Got an Attention Grabbing Sign? Here are 9 Ways to Tell

Customers assume a lot of things from a business’s sign, such as level of professionalism, type of atmosphere, and affordability. No wonder the International Sign Association claims that signs can be responsible for half, that’s 50%, of your customers. It makes sense though. It wasn’t long ago that you stopped at a new restaurant or shop after noticing their signage, huh? Or maybe you had to stop for a sale when you saw the fun window decal that offered a sale you couldn’t ignore. That’s why this fundamental part of any business’s marketing strategy should be well thought-out and executed. Here are nine tips to help you know what and what not to do when it comes to signs so you can maximize customers.

1. Quality, Not Quantity

It may seem counter intuitive, but covering every window, nook and cranny with a promotional sign or banner is not in your best interest. It can make your establishment feel cluttered or even distasteful. Instead take a note from Arby’s book and choose a few select locations, such as the front of your store or drive-through to emphasis your current deals or promotions. Potential customers will be attracted to your creativity.

2. Take Advantage of Brand Loyalty

It may surprise some business owners to know that 28% of consumers are loyal to their brands (Source: Accenture). This means it’s important to make it easy for consumers to know if you sell what their looking for. Many stores are great at utilizing this. Ace Hardware, for example, often places equipment or product icons on their buildings along with their main name and symbol, such as Stihl or Craftsman. Modern customers are all about convenience, and if they can tell in a glance that you have what they are looking for, they’re more likely to come in and shop.

3. Mascots Equal Sign Branding

If your business or organization has a mascot, it should be used on signs as a branding tool. Making your business easily recognizable and just plain fun is a sure fire way of not only grabbing customer attention, but making new customers stop more often. Jimmy’s Egg uses their eggman for this purpose perfectly, making him peep around awnings or skip beside their name.

4. Professional, Not Necessarily Pricey

It’s easy to assume that you have to spend thousands of dollars on fancy signage, but in reality, what’s most important is how professional the sign looks. If you budget doesn’t allow for huge neon letters right away, using a well-printed vinyl sign with all the details can still capture customer interest and get your information out there.

Pieology had a huge vinyl sign that every branch used for their $7.95 pie that not only streamlined the promo, but also managed to get social media icons and their branding image on it without looking muddled. Another bonus to vinyl signs is that they can be placed in areas other signs can’t, such as fencing, across an aisle, or between tall buildings. Even if a vinyl sign is temporary for such things as promotions or grand openings, they can make a big impact.

5. Stand Out In a Multi-Store Marquee

There are 28 billion small businesses in the U.S. and many of them cluster together in malls or business buildings. (Source: US Small Business Administration) They often also share a sign. If your business is in this type of situation, it’s vital to make sure your particular sign out shines the rest, and we don’t just mean the light bulb! Blaze Pizza does a great job with that in the picture below. The bright red hue and simple design of their label makes it easy to read and notice.

Photo by Blazin’ Saddles

6. Contrasting Simple Letters or 7. Icon with Background

When it comes to customers trying to find you, make it as easy as possible. One of the best ways to do this is to create a sign that’s painless to make out. Straightforward lettering is one way to make sure customers can read your sign.

The other major part of this tip is contrasting the letters and/or branding symbol with either a background or against the building itself. For example, if you’re clothing store is in a brick building, you don’t want to choose a gray or red symbol or lettering for a sign. Instead a harsh black or bright white will stand out from the building and make you easy to spot for anyone walking or driving by.

The same holds true for your branding icon. Einstein Brothers Bagel’s yellow and black symbol is a great example of this. Also, the picture below shows their excellent use of bright, light lettering against the light color walls.

8. Watts of Color

We mentioned the light bulbs earlier, and in all fairness they can be beneficial for grabbing attention for your company’s signs too. Baja fresh not only uses bright lime green neon to add a fun element of their ‘fresh’ brand, but also uses spot lighting to draw attention to it.

Whether you’re utilizing signs inside or out, spot or landscape lighting can make a huge impact on your visibility and the way you are perceived by consumers.

9. Size Matters, But Not Just Big

It would be easy to say you need to go all out, and in many cases the bigger your sign, the more customers you’ll get to invest in your business.

However, Sarku Japan reminds us that sometimes, smaller signs can lead to business benefits such as increasing your social following. Never overlook an opportunity to let signs, big or small, help lead your business to successful customer reach!