactly unless appropriate. Tailor replies to be clear and concise.

__9. Research the situation__

Retrieve all the facts surrounding a situation and craft your reply based on them.

__10. Research the customer__

Evaluate the customer's potential and tailor your response accordingly. 

__11. Use names__

For example, don't say "Thanks! Credit added!" say "Thanks Brian! Credit added!"

__12. Use screenshots to add clarity__

Take & share annotated screenshots to add clarity to replies when sensible. 

__13. Offer solutions & alternatives__

Use the information and experience you have to help customers discover the best possible option given the limits. 

__14. Develop FAQs when possible__

When new questions are encountered create public FAQs to document the proper response and potentially deflect inquiries. 

## Concluding thought
Of course, these principles don’t solve everything, but they lay a foundation for our team to build upon. 

To deliver outstanding service we also hire great people, relentlessly improve our training programs and collaborate with software development to devise elegant solutions to help customers. 

If you agree with these principles and are seeking an organization where exceptional people love to work, [we are hiring](https://www.stickermule.com/careers?ref=blog).


14 customer service principles that Sticker Mule uses to deliver great service to more than 100,000 customers. 

How to save time and money with creative packaging 

Most online crafters don’t need to be told what branding is. They know it intuitively. They framed their branding as they developed their products. They put it in writing when they got a logo and a business card. 

But what about a product’s shipping box and packaging? If you’re an online crafter, you probably already get that this is another aspect of branding. It’s not just a fulfillment cost. The packaging you use is the first real life experience your customers have with your brand.
 
What is that experience going to be?
 
You want to make an impression, obviously. But you’re also in business. So while it might be fun to make every package into a work of art, that’s not realistic. Your time and money are limited. 

You need to deliver a package that is:

**Durable**

There’s no worse branding experience than receiving a package that’s been pummeled in the mail.
 
**Attractive**

Our expectations frame our experiences. If your packaging is appealing, your customers will have a pre-set expectation that your products will be appealing, too. This can reduce returns, increase loyalty, and even result in better product reviews.
 
**Memorable**

There's no shortage of competition, even for handmade goods. You want first time customers to remember your products and your packaging enough to buy again.
 
**Efficient**

Time is money. You can’t spend hours preparing each package. I’d guesstimate that any more than ten minutes simply isn’t feasible. Five minutes per package is probably the absolute max.
 
**Affordable**

It might be awesome to wrap your work in gold leaf… but you can’t. So how much is reasonable to spend on each package? 3-7% of your product cost is what most companies aim for, but 10% is not uncommon. And 10% is probably the number that most small-scale crafters should aim to beat. Limited budgets and small operations often mean you can’t buy in bulk. Also, because you’re a crafter, there’s an expectation that your shipping should be more distinctive than if you were shipping, say, batteries.
 
Here’s how those different percentages might break out for a $50 order:
 
* 3% of the product cost would give you a $1.50 packaging budget
* 5% would be $2.50
* 7% would be $3.50
* 10% would be $5.00

Let’s say you decide on 7%. That’s $3.50 of budget to package a $50 order. Impossible? Not at all. You can definitely keep the outside box to $1.50 or so. Judicious use of stickers and a custom stamp can turn a “boring” brown box into something reasonable cool and memorable, but also tough enough to survive even an abusive postal worker.
 
That leaves you $2.00 per package.
 
So what can you do with that? Quite a lot, actually. Take a look at what these three small online crafters have done with their packaging.

## 1. Pick a theme
 
Packages literally tie things together. So do themes.
 
Here’s how [Love Bud Photography](http://www.lovebudphotography.com/index2.php?v=v1#!/HOME) announces its work in the mail. 

![LoveBudPhotography Uses a Party Theme for their Online Store](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/545e44e6ced80f0e99580ea30da4c1cf9af9d243)

The party theme used here is an easy way to invoke celebration – and we want our customers to celebrate when they get their packages, right?
 
But the party theme is also a smart business move. You see, party supplies are easy to find. They’re inexpensive. And they come in hundreds of colors and variations. The hardest part about picking what to use will be to winnow down your options.
 
Just a few things to notice in this box:
 
**1. The package filler.**

Want to know the single best way to keep stuff from getting damaged in a shipping box? Make sure it can’t move around during transit.

That’s why so many people use box filler. And this particular box filler – the crinkled strips of paper – definitely has a party feel to it. It’s known as crinkle paper, and you can get a 10 lb box of it at Staples for $18, retail. With a third of a pound of that in each shipping box, you’d pay about 60 cents per box.
 
**2. The printed card.**

This serves a clever dual purpose. It’s an insert card you can use for loyalty or feedback (ask for an honest review) or another message. But it can also be a thank you card. You can get thank you cards printed up for ten cents or less each. Then write a quick thank you note to customize each package. That personalized touch is exactly the sort of thing people remember and share.
 
**3. The confetti.**

Using confetti in shipping packaging is pretty popular right now. But it makes sense. We all have fun associations with confetti, plus it’s colorful and cheap. It’s an easy way to add splash to a box for barely a dime per package.  

Want another spin on the confetti idea? Here’s how [The Bees Knees](http://www.thedieline.com/blog/2011/3/4/this-is-the-bees-knees.html) ships their honey.

![BeesKnees Uses Creative Packaging to Ship their Honey](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/a2d667c715a07e80de5869a6ecfe20e428931d7b)

One quick comment on this, though. That glass jar will need protection during shipping. They might want to borrow some of Love Bud’s crinkled paper. Or use honeycomb packaging to expand upon that theme.

**How much for that party in a box?**
 
With those three things plus the shipping box, and we’re at $2.30 per box ($1.50 for the outside shipping box, plus 80 cents for the filler, the card, and the confetti).
 
That still leaves $1.20 of budget per box left. Enough to buy a bit of candy, like Love Bud has done here. Or to include some other small gift like the heart in a tin.
 
Want another twist on the party theme? How about skipping the crinkled paper and using half-filled balloons instead? They’re the party version of air pillows. You can get packs of 100 balloons for less than $6. You can even get them in a particular color, and nail another branding opportunity.
 
## 2. Use common materials in a creative way

This is the best secret for small shop packaging. If you can use common materials in a new way, you’ll:
 
- Save money
- Be memorable
- Skip lots of sourcing headaches (because you can get your packing supplies just about anywhere)
 
My favorite example of this is…
 
The humble paper bag.
 
Here’s how the handmade craft company [Nestled](http://nestledblog.blogspot.com/2012/04/packaging.html) does theirs:

![KraftBag Nestled Packaging for Etsy Store](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/da2728cbbd14994c18b17a9099c0e72884053a66)

It’s simple, affordable, and appealing.
 
Here’s the cost breakout:
 
-   	The bag: 5 cents
-   	The twine: 5 cents
-   	The die-cut printed label: 20 cents (this is my estimate). 

"Die cut" refers to the shape of this tag. Notice how it’s not a square? That’s why it’s so expensive. But Megan (Nestled’s owner) saved so much money with her other packaging materials that she can splurge a little on the label.
 
Total cost for this? 30 cents!

That leaves enough left over to possibly add another layer of protection for the jewelry inside. Add a sticker and a stamp and you’ve got a custom-printed package. Oops… getting ahead of myself.

## 3. Invest strategically in your printing

Yes – custom printing can be expensive. And yes – your budget is small. But that doesn’t mean you can’t do any custom printing. You just have to do it strategically.
 
One example of this? Custom tape.
 
A lot of cool little craft companies are using custom tape. No surprise, really. You have to use tape anyway to seal the box – might as well make it into a branding statement.
 
There’s two types of tape being used these days: Packaging tape (sometimes known as “Carton sealing tape”) for outside the shipping box and “Kraft” tape, which is suitable for lighter uses.

Rolls typically come in 55 or 100 yards. If you buy about 25 or fewer rolls, you’ll pay roughly $10 per roll. Buy more and the cost per roll goes down.
 
If you use one yard of tape per package, that’s about 10 cents of custom tape per package. Not bad, given how much of a statement it could make.
 
But you could go even cheaper. Here’s plain tape made marvelous with a custom stamp. It’s not suitable for packaging tape, but it would keep interior boxes and envelopes closed. And it makes for a very cool return address label.

![Custom Stamped Masking Tape](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/fdea7890831ae500d8618850bd2ee4b39b6d1d6b)

Custom stamps bring up a ton of other possibilities. They basically make you into your own print shop. Here’s how [one coffee roaster](https://shopventory.com/blog/diy-stamp-projects) packs their coffee:

![Custom Stamped Coffee Bag](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/de09998c759db71bf90e4a626def40b45275ca14)

And there’s another paper bag…
 
[Custom stickers](https://www.stickermule.com/custom-stickers), of course, work great too. They’re similar to stamps, but stickers can seal boxes (like custom tape does), which makes them dual use. And stickers can go on the outside of shipping boxes, too.
 
With all those options, you can save enough to be able to splurge on some custom printing. And it doesn’t always have to be a custom box, either. Custom printed poly mailers (aka “poly bags”) work well, too.

## Conclusion
 
There’s absolutely no reason to give up on having cool packaging. Even if you’re on a shoestring budget.  Especially if you're on a shoestring budget, actually.
 
Just be sure that whatever you use will hold up during shipping. And keep your package prep time to a minimum. That’s one area many handmade companies don’t estimate for properly. For instance, if you earn $20 an hour, and you spend 15 minutes prepping each package, you’ve just put $5 of your time into that package. Those hours add up and can throw off your spend per package… which is why a little custom printing can quickly pay for itself.

## Back to you
 
There are countless ways to delight _your_ customers and grow your brand using stickers and other custom printed products. Check out more ways Sticker Mule can help your business grow.

<ButtonCta text="100+ ways to use Sticker Mule" href="https://www.stickermule.com/uses?ref=blog" />

The packaging you use is the first real life experience your customers have with your brand. What is that experience going to be? 

Our approach to compensation

Compensation is hard to get right. It's a tool to keep us aligned, but it's easy to design a compensation strategy with harmful side effects. Our obsession with simplicity serves us well so we opted for a strategy that’s easy to administer and understand. 

__Our approach is to pay above market wages for all positions.__ While many companies develop bonus programs that are difficult to understand and create undesirable incentives, our simple approach encourages financial discipline and long term thinking while reducing anxiety. 

## Encourage financial discipline
Doing more with less is the only way to pay exceptional wages. This incentivizes us to avoid wasteful spending, such as over hiring, and to be vigilant about hiring top performers, designing effective processes and avoiding low impact activities. Doing these well strengthens our ability to provide exceptional compensation for the long term. 

## Encourage long term thinking 
Bonus programs tend to encourage a short term focus by tying compensation to annual results. We hope our team retires at Sticker Mule. Paying above market wages encourages us all to be committed to making our company financially stable for the long term. 

## Reduce anxiety
Some companies use bonuses to compensate people because they can be reduced. This creates anxiety for both employers and employees. Employers stress about the disappointment created if bonuses don't meet expectations while employees, who have limited control over results, have anxiety over exactly what their bonus will be. By focusing on offering exceptional wages, we reduce uncertainty and make a lasting commitment regarding pay. 

## How we determine wages
We design sensible pay grades that define what a person makes based on their role and years of service. Grades may be revised upwards based on changes in the job market or nature of a job, but we do not offer wages to new hires that deviate from our system. If a grade increases, it constitutes a pay raise for everyone on it. 

## Why we don’t use equity based compensation
Companies use equity to encourage long term thinking and reduce costs by exchanging wages for equity. While these are desirable characteristics, equity-based compensation has downsides. It shifts risk onto employees and requires outside investors to allow employees to realize the value of their equity. 

By avoiding investors, we have absolute freedom to focus exclusively on the well-being of our customers and coworkers. We can be as big or small as we want and grow at a pace that’s sensible and pleasant. Our freedom allows us to attract exceptional people and maintain outstanding employee satisfaction.

If you agree with our approach and are seeking an organization where talented people love working, [we are hiring](https://www.stickermule.com/careers?ref=blog).



Compensation is hard to get right. It's a tool to keep us aligned, but it's easy to design a compensation strategy with harmful side effects. 

Sticker Mule's approach to employee compensation

How No Treble grew with sticker giveaways 

We all have unique passions — and we want to be around people who share similar passions and hobbies. The best websites bring content and passion to their audience and avoid trying to make everyone happy. 

Every day, there are millions of other people waiting to discover websites and join communities for their specific interests  — from design sites like Dribbble to cooking sites like the Pioneer Woman to startup news like Techcrunch.

For an entrepreneur, this means opportunity.

It’s a chance to create a community for obsessed, dedicated fans who share similar obsessions. Plus, it’s a way to grow a loyal audience who return to your site, and buy your products, again and again.

To give you an example of someone who has created an incredible community for a passionate niche audience, take a look at Corey Brown.

![Corey-Brown-of-no-treble](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/fc41c8285118c298d631d91f419e424a1f6cf7dc)

Corey, the founder of [No Treble](http://www.notreble.com/), saw an opportunity to create a community for his biggest passion: instruments.

A web consultant and entrepreneur since 1995, Corey wanted to combine his experience with the web with his obsession over bass to create a side project.

The site started small, and he heard concerns from his friends and family:

* "You’re targeting a really small group, maybe you should pick a larger audience."
* "You’re wasting your time. There’s no way this could be a profitable business."
* "How are you going to make money? Are you sure you don’t want to focus more on your actual career?"

Instead of listening to the doubters, Corey pushed ahead. Today, No Treble is one of the most popular niche music sites on the web with 450,000+ monthly visitors and healthy revenue.

We’re going to show you how Corey created his small community for niche bassists and grew it into a thriving business.

Let’s get started.

## How Corey grew a unique niche and community into a successful business

Corey’s idea for No Treble started because he wanted to share his passion for bass with a larger audience.

Obsessed with finding the latest news on bass, Corey couldn’t find any bass-focused online magazines like he craved.

For example, on one site Corey would read a great interview with a bass guitar legend. But if he wanted to find information on new amps, or tips for improvising, he’d have to spend hours searching other sites until he found what he was looking for.

To fill his own need, Corey came up with the idea of a “one-stop shop” for bass aficionados like himself. 

![Fender-Mustang-Bass-PJ-Torino-Red-main](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/7948c139d1e43233ad1060b0b2d78bff0ab36347)

At first, Corey didn’t care about making it into a business. All Corey wanted to do was build the best collection of bass articles, videos, and content on the web. “I never did create it to make money, I never created it to be big,” Corey explains.

Coming from a career in web consulting, Corey put his idea into a website he called No Treble. It only had a few blog posts and a couple photos of bass instruments, but it was a good start.

Every day, as Corey kept adding content, he thought about how he could introduce other bass fans to his No Treble site.

Getting the brand in front of the right faces would be difficult. Corey had a shoestring marketing budget and he had to make every dollar count.

After exploring a few inexpensive marketing solutions, he found an effective way to grow the brand inexpensively. He found his magic bullet.

## How stickers helped Corey skyrocket his niche website into a massive success

In June of 2009, with No Treble only a month old, Corey realized something: "I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do to grow the website. But I knew I was a sticker guy, so I wanted them to be part of the mix."

![No-Treble-Stickers](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/e42da3af3de70650b458b6844037b751c2a31140 "No Treble custom stickers")

Corey used stickers as an experiment to grow the site and fan base.

> I even saw my stickers on the amps of famous bass players. They were everywhere I looked."

As a trial run, he printed 1,000 three-inch [custom circle stickers](https://www.stickermule.com/products/circle-stickers). He wrote a notice on his website: anyone who mailed him a self-addressed envelope would get a sticker sent to them for free.

The results blew Corey away. "As time went on, I could barely pull the envelopes out of the P.O. Box. There were just so many."

Every day, dozens of letters would arrive. People wanted to show their love for bass wherever they could — and they wanted to do it with No Treble stickers.

Seeing how successful the sticker trial run was, Corey doubled down.

Riding on the interest of his fans, he urged anyone who received a sticker to send pictures.

Hundreds of emails came in.

No Treble stickers were on cars, computers, bass cases...and even bass guitars!

Corey posted every picture on Facebook. Soon, his stickers started going viral. Every time he posted, he had dozens of curious bass fans writing, “I NEED THIS STICKER! Where can I get it?”

Day in and day out, Corey sent new stickers to everyone who asked.

To keep up with the growing demand, he started searching for companies to print his stickers en masse. It was at this point that Corey heard about [Sticker Mule](https://www.stickermule.com/). “I loved what Sticker Mule was doing, so we switched over our business.”

With more stickers printed, the chatter surrounding No Treble kept growing.

Passionate bass fans were sharing the No Treble stickers every day. They’d post about it on their Facebook. They’d tweet about it. They’d even tell their friends in-person over drinks.

The "small" website that friends told Corey would be a waste of time was exploding with an obsessive, highly targeted audience of fans.

"I was getting pictures from friends who saw No Treble stickers on cars in different cities. I even saw my stickers on the amps of famous bass players. They were everywhere I looked."

As the stickers continued to go viral, international bass fans caught on.

But because of postal restrictions, Corey wasn’t able to mail self-addressed envelopes back overseas. So he decided to create and sell a special pack of stickers anyone could buy.

![no treble sticker sheet](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/d11bc03651bf72e38866fb27b5779d9270b2adcc)

"I started a simple online order form where you could buy 1, 5, or 10-packs of stickers. It was incredible because I sold more 10-packs than anything else," Corey told us.

Selling stickers helped No Treble scale the brand and reach more people — and it helped push this “small” niche website into a sustainable business.

With No Treble’s sticker experiment, success is in the numbers. As the main marketing tool the brand used, stickers helped grow the community into 450,198 monthly pageviews.

Corey is quick to point out how stickers were responsible for No Treble’s success. “Free stickers made it a turning point for us. It was the catalyst for us getting involved in product sales and building a sustainable, passionate business. I never would have guessed we’d mail out 10,000 stickers like we did in 3-4 years.”

Today, No Treble still has stickers as their product staple — and the growth from stickers has allowed the brand to start selling t-shirts, books, and more. Even better, it brings in enough revenue for Corey to keep it going, hire world-class writers, and create a thriving niche community.

And if Corey was able to grow his niche community into an exploding business, you can too.

To help you get started, here’s our step-by-step system on how to use stickers to grow your own niche website or idea.

## How to use stickers to take your idea, product, and website to the next level

__Step #1: Follow No Treble’s lead and order stickers.__

[Die cut stickers](https://www.stickermule.com/products/die-cut-stickers) are a great place to start. Use a logo or another piece of branding that your customers and fans will identify with. Our stickers are weatherproof and waterproof, so your biggest fans can put them anywhere they want  — from [their cars](https://www.stickermule.com/uses/car-stickers) to [laptops](https://www.stickermule.com/uses/laptop-stickers) to their [outdoor gear](https://www.stickermule.com/uses/outdoor-stickers). Stickers are a great way to help push viral growth and skyrocket word-of-mouth marketing 2-5x for a fraction of the cost. (Also check out our [custom sticker sheets](https://www.stickermule.com/products/sticker-sheets).)

__Step #2: Give away stickers as a free email sign-up perk.__ 
Corey gave away stickers to anyone who sent a self-addressed envelope to his P.O. Box. But keeping track of a P.O. Box can be a hassle. Instead, we recommend creating a simple form to request a user’s name, mailing address, and email. Getting an email address gives you the chance to add them to your email list and send offers in the future. 

__Step #3: Once you start gaining traction, sell special stickers to generate revenue.__ 
When No Treble received too many requests for stickers (especially internationally), they saw it as a potential revenue stream. Today, you can [buy six different kinds of stickers on their website](http://shop.notreble.com/category/stickers). Although the greatest benefit is still to spread the word and brand, it can bring in additional cash too.

To see the exact stickers No Treble used to grow their niche community from 0 to 450,198 monthly views, [visit their store](http://shop.notreble.com/).

![no-treble-circle-stickers](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/ddaf728da7fb7348b18c2047e8d5f8781fb5403e)

## Over to you

There are countless ways to delight _your_ customers and grow your brand using stickers and other custom printed products. Check out more ways Sticker Mule can help your business grow.

<ButtonCta text="100+ ways to use Sticker Mule" href="https://www.stickermule.com/uses?ref=blog" />

No Treble used a simple sticker giveaway to expedite its growth to more than 500,000 pageviews a month. 

Introducing Rump: hot-sync two Redis databases using dumps

We're thrilled to announce our first open source project: [Rump](https://github.com/stickermule/rump)!

Rump is a tiny little tool focused on one simple thing: getting live data out of an AWS ElastiCache Redis cluster.

We faced this problem when trying to get our staging Redis containers in sync with our production cluster. At Sticker Mule we heavily use Docker and CoreOS, relying on an ElastiCache cluster for our Redis needs in production.

Lately we wanted to make our staging environment as close as possible to our production environment, and Redis is part of it. Here's the journey that ultimately led to Rump.

## Don't block

We had one simple requirement: do not block production while getting data. The single-threadedness of Redis is an important aspect to take into account.

Surprisingly we discovered that [ElastiCache ships with some commands disabled](http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonElastiCache/latest/UserGuide/ClientConfig.RestrictedCommands.html). Basically all commands you can use to safely transfer data.

![Rump Redis Sync](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/b1b52716565b7122991bd66715fd2d16c65161d6)

### BGSAVE

The standard way of manually triggering a back up of a Redis database is issuing a ```BGSAVE```, and waiting for it to finish in the background, a non-blocking operation. Unfortunately this is disabled, unless you go with the AWS internal implementation of the snapshot feature.

### SLAVEOF

Setting up slaves is another interesting option Redis offers, and it would have been the perfect choice for us.

The plan was to set temporarily the staging Redis containers as slaves of our production cluster, getting live data. Unluckily `SLAVEOF` too is disabled, there's no way to add slaves to an ElastiCache instance.

### Existent tools

There are many awesome Redis tools around that try to simplify the administration of Redis servers, dumping to JSON, etc.

The problem is that most of the stable, maintained tools, use the ```KEYS``` command to get keys, and then operate on the keys. The ```KEYS``` command has an O(N) complexity, heavily blocking Redis when N is high, until all keys are returned. Staging containers get created and destroyed frequently and we have a good number of keys, we don't want to DoS our own server.

![rump-logo-600w](https://storage.googleapis.com/sm-content/blog/6054ad712c1d34e3d9b01881d6e3fdf9c6031bd9)

It was clear we needed a simple tool to just do the sync. We started playing with `SCAN` to get the keys, and `DUMP/RESTORE` to get/set values.

```SCAN``` is an O(1) command, safe to run on a production server to get all keys, and because of that its implementation has to be different than ```KEYS```. ```SCAN``` returns a group of keys currently present in the DB, and a cursor to the next group.

```DUMP/RESTORE``` make the job of reading/writing values independent from the key type.

With this in mind, here's what Rump brings to the table:

* Non-blocking progressive keys reading via ```SCAN```.
* ```TYPE``` independent values operations via ```DUMP/RESTORE```.
* Pipelined ```SCAN``` and ```DUMP/RESTORE``` operations.
* Reading from the source server and writing to the destination server are concurrent. Rump doesn't store all keys before writing to the destination server.
* Single cross-platform binary, no dependencies.
* Minimal footprint, [UNIX philosophy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unix_philosophy), it does just one thing with two flags.

We hope the tool will be useful to those experiencing the same troubles we had, and many, many thanks to [Redis](https://redis.io/) for supporting such a wide array of commands!

P.S. If this is of interest to you, and you're seeking an organization where talented people enjoy working, [we are hiring](https://www.stickermule.com/careers?ref=blog).

Rump is a tiny little tool focused on one simple thing: getting live data out of an AWS ElastiCache Redis cluster. 

Manufacturing principles 

We use principles to guide [decision making](https://www.stickermule.com/blog/decision-making-principles-for-startups) for each area of our business. Here are the principles we use in manufacturing: 


### 1. Safety > quality > delivery > cost
It's not worth operating if we do not keep people safe. There's no reason to ship product that is defective. And, there is little value in trying to save money if we do not deliver on time. 

### 2. Design processes so that anyone can perform them
To scale, you need to make processes intuitive so that you can quickly add staff when needed. 

### 3. Judge people primarily on attendance
Attendance is a straightforward evaluation metric. It’s mostly all that matters if processes and positions are well designed.

### 4. Manage via metrics
Focus on turnaround, labor productivity, material utilization and quality. Making these a primary concern avoids distractions. 

### 5. Share metrics publicly
Metrics always improve when they're visible. The important thing is to pick the right ones to share. 

### 6. Talk to people
Keep good relations with people to stay abreast of problems and spot opportunities to improve. 

### 7. Talk to attorneys
Always get advice on how to handle personnel problems. Don't assume your instincts are correct. 

### 8. Use pay grades
To ensure people are treated fairly, design sensible pay grades and do not deviate from them. 

### 9. Do not use incentive pay
Incentives are difficult to design and maintain. It's best to design processes and positions so that there is minimal productivity variance among staff.

### 10. Recurring savings > 1 time savings
Do not fret about 1 time savings or expenses. Recurring costs are what matter. 

### 11. Don’t tolerate malicious behavior
Mistakes happen, but it's unacceptable when harmful acts are intentional.

### 12. Discuss important situations verbally
Manufacturing problems can rarely be solved via email. It’s best to talk about them. 

### 13. Err on the side of extra training
People tend to want less training, but it's best to err on the side of more. This is especially important when training is provided by 3rd parties since it's difficult to schedule additional sessions.

## Concluding thought
We aim to build the most productive and happiest manufacturing operations you’ll ever find. Our principles are designed to bring consistency to our decision making so that we are always headed in that direction. 

If you agree with these principles and are seeking an organization where talented people enjoy working, [we are hiring](https://www.stickermule.com/careers?ref=blog).


13 principles of manufacturing designed to bring consistency to decision making so that we are always headed in that direction.

Blog