A Custom Sign in 1393
Signs are the oldest, most proven way to keep your business on the front burner…
As a business manager you of course want your company to be on the front burner of your customers’ minds. You most likely accomplish this through several avenues such as advertising, sales calls, public relations, and hopefully custom signage.
Signs are one of the oldest methods for advertising businesses. In fact, King Richard II enacted a law in 1393 requiring all alehouses to hang a custom sign outside so that others could recognize them as establishments that sold ale. These signs actually enabled the Ale Tasters (inspectors) to find the ales that needed testing. As a Chef, at least of Signs, I think that sounds like a pretty interesting job. These aren not the oldest signs, but to me they are relevant to the Low Country.
Here in Charleston, one of the oldest English settlements in the United States, history is repeating itself, much like a Chef will make a recipe again and again if it sells well at a restaurant. If you walk around downtown Charleston you will see signs that still remain today, such as the signs at the corner of Ashley Avenue and Spring Street-”FOR GOOD SPORTS. KRUEGER BEER AND ALE,” and “ASHLEY CREAM.”
Although the technology behind the signs has changed dramatically, the core ingredients from hundreds of years ago still apply today. As people are walking or driving by your business establishment, you want them to:
1. Recognize that your business is there
2. Be able to tell easily what it is that you do
3. Remember this information even if they do not stop right at that moment
As the Sign Chef, I liken this to flipping through a cookbook. Wouldn’t you rather stop and make a yummy-sounding recipe with a nice picture than one with a bland name and without an idea what it’ll look like when you are done?
Creating a sign that does all this isn’t as difficult
as you might think. One of the benefits of custom signs having been around so long is that the art of signage can actually be broken down into a recipe for successful signs.
The basics are:
* Color
* Lettering
* Image
* Size
* Placement
* Material
Fortunately for you, I’ll continue sharing the secret family recipes for signs in future columns. Until next time, remember that you want to be on the front burner of your customers’ minds, and by having the right sign out in front of your business establishment, you’ll be able to do just that.