POLL..... STCIKERS/ON-CARD/WHAT TO DO?

[Leaf]

Guys.... Could use some of the great advice from FCB'ers....
please briefly add comentary to your vote below as you wish.

When we do a set, there are times where many of the subjects can ONLY be obtained on stickers. The reasons for this vary, but may include a rare opportunity to do a signing for which actual cards cannot be printed in time. In some cases, the personailty cannot or will not handle the volume of physical cards that may be involved. In other cases, we are given one actual signing over a 1 year period, but the signatures are used in multiple sets.

Regardless of reason:

Would you rather see a set with some on-card autos and some sticker autos?
OR
Would you rather see a set with all stickers (so the set is consistent in appearance)?

2 random posters from below will receive a gift of thanks from me... BG

 

[jbhofmann]

I wouldn't mind both being included.

 

[JoshHamilton]

1. Some on-card, some sticker.

There's a difference using stickers due to laziness to save a buck vs. using them out of absolute necessity.

Do what UD did with 2008 Masterpieces hockey. It was all on-card except for Tretiak, who was a clear sticker. He was living in Russia at the time and it was presumably difficult to get a bunch of cards over to him

 

[Leaf]

1. Some on-card, some sticker.

There's a difference using stickers due to laziness to save a buck vs. using them out of absolute necessity.

Do what UD did with 2008 Masterpieces hockey. It was all on-card except for Tretiak, who was a clear sticker. He was living in Russia at the time and it was presumably difficult to get a bunch of cards over to him

Great example.
You dont think the set is less attractive if half and half?
What is only 10% were on-card?
BG

 

[JackLondon]

I would rather have a mix. ANY on card autos would be welcome nowadays.

 

[jbhofmann]

Stickers can be worked to look decent.

 

[200lbhockeyplayer]

Your stickers are clear, so consistency isn't really an issue because the design won't change.

For me, a mix of stickers and on-card is ideal if the set can't be all on-card. Plus, it shows a good faith effort in at least attempting to do on-card for everyone.

 

[steve-a-reno]

Can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm an all or nothing kind of guy......I hate stickers though. Just my personal taste.

 

[200lbhockeyplayer]

1. Some on-card, some sticker.

There's a difference using stickers due to laziness to save a buck vs. using them out of absolute necessity.

Do what UD did with 2008 Masterpieces hockey. It was all on-card except for Tretiak, who was a clear sticker. He was living in Russia at the time and it was presumably difficult to get a bunch of cards over to him

Great example.
You dont think the set is less attractive if half and half?
What is only 10% were on-card?
BG

Brian, last year's Elite Baseball had on-card a mix, and it seemed well-received. Obviously the key is making sure the surface is as equally receptive (and reactive) to stickers as well as ink. Some surfaces (mostly uncoated stocks it seems) will yellow due to the adhesive in stickers creating a subtle halo effect that will make the sticker signed cards look more and more different over time.

Either way, a mix (no matter how small) would show the effort.

 

[Ct Sox Fan]

If done right, stickers can look OK on the cards. I would be OK with a mix if it means no redemptions!

 

[Card Magnet]

The issue isn't whether stickers will be used with a card (at least to me). The issue is if the card is designed to incorporate the sticker.

If you have a card with a foil sticker sloppily thrown on, or a clear sticker over a dark photo so that it can't be seen, then the product fails whether all cards are stickers or some are on card.

If it saves the company money and that can trickle down into a small savings per box/case for the end user if you use stickers, do all stickers so that they match...so long as the card is designed to incorporate it.

Here's a bad sticker auto because it's a clear one over a dark photo. It would have been better if they made a whitewashed area for it to go over.

Here are two nice sticker autos because the design incorporates the sticker and has a spot where the auto can be seen.

 

[RZimm11]

As much as my OCD would like them to be consistent, a mix would be fine so long as the design will work for both.

Make the auto area big enough that a sticker wouldn't cover any of the pic, and it would be fine.

 

[domino2012]

If I were to collect a set, I rather that all the cards are the same; either all on card or all sticker (preferably clear).
If I were to try to buy and sell key autos, then I rather have on-card.

Look at what 2006 Bowman White cards looked like with and with-out stickers. Next to each other they don't look good and I have the entire set.
(ok, Bowman did not have clear stickers).

Here's 2005 Leaf gold auto set (all stickers). Looks more consistent and just looks better since they all look the same.

I know my opinion is not shared by all but that just my own thoughts.

 

[George_Calfas]

Some "on-card" is better than No "on-card".

I echo the above, clear well done stickers are fine by me under the pretense that the card companies strives for on-card.

 

[ChasHawk]

I agree with George. Some are better than none, as long as the stickers are done well.

These are some I feel were done well:

Since presumably many of the players cannot sign on-card, would it be better to have all players,
instead of a sticker, sign some design element of the card that can be incorporaed later??

 

[domino2012]

I agree with George. Some are better than none, as long as the stickers are done well.

Since presumably many of the players cannot sign on-card, would it be better to have all players,
instead of a sticker, sign some design element of the card that can be incorporaed later??

I like this idea as well. Have them sign something that can be incorporated later along side the other on-card autos instead of stickers.
That's the solution!

 

[Bill Menard]

I think a mixture is fine. I have no idea what product this is for, but I do believe some higher end products are so expensive that there probably aren't many people who assemble the entire set anyway. If you are making products that are high high end and cannot get an on card auto for someone, I'd get it for as many as possible and just use stickers for the rest.

I'd also suggest putting thought into the design ahead of time if you think stickers are going to be necessary as others have mentioned as well. It's ridiculous to use a vintage card design and then slap a shiny silver foil sticker on the card. It just looks aweful. Whitewash the cards out where the on card auto is going to go and then use a clear sticker for the player to sign that can be placed in that area afterwards. Card magnet gave excellent examples in his post above.

If you cannot use a clear sticker, leave a space large enough to fit the ENTIRE foil sticker where you know you will put it when you create the card design. I don't like it when the sticker covers up part of the picture, or the words that are on the card.

Lastly, put a little effort into the process of adhering the sticker to the card - make sure it's on straight and even! I'm sure it's done by hand as an assembly process. Pay the workers an extra couple bucks an hour and build it into the cost of the product so you can be sure they do the job right! Maybe hire hobby enthusiasts who "get it" rather than joe smoe off the street. Hell, I'd be HAPPY to volunteer my time to put the stickers on the cards for you!

Oh - and thanks for asking for opinions from the community. Really, this is such a small thing for you to do on your part as a company, but means so much to the collectors. I think it will certainly help increase the appeal of the company to the collectors (at least on here)!

Bill

 

[gvsu96]

A mix is fine as long as the look good. I would make the on card autographs short prints.

 

[coltsnsox07]

Yep, a mix of both is fine as long as the design looks good. seamlessness is the key. Look at 2004 Ultimate Collection baseball autos, a big chunky foil sticker kills those cards( especially the MLB logo autos placed vertically on a horizontal card, what a terrible looking thing).

 

[Topnotchsy]

Some thoughts:

1. I think the key factor in whether the set does well will not be whether there is a mix or just stickers, but how well the stickers are integrated into the cards. A nice look goes a really long way toward selling cards.

2. While people might say that having some on-card auto's shows the effort, I would be shocked if that played a role in people's buying habits. In reality, few people will pick up on that, and even fewer will care (honestly based on that reasoning the fact you came here to ask should be enough as it shows you are putting in effort, and everyone who has seen your work knows that your effort never needs questioning.)

3. I think this is key. The main question IMO will be who you are catering the set to. Are you looking to set collectors? If so, uniformity is a big factor as the cards are viewed as part of a complete set (I know plenty of people who don't care for sets because some players signed in blue while others signed in black.) If so, listen closely to Domino2012's point. Assuming this set is for prospectors and player collectors though, the uniformity is less important and you probably want to provide the "best card" for each player. (I actually think you see this reflected in the answers given to some degree as I think that many of the people who are saying to do part on-card part sticker are viewing the set as a prospect set, while Domino2012 is considering the set as one unit. Of course I may be wrong on this.)