Flyers on cars

[kemmer]

This weekend i want to print out like 1000 flyers and go to the A&P and other stores parking lots and put flyers on cars. Is it illegal to do this? do i need to get permission from the store?

[The Dude]

I don't know about the lagality of it, but I doubt any store would let you do it. Also, you are marketing to people who possibly live in apartments, or live well out of your service area. To me it sounds like a waste of time.

Personally, I HATE for people to touch my truck to put a flyer on it. The flyer always ends up on the ground.

[pwarren4]

I wouldn't put flyers on cars. I wanna SEE the yard I'm campaigning for - that's why I only put flyers on house doors.

JM.02

[Rotor-Man]

Flyers on car windows, door hangers, or a 8x11 paper outlining your business illegally taped to a mailbox or a front door have to be the most annoying and TACKY forms of advertising around. Business is earned thru time and experience, referrals, and not from a form of advertising that does just the opposite, Annoys and turns people off. JMHO.

[Del9175]

It seems that the return on putting fliers in a neighborhood you know is somewhat small, I couldn't imagine the minimal return you would get from random cars in a parking lot.

Fliers are to target specific areas, if you're looking for business with no regard for where the job is, I would just put an add in the newspaper.

Once at the Home Depot I got a flier asking for money. It was from a single mom with three kids. Said she was out of work and couldn't pay the bills. She even put here address on it. That seems awefully dangerous.

[kemmer]

I understand what everyone is saying, so far ive gotten all my customers through word of mouth. It just seems like a good idea putting them there because a very local food store, there are many food stores in the area, so basicly, they go to which ever one is closer. Apartments are not a problem, there really isnt many in the area. I know that most people in the 3 town area(about 6mile radius) goes to that food store. I just thought it could be a good idea.

But could i get in trouble if like people just throw them on the ground, could the store call me to clean them up?

[The Dude]

Sure they could, if they own the parking lot. They could also call the police and have you charged with littering. Make sure there isn't a sign about "no soliciting".

If your area is so tight, why not go door to door?

[tonygreek]

i agree with every word people have responded with. it's a very tacky method of "advertising" (if you want to call it that). if you think people are protective of their homes, you'd be amazed at how much more so they are of anyone touching their cars. my own opinion is that i don't mind flyers delivered to my house, but if you touch my cars....

and yes, you could be subject to littering fines or charges by the plaza owner. my guess is that you would be run out of their before you got too far along.

[Up North]

I understand what everyone is saying, so far ive gotten all my customers through word of mouth. It just seems like a good idea putting them there because a very local food store, there are many food stores in the area, so basicly, they go to which ever one is closer. Apartments are not a problem, there really isnt many in the area. I know that most people in the 3 town area(about 6mile radius) goes to that food store. I just thought it could be a good idea.

But could i get in trouble if like people just throw them on the ground, could the store call me to clean them up?

I don't personally know if they can force you to come and clean them up, or even if they report it to the police I'm not sure anything can be done. But IMO, it's a pretty tacky way of doing business. I know what you're trying to do and yeah it's a good idea marketing to those people but I'd try to find another way of doing it. Maybe market in the store somehow, flyer in the enterance, or something like that. Like others have mentioned, I take the flyer off my windshield and I refuse to look at it. I've seen some of your marketing materials before, they look sharp (doorhanger I believe), so I know you can come up with a better way of distributing your material.

Buck

[KathysLGC]

It is littering and ever flier on every car count as one count of littering.

[ECS]

I hate it when I have found fliers on my car. In the past, when I have found them, I have never even looked at them and just threw them away. To me it was like the guy on the corner with a sign Will work for food. that is just the way I have thought of them.