Shhh… The Big Secret to Creating an Effective Sign
Nov 4th 2009adminAdvertising & Business & Marketing
Your Company Name Takes Centre Stage
Okay, some simple advice on what should be on an exterior sign. It may be more accurate to say what shouldn’t be on them. Let me break the news about your sign. You only get one message. That goes for all signs. Each sign can only convey one message effectively. Don’t shoot the messenger, it is not my rule; just one that I try to live by.
If the sign is an illuminated fascia sign, the message should be your company name. If the sign is a van with lettering or a complete wrap, the message is still your company name. And no, I have not forgotten menus and other lists. Because the list is the main message on that sign. A list sign should only be used where the viewing public has a reasonable chance of staying still long enough to read it, such as foot traffic and interior signs, also the rear of vehicles (Yes, a stop light can be your sign’s friend).
Before you start gathering the villagers and lighting torches, let me clarify, your company name isn’t necessarily the only thing on the sign, but it is the most important and it should have centre stage. And really, doesn’t your company name deserve centre stage, on your own sign?! You can still have your phone number, website and even a short list of services or products. But don’t make your company name fight for attention. The urge is to make everything on a sign as large as possible and therefore make the sign work as hard as possible; well, you need to fight that urge, because it is not good design and good design is not just aesthetically good, it is effective!
All of them: illuminated, billboard, “A” Frame, Vehicle Graphics, they all can only effectively convey one message. i.e., EAT AT JOES! The sign may have a picture of a hamburger and a beer, it may also have the phone number and the words “Open 24 Hours”, but all these things are, or at least should be working to help support and re-enforce the primary message, EAT AT JOES! If we haven’t caught them with that, then they don’t and won’t care about anything else. So don’t list the menu items. Don’t list the prices. Save any of those specific things for later, once you have someone’s interest, and attention.
Your exterior sign is only a single point of contact. The hope is that your sign will help to create more points of contact. Keep in mind that a completely successful sign will only hold a person’s attention for 3 seconds!! That is not much time and you HAVE to make it count. Tell your viewing audience who you are and why they should care, i.e.: “ACME; Quality Furniture”. The name is Acme and we can all get our quality furniture there.
Color and the fonts you choose can help create mood and help build your company’s identity. I plan to go into these issues at a later date. Terry
Terry Roy, our guest blogger this week, has been the Production Manager at Instant Custom Signs for 9 years and has been in the sign business for 21 years, including a 5 year stint in POP display design using 3D protocols. She graduated from the George Brown College Graphic Sign and Design program in 1988.
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