What Does Your Business Sign Say at 50mph?
pIts amazing how little thought goes into a href=http://www.signdynamics.com target=_blankbusiness signs/a. For any brick and mortar business, one of the infrangible essentials, especially if your business is located in a high traffic area, is your business signage. The impression your company signage has is equivalent to the logo on your business card. It should be well thought out andnbsp;moreover should be characterized with the following attributes :/p
p1. Does your business sign pass thenbsp;3 second rule?/p
pConsider all the distractionsnbsp; you encounter when driving by any congested intersection. It doesnt even matter if youre driving or walking by. Consider this the next time youre on a busy street, glance around without directing your attention in any specific direction. Then recall any of the signs that may have stood out. Most people can pick out the brands they know. Youll remember that big yellow M shaped sign McDonalds obviously. Do this again but reject the brand signs and see if you can recall any. You might not even remember the name but can you remember any of the signs? If you can distinctly remember a sign because of its ability to grab your brief attention,nbsp;That is the mark of a good business sign. Most business signs do not carry this distinct characteristic and are therefore INSTANTLY forgettable. If youve ever stood in Times Square, your head is now swimming with all of the signs vieing for your attention at the mere mention of it./p
p2. Can younbsp;process it at 50 mph?/p
pEven if youre standing still, as you move your head to survey the landscape, signs go though your mind at 50mpg or faster. Can you imagine coming up to railroad tracks and seeing a sign that says you might want to check for trains before crossing the tracks. People die here. Big huge black letters on a white background.Youre not gonna see it!. Business Signs should make a statement without a lot of text. If you do want your business name in the sign, its wise to have a graphic associated with it (maybe your logo). Your mind can process a graphic instantaneouslynbsp;providing thatnbsp;its recognizable. The last thing a driver should be doing is reading while driving. Drivers process information…they dont read information. You can learn a lot from road signs. guess why every road sign is coupled with a symbolic graphic and color and a shape. Your mind processes a big X as danger – crossing and a yellow triangle as yield – youre not really reading the sign so much as processing it./p
p3. Does a thumbnail image of the sign have any impact./p
pVery often, a smaller image will give you some insight you wouldnt perceived otherwise. You usually cant read the text in the thumbnail image however you should be able to draw some conclusions about the impact from the color and the discernable shapes. Thumbnailing removes the complexity from the image and shows you the overall feel of the sign. If the thumbnail looks like an inkblot from your last visit to the psychiatrist, thats probably what people will process when you hang the sign in a busy thoroughfare. Yes, the sign will be bigger and if you stare at it youll see it. But thats not processing, thats reading./p
pUnderstanding the difference betweennbsp;processing and readingnbsp;and youll be able to critique your own sign and see if you could use a business sign face lift. You cant afford to let them just walk by. Thats business!/p
