When the time comes to order your signs, what do you need to know? In this post, we’re going to look at four things you might want to consider when getting new signage.
Almost every brick-and-mortar business needs a good sign on the front of the building. And it doesn’t just have to be the main sign – there could also be interior signage, window designs, vehicle wraps, street signage, and more.
It’s important to get your various items of signage right, as they can be key to success with regards to your business’ reputation and frequency of new customer acquisition. After all, the right sign can let customers know what to expect when they do business with you and encourage them to give you a try.
1. Clarify your goals
In its most basic form, your business signage will feature the name of your company – that’s a given. But do you want any other messaging, imagery, or design elements? Is there something in particular you would like to convey?
Designed well, signage can be a great way to communicate the character of your business to visitors. There are many choices you can make, from colours and typography to materials, placement, illumination and more.
In the first instance, you should strive for clarity as to what your new sign will ideally achieve and whether there are particular things you need to communicate. For example, a restaurant called ‘Sam’s Kitchen’ might specialise in Italian food, but that fact might not be clear from the name alone – so the signage design could be a great way to give the customers more information about the type of establishment (perhaps by adding a flag or some sort of descriptive icon, in this instance).
Getting specific about your goals and needs is a great advantage when the time comes to place a signage order – and a good signage manufacturer will be ready and willing to answer your questions and help you get the perfect sign for your business.
2. Find an experienced sign company
Good business signage is a long-term investment. Designed and built properly, it ought to last your company for many years – and for quality work, you need to find experienced professionals with a long history of making and looking after signs.
A sign manufacturer that has been around for decades will have the experience to tackle any kind of project and advise you on the best types of signage for your business – in many cases thinking of things you might have missed. If you can see that they have done multiple jobs for the same client, you can be assured that the quality of their work is good enough to impress.
It’s common for business owners to not necessarily know exactly what they require for their new signs, but that’s where the experience of the professionals comes in. Expert sign makers will be able to help you get the best results from your budget and advise you on the best types and styles of signage for your situation.
3. What kinds of signs do you need?
As well as the standard fascia – the sign above the door – there are all sorts of other options for signage.
For example, you might opt for a swing bracket sign to project outwards from your front wall, allowing visibility for your business to customers approaching at a sideways angle. Or, you might consider a free-standing street sign such as an A-board.
Another possibility is that a business that has its own customer carpark could benefit from independently standing monolith signs around the site, helping customers to find their way around and priming them for their upcoming interaction with you.
There are also many kinds of interior signs you might decide to purchase – whether a mounted acrylic logo sign for your reception area, wayfinding signage to help visitors navigate your premises, or wide-format printed graphics to decorate your walls and interior spaces.
After all, a well-presented and strongly branded customer experience doesn’t have to end at the front door – you can continue to display consistent and high-quality indoor signage to give the visitor a great experience from start to finish.
4. Do you need illumination?
For businesses that will operate at least partially after sundown – such as restaurants, pubs, bars, hotels, taxi companies, and others – illuminated signage is a must-have. It allows your customers to find you at all hours of the day and night.
However, even for companies that close before nightfall there can be benefits to opting for illuminated signage. Even when the business is shut for the night, it can still give a powerful branding effect to have your logo glowing through the night, reminding customers of your presence – and illumination can also help visitors to find you during dark winter days with horrible weather, when visibility might otherwise be a problem (such as during periods of fog, or torrential rain).
Old-school neon lighting has to some extent gone out of fashion today, but modern advances in LED technology mean that illuminated signage is cheaper to run than ever. LEDs use a very minimal amount of power to keep running, unlike neon designs, which guzzle thousands of volts.
LED illuminated signage can also last for a very long time (LEDs have a long lifespan of several years when looked after properly, even if they’re used around the clock). This means you can have illuminated signs without constantly needing to replace dead bulbs or schedule too many other acts of maintenance.
When all is said and done, finding the right sign company makes the entire process so much easier. A good signmaking firm will be able to work with you and your budget to help you find the right signage solution for your business, whatever your situation.
Here at Medash Signs, we have helped businesses and organisations of all kinds find the right signage solutions for more than forty years. To find out how we can help with your sign requirements, please call us on 01233 625383 or contact us via the website.