There are many products and services that can benefit through cartoon character licensing. In this article I would like to discuss some examples and hopefully give entrepreneurs a spark of inspiration.
NurseriesIf you run a nursery or a childcare centre, you might want to consider licensing the rights to use an endearing cartoon character to be your brand mascot. Having an identifiable brand with a cute cartoon character for a mascot will really make kids fall in love with your establishment. And if you run your business right, you can later leverage on the brand recognition the cartoon character has created for you to develop a franchise.
Credit Cards Corporate looking credit cards are boring. They might be suitable for corporate folks, but how about the younger population? University and even college students are finding the ability to earn decent money even before graduation these days and many of them can afford to own a credit card. At this age, it is safe to say that they would prefer a cool or 'kewl'looking card as opposed to the corporate-looking one. The clever usage of a suitable cartoon character on a credit card can do wonders for its application rate as proven by Asian countries like Hongkong, Taiwan, Korea and Japan. The same principle can be applied too to membership cards for stores selling merchandise catering to such a demography.
Books Whether you are writing a storybook for kids, a puzzle game book, a music training book, a book on parental guidance, or even a self-help guide for adults, consider licensing a cartoon character. Cartoon characters don't always have to look childish or cute. They can also look quirky and different (think the Simpsons). Use the right character for the right product, and for the right demography. You can't go wrong with that. The thing is, books that have a strong identity sell better, and what better way to do that than using a suitable character to help you establish that identity? As an author, you can look forward to establishing a book series using the character as a series mascot if you plan ahead and your first book sells well enough.
Greeting Cards Cartoon characters work very well on products that carry a message and greeting cards is one such product. Pretty pictures of sceneries are just so passé. Since greeting cards are meant to convey a message and warm the heart, why not have a character with the right appeal and attitude do the job?
Clothing and Apparels If you are launching a new clothing or apparels line for kids or young adults, you might want to consider using cartoon characters to improve the aesthetic quality and brand appeal of your merchandise. A suitable character with the right look for your product can really sky-rocket its sales.
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Toys, Novelties and Stationery There is an increasing number of toys, novelties and stationery designed for tweens and young adults flooding the market. Innovation and aesthetic cuteness are the key factors driving sales for these merchandise. For the cute factor, nothing beats a cartoon character.
In all the examples above I would like to stress that I support the licensing of lesser-known characters as opposed to the more famous characters. I share my views regarding this in another article. If you visit my website or search on the internet for 'Character Licensing for Your Product? Forget Mickey and Bob!' you would be able to find the article.