Ah, sweet summer time. Time to get ready for everything you love about summer. Picnics, days at the beach and … yard sign marketing! Hurray! Custom yard signs can be a highly effective customer acquisition tool if done correctly. Take your outdoor advertising to the next level by following these nine tips for effective yard sign marketing.
Stick with single-sided. It is very hard to find a spot on a busy street where both directions of traffic will be able to read your yard sign clearly. So, it’s probably a better idea to have two signs that have your message on a single side, so as not to force drivers traveling in the direction furthest away to try to read your sign and eventually give up because it’s too hard to read.
Use contrasting colors. As obvious as this one may be, it is still often forgotten. If you use similar colors for both the background and font, your message will get lost. Use a very dark color on a very light color, or vice versa. Also, don’t forget that some people are colorblind, so you’ll want to be conscious of putting blues/greens together or yellow/greens together.
KIS. Keep It Simple. We’re talking like, five words or less simple. If possible, try to get your message across with simply a phone number or an arrow. If you have to include more info, such as your address, try using an intersection instead. Also, if your phone number is local to the area where your sign is, you can omit your area code.
Use arrows. Especially if you’re advertising an event at a single location. It’ll be easier for people if they don’t have to figure out how to get to where they’re going, they can just follow the signs. Plus, here’s a tip: If you print arrows pointing toward the same edge of your signs, you can choose which direction your arrow(s) will point by flipping it around.
Be hesitant to use your logo. There are many logos out there that are instantly recognizable. If you’re a new business, or have gone through new branding, chances are your logo won’t create an instant connection to your business. Plus, the purpose of your yard signs are probably for customer acquisition, so these prospects will usually be people who haven’t heard of your brand anyway. We’re not saying it’s a bad thing to use your logo on outdoor marketing materials, but space is very limited and valuable on yard signs.
Reverse your colors. For example, say you choose to create a simple, black and white sign. Consider putting your business’ name on the top, black on white, with your phone number or website on the bottom, white on black. This will keep your signs simple and make your contact info easier to pick out.
Use a specific message. Do you have a long list of products/services that your company offers? Pick out just one — maybe it’s your favorite, the most popular, the newest, the one you are planning to promote at that time, etc. — and have that one be the one you call out on your yard sign. Then, once someone has arrived at your store, you can provide them with info as to your additional products/services. Remember, the purpose of yard signs is to get potential customers in the door.
Use easy-to-read fonts. Arial, Avant Garde, Helvetica, Times New Roman and Verdana are all good, distinguishing fonts to use.
Make sure at least one third of your sign is blank space. More blank or white space means more legibility. It also makes your signs easier to read for speed demons. (Who, me?!)
Remember, just like with all outdoor advertising, the bigger the better. The greater the size of the sign and font, the greater chance your sign will have of being seen. Go big or go home!
Have you ever used Yard Signs for your business? What tips do you have for those trying it out for the first time? We’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment below, or connect with us on Facebook, Twitter or Google+.
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Great tips here. Simple seems to work best for me. I will have to try some of these other suggestions out and see how they work for my business. Thanks!
I really liked your tip about not utilizing your company logo unless it’s already recognizable. This will take up a lot of room on your ad and could distract the viewer. Leaving space for your message is certainly more important than displaying your logo.
Thanks for the information on choosing the right sign for your property. I like how you mentioned that by going simple and reversing your colors, you can make your signs easy to understand and easy readable. With that being said, my brother works at his home and would really benefit from a sign in his yard for advertisement. Thanks again!
It’s great that you elaborated on how important it is to keep your signs simple to avoid confusion. My mom is looking to get some signs made for an open house she’s putting together for New Years. I think I will talk to her about keeping it simple so it’s easy to follow.
I liked that you pointed out that you should keep a yard sign that is simple. That does seem like a good way to make the sign easy to read quickly while driving past it. After all, I know that I can read a complicated sign quickly.
Great tips! Really informative steps you have mentioned here as their implementation can help a lot of those who are looking for advertising through yard signs…
What a tips to go through as they really seem very informative indeed personally for me. so thanks for posting…
It’s interesting that you talked about rethinking your logo and when to use it. My daughter is starting a new company soon and wants to start spreading the word about it. I’ll help her get some signs up around town so that people see that her company exists and can help them.
My son is trying to run for the city council this year and he needs to start spreading his message. I think it’s really smart to try and put up some yard signs around town to get people talking. I’ll let him know that he needs to come up with a clear message that he wants to share so there isn’t any confusion.
Signs are so important for any business it not only indicates particular business but helps them to grow at the same time.
I loved your tip of using arrows in your yard signage to make it easier for people to get where they’re going. My wife and I are wanting to advertise for our yard sale and we were wondering how we can make our signage more effective. I’ll be sure to tell her that we should add arrows to the yard signage.
I put lawn sign. But people picked up and through away. Have you got such experience?
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