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Business Signage: 10 Ways To Make Your Business Sign Stand Out On A Busy Street

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Operating a brick and mortar location for a business means that your sign must attract attention in order to succeed. Numerous design elements that must be utilized to maximize your chances of attracting foot traffic or people in vehicles. In addition, to elevate yourself above the competition, consider your online presence with crucial components like website design and local SEO. In this article, design experts discuss 10 ways to make your business sign stand out on a busy street.

Use Bold, Primary Colors And Blocky Text With Enough Kerning Between Letters So That They’re Easily Readable

“When designing a sign, it’s important to understand what isn’t effective first. You don’t want small text, for example. It’s just not readable at a glance or from a distance. You also don’t want overly complex images that are of low contrast. It’s less important that it perfectly represents your business, and more so that it communicates the message clearly.

Use bold, primary colors and blocky text with enough kerning between letters so that they’re easily readable. When selecting images, go for sharp, crisp images with high contrast and defined edges. People do well on signs, but so do objects if they are the sole focus, or even symbols. Just so long as it’s clear and easy to read/understand. While it is recommended that you get some branding on there, the size of the sign will determine what’s appropriate, from a full logo to just a use of your business’ color palette and fonts.”

Rex Freiberger, CEO, Gadget Review

Differentiate Yourself

“To stand out, don’t try to fit in. A lot of companies try to follow in the footsteps of other companies, but this can either result in confusion where they think you are a branch of the main company or a lack of business because your sign blends in with the rest. Have a sign that fits with your business and what you do. It may also be helpful to have a sign that pops out from the street, allowing pedestrians to see your sign from the side as they walk by. A lot of people go for neon signs or LEDs, and this can look fine depending on the company. Lights can be great, especially if you’re open late, but make sure you can keep up to changing them. This may sound obvious, but there are a lot of stores with signs missing letters or just looking kind of tacky. Go with what fits and stand out, don’t blend in.”

Michael Lowe, CEO, Car Passionate

You Should Always Consider Any Written Text On A Billboard To Be A Headline And, At Most, A Subheadline

“You should always consider any written text on a billboard to be a headline and, at most, a subheadline. You don’t want to include many words. Just a catchy sentence would be enough in most cases. The more text you try to cram onto the sign, the less people will even bother trying to read it.

Avoid putting URLs, addresses, and in some cases even phone numbers on billboards. It’s rarely necessary, and it detracts from your signage. It also limits the space you have. URLs especially are one of the worst uses of space on a billboard. People who see it can’t do anything with that and they aren’t likely to remember.

When it comes to images, don’t try to be subtle. You need people to understand the messaging in literal seconds, sometimes at high speeds. If people don’t get your sign in the space of a blink, it’s not effective.”

Dan Bailey, President, WikiLawn Lawn Care

Understand Where The Eye Goes And How It Is Drawn From One Area Of The Sign To The Next

“Signage should be eye level. It should have bold, bright colors to draw your attention and it should be clear.

You really need to take time in understanding design, or hire a professional to do this for you, whilst requesting the reasoning behind each placement choice, color choice and so forth.

Every inch is important in your signage and you need to make it count. Understand where the eye goes and how it is drawn from one area of the sign to the next.

By looking at your signage in this minute way and then looking at the whole picture, you are more likely to bring about a successful situation for yourself.”

Andrew Taylor, Director, Net Lawman

Make Sure Your Business Signage Is Clear, Huge, And Bright, And Make Street Flags

“Before opening a business, location is a crucial thing. You need a location that many people can access so that you can reach enough market. While being able to set up in a busy and crowded place, one more struggle is lying ahead – competitors.

So, how do we make our business signage stand out amidst the bunch of competitors beside you?

1) Make sure your business signage is clear, huge, and bright. Of course, you want people to see your signage right away so make sure it is appealing to the eyes first.

2) Make street flags – These can attract drivers to come to you or that would remind them that your store is located in that area. Make sure it is very simple so that readers can understand easily in one glance.”

Timo Wilson, CEO, ASAP Credit Solutions

Exploring Contrast And Hierarchy Will Offer The Best Solutions When Designing Business Signage That Stands Out And Looks Good

“Design has a lot of elements that can be utilized to create quality design. However, there are two that are more apt to specifically develop eye-catching yet appealing design. The first that is used to make a design stand out is contrast. Contrast refers to the arrangement in components of a design. This can be the color chosen, the size, the shapes, or any other aspect. Imagine walking along the street, looking up, and seeing ten blue rectangular signs and a red circular sign. Of course, that red circular sign will pique your interest, it’s different. Realistically, not every business will have a blue rectangular sign, but it is beneficial to study what will be surrounding your sign. 

As for the design itself, combining opposing values and using different shapes can create contrast. Combining red, which has a darker value, and white would work well, and circles are rounded compared to sharp rectangles. Examining contrast in relation to competing designs will result in business signage that is noticed. 

To make a sign appealing to look at, design elements like scale, hierarchy, and space need to be explored. Hierarchy refers to the order in which a design is read. The components of a design must be legible and easily understood by those reading it. Varying the sizes of the components creates hierarchy. The design has to guide the viewer with what to look at. If there is any confusion the viewer will lose interest. So making sure the design has order, will make a more pleasant sign. Exploring contrast and hierarchy will offer the best solutions when designing business signage that stands out and looks good.”

Nathaniel Chwalik, Creative Director, Twillful

Suffice to say, it is of vital importance for brick and mortar businesses to have exceptional signage. Likewise, in our digital age for a business to truly succeed, an excellent online presence is crucial. Business owners must also consider key factors such as web development and mobile marketing to distinguish themselves from competitors and thrive in the future.

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