Getting the most out of your registration
A few small things make your NoKnock registration work harder - from where you stick the decal to what you do when someone knocks anyway. New to all this? Start with how to stop door-to-door salesmen.
Place your decal where it's seen first
Someone decides whether to knock in the couple of seconds it takes to walk up to your door. Your decal only works if it's in their line of sight before they reach for the doorbell - so the single best place for it is right next to the bell itself, not across the door from it.
Do
- ✓Right beside the doorbell, level with the button. That is the last thing anyone looks at before they decide to ring, so it is the spot with the best odds.
- ✓On the storm door or the face of the main door, where it reads clearly head-on - as near the bell as the surface allows.
- ✓Somewhere clean and dry. The decal is outdoor-rated and removable, so it holds up to weather and comes off later without residue.
- ✓Next to any existing "No Soliciting" sign you already have - the two reinforce each other.
Avoid
- ✕Several feet from the doorbell. Close matters here - once a finger is on the button, the decal has already missed its moment.
- ✕Below the mailbox, off to the side, or anywhere a visitor has to look for it.
- ✕Behind a screen, glass storm panel glare, or a seasonal wreath that covers it.
- ✕On a rough, dusty, or freshly painted surface where the vinyl can't grip.
Rather not stick anything to your door?
Renting, a door you'd rather not touch, or an association you'd rather not test - the decal still works, it just has to be seen. Four ways to put one up without adhering it to the house.
Hang it instead of sticking it
The decal is a standard 4" x 6", so any photo frame, sleeve or acrylic sign holder that size fits it - a couple of dollars anywhere, or one you already own. Hang that from the hook you already use for a wreath, or a removable adhesive hook. Nothing touches the door.
Let a window hold it
Stand it in the window beside your door, facing out, propped on the sill or against the glass. No adhesive at all, and it stays out of the weather completely.
Put it on something that is already there
An existing "No Soliciting" plaque, a porch post, a planter by the step - the nearer the doorbell the better. It has to be seen before someone reaches the bell; beyond that the surface doesn't matter.
Try the free printable first
Print one at home, put it up however you like, and see whether it stays somewhere useful before you commit the vinyl. Reprint it any time - it costs nothing and the QR code is identical.
Worth knowing either way: the mailed decal is removable, no-residue vinyl, so it lifts off cleanly whenever you want it gone.
No decal yet? Your registration also gives you a QR code you can print at home and tape up today - the weatherproof mailed decal is an optional upgrade for a more permanent look.
Sharing a photo? Blur the code first
Posting a picture of your door is one of the best ways to get neighbors to register - please do. Just cover the QR code before it goes online.
Scanning your code brings up the street and city it's registered to, with most of your house number hidden - we mask it for exactly this reason, since someone standing at your door can read the real number anyway. Nothing personal sits behind the code either: no name, no email, no phone number.
Blurring is still worth the two seconds. Your street name next to a clear photo of your own front door narrows things down for anyone local, and that's a choice worth making on purpose rather than by accident.
- ✓Blur, scribble over, or crop out the square code - any photo editor on your phone will do it in a few seconds.
- ✓Or shoot from far enough back that the code can't be read - the decal still reads clearly as a Do Not Knock sign.
- ✕Don't rely on a small photo staying small. Anything posted can be zoomed, saved, and re-shared at full size.
Same goes for your house number, street sign, or a package label if they happen to be in frame. Want to share the idea instead of your door? Send neighbors your invite link - nothing to blur.
You're building this with us
Your phone has Do Not Disturb. Email has spam filters. The front door is just getting its version - and it gets stronger every time a neighbor puts one of these up.
One decal turns away some of the people who would have knocked. A street of them is a lot harder to walk down. That's the whole mechanism - no enforcement, no waiting on anyone else to cooperate. Thank you for being part of the early group that makes it worth noticing.
Already registered? Go to your dashboard