Running a Liquor Store
What to Put on a Liquor Store Shelf Talker (With Examples)
A shelf talker has about three seconds. A shopper walks past, glances at the bottle and decides whether to pick it up. Whatever is printed on the card has to answer the question in their head right then. This guide covers what to put on a shelf talker for wine, spirits and beer, what to leave off, and how to keep your cards accurate. If you would rather see finished examples than read about them, open our shelf talkers page and pick a bottle.
What is a shelf talker?
A shelf talker is a small printed card or label attached to a shelf, a rail or the bottle itself. It gives the shopper something the bottle label does not: an opinion, a taste, a serving idea. In a liquor store it does the job of a knowledgeable employee standing at every shelf at once.
The five things a good shelf talker answers
Shoppers asking staff for help usually ask the same few questions. A card that answers them removes the need to ask.
- What is it? The name and the style, in plain words. "Kentucky straight bourbon" tells more than a brand alone.
- What does it taste like? Two or three flavours and one sentence of description. Specific beats vague: "caramel, vanilla and oak" is more useful than "smooth and delicious."
- What do I do with it? A food pairing for wine and beer, or a serving suggestion for spirits, such as neat, on a large cube or in an Old Fashioned.
- Is it any good? A critic score or an award, with its source. A number without a source is not believed, and should not be printed.
- What does it cost? A clear price, and any deal, such as a sale price or a mix-and-match discount.
An example, line by line
Here is how those five answers might read on a card for a bourbon, using the details of a real bottle:
- Name and style: Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon
- Taste: caramel, vanilla, oak and spice; sweet and rich with a long finish
- Serve it: neat or in an Old Fashioned
- Pairs with: smoked brisket or barbecue ribs, and aged cheddar
- Price: the shelf price, and the sale price if you run one
None of this needs more than a few lines. The card works because every line answers a real question.
What to leave off
Cards go wrong when they try to say everything.
- Long paragraphs. Nobody reads a paragraph while standing in an aisle. Keep descriptions to two or three lines.
- Unverified scores. A made-up or half-remembered rating damages trust the first time a shopper checks it. Print a score only when you can name where it came from.
- Jargon. Terms like tannin or mash bill are fine if you explain them. Otherwise use words a shopper would say out loud.
- Superlatives. "The best bourbon you will ever taste" is not believed. A specific tasting note is.
- Out-of-date prices. A card that disagrees with the register is worse than no card.
Wine, spirits and beer need different cards
| Category | Lead with | Useful extras |
|---|---|---|
| Wine | Style, taste and a food pairing | Region, vintage, mix-and-match price |
| Spirits | Taste and how to enjoy it | Proof, cocktail idea, gift suitability |
| Beer | Style and flavour | Pack size, how bitter or hoppy it is |
Make the card do more with a QR code
A card can only hold so much text. A QR code lets it point to more. When a shopper scans it, they can open a page for that exact bottle with tasting notes, pairings and similar bottles, and ask an AI sommelier a question. Our version recommends only bottles your store carries. If you want the same thing on a screen, see our in-store kiosk and its live demo.
Keep the cards accurate and the work small
The hard part of shelf talkers is not designing one card. It is keeping hundreds of them right. Prices change, bottles arrive and others are discontinued. A workable routine looks like this:
- Export your product list from your POS and upload it.
- Read the upload report, which lists new arrivals, price changes and discontinued items.
- Print only the cards that changed.
Our step-by-step guide to printing shelf talkers from your POS list walks through it, and covers which of our nine designs suits each shelf.
Choosing a size and style
Match the card to the space. Small price-rail labels suit crowded shelves. Tall cards suit aisle ends and featured bottles. A full page suits a wine wall or a tasting table. We cover each option, with live previews on real bottles, on the shelf talkers page.
Try it on your own products
You can test the whole thing on your own list. Sign up, upload a product file and print up to 25 items free, with no credit card needed. See pricing and plans to get started.