Signs act as an announcement for you and your businesses – and they are one of the most vital instruments you have to grab the attention of a consumer. What makes a well-designed sign even more powerful is that it can actually attract and engage a consumer who, prior to seeing the sign, may have never even thought they were interested in the goods and services you have to offer. Whether it’s at an exhibition, trade show, convention or something positioned on a highway or above a storefront, when considering sign design ideas, it is crucial you take into account the random passerby.

“Best Buy discovered that about 17 percent of its customers were people who did not intend to stop there but did so specifically because they saw the sign, which is well linked to their brand and overall marketing,” Sapna Budev, director of strategic initiatives for Alexandria, Va.-based International Sign Association, told Entrepreneur. “Who hasn’t been driving down the street, stopped at a store and made a purchase, merely because they saw the sign?”

To maximize the arresting nature of your signage, read on for a few innovative design ideas:

Make Color Your ‘Brand’
Color – as we’ve previously discussed – plays a big role in making your sign “pop” to a casual observer. But more than simply drawing the eye, different colors evoke distinct feelings, sensations and ideas – all which you can use to highlight aspects of your “brand.” Strong, eye-catching colors like reds, yellows and orange all speak in a coded language and have a visual power that goes well beyond simply what hue you’re looking at.

Think about the way that famous brands use colors. Most successful companies typically limit their palette and repeatedly use colors in a very specific way on their signage. This can be used to identify you as being a particular kind of company with certain values AND distinguish you from the competition. Soda brands Coca-Cola and Pepsi draw from a lot of the same fundamental colors, particularly whites, reds and occasionally black. Both companies use white lettering as well as black backgrounds to distinguish their diet offerings, but Coke has their classic vibrant red background while Pepsi uses blue to contrast.

When picking out your sign colors, consider what the fundamental values of your company are and what you want a person to know with a glance: Do you want to exude cool authority? Try blues and greens. Want to stand out as a bold innovator? Orange signifies a burst of energy and a capacity to challenge norms.

Contrast to Ensure Readability
Part of choosing your colors is creating strong contrast. White text on an off-white background will be difficult to read at any distance, particularly from farther away. Similarly, text imposed on a busy background could get lost.

“Most signs will include either text or graphics in the foreground, with a continuous background color,” Budev said. “The contrast between these two items is critical to the viewer’s retention of the content.”

When it comes to signage, simplicity and clarity is crucial.

Establish Messaging Hierarchy
Depending on the application, you may have a variety of information you want to convey with your sign. In addition to the name of the business or organization, you may have a brand tagline, a short-term promotional element or location information. That can be a lot to process on one sign.

A sign loaded with text that is all the same font size can seem chaotic or difficult to read. Rather than parse it all out, most consumers will just walk on by and pay your sign no mind. To avoid losing a potentially valuable customer, think about the “hierarchy” of the information you want to impart. What’s the most important thing that you want a person to know with just a momentary glance? What are less important elements that you could impart later, after you’ve generated a solid lead?

Typically, the name of a business or organization is the thing you want a possible customer to remember. From there, they can choose to seek more information later. To ensure that your business name is a memorable feature of your sign, make it the largest element. Other features like a tagline or sale information should be made smaller – or left off the sign entirely for clarity.

Need signage for your next sale, exhibition or special event? Sign Art Etc has you covered. Call or email us today to get an expert’s help with all your sign needs.

Designing eye-catching signs is somewhere between science and art: You want something that reflects your business or organization that is visually pleasing, but not so bland that people walk right by without noticing. Whether it’s a banner, custom backdrop or more detailed signage, here are a few key guidelines to ensure your signs draw the eye:

Take Inspiration From Your Business

Design should begin with identifying which features are central to your organization or enterprise. If you’re selling ice cream, images of ice cream cones on your sign are a great way to give people a taste of what they might expect out of your business. Similarly, a dentist might have a cartoon illustration of a tooth or a toothbrush.

Go for Simple and Clean, Limiting Detail

While it may be tempting to insert a photo-realistic image on your sign, the simpler you can make featured images, the better. Signs are meant to grab attention quickly and raise interest from those who may be just passing by.

The human brain is only able to take in a certain amount of detail in one glance, so the simpler and more striking you can make a sign, the more likely it will quickly make the impression you intend. This is why so many signs use stylized icons or cartoon representations rather than photos.

Use Only One or Two Fonts – and Keep Text to a Minimum

The way you use fonts for lettering is key. Too many different fonts – both shapes and sizes – on a single sign and your custom banner may look chaotic or incoherent. Use the same font for large blocks of text, and your sign can seem boring or, worse, unreadable.

A solid best practice is to limit yourself to one or two fonts on your sign: One style for your logo, event or business name, another for smaller explanatory text. The second font can be used to create a contrast from the main font. Even so, it may be beneficial to stick to the same font family – serif or sans serif – on a single sign to help create a sense of harmony and flow.

The most effective signs combine readable text with simple icons.

Don’t overwhelm your signs with text. Most people will spend less than a minute looking at your sign, meaning that if it’s bogged down with lots of text, chances are they won’t read it all anyway. Boil what you have to say down to a single sentence, with a 10-word maximum. Ideally, a sign should include a name and something similar to a slogan.

Use Bright, Warm Colors and Simple Shapes

You want your sign to draw the eye, and there’s no better way to do this than warm, bright colors. Identify the overall feeling you want to exude from your organization: Inviting? Leisurely? Serious? Knowledgeable? From there, choose bold, bright colors that project this feeling. Be careful though. In general, it is best to avoid harsh, aggressive colors like shades of neon since these may actually be difficult to look at.

Apply the same logic to the shapes you use, both as icons on the sign or in the shape of the banner itself. Even if you go with a standard rectangular shape for your sign, you can make it more dynamic by framing the text and logo with a contrasting shape. Rounded shapes evoke a sense of calm and control, while shapes with pointed angles are dynamic.

Don’t Forget a Call to Action

One of the most important elements of a sign is a call to action, or CTA. These simple turns of phrase are what inspire your viewers to do something and are what separate signage from art. Typically, these take on the form of a few words like “Call today for more details!” or “Visit our website to learn more!” But they can also be even more subtle. Just including a website, Twitter handle or a brand-approved hashtag can act as an effective CTA without being overly promotional.

Once your signs are designed, getting them printed on high-quality materials is the easy part. Get in touch with Sign Art Etc. to meet all your sign needs!