First impressions matter and your restaurant's first impression usually happens outside of the door. Restaurant signs allow you to make a first impression that can either lure a potential customer in your door or result in a customer walking by and going to another establishment.
The initial encounter should be a good one, and it all starts with your outdoor sign.
You want to promote your brand and identity in a way that is positive and sends the right message to your potential customers.
If you want your restaurant sign to do all of this, you have to follow best practices to make a good impression.
A few of the ways to make your outdoor signboard really shine include:
Create Signs That Getting Attention
If you don't know how to make an outdoor sign, you should be hiring a professional to create it for you. This sign should grab the attention of anyone walking by and bring you in more business. Custom outdoor restaurant signs are a must-have, and these outdoor restaurant signs should include your:
- Logo
- Text
- Slogan
When you create a sign, you need to make sure that it is well lit and easy to read. The eye-catching portion of the signboard can be anything from the coloring to the typeface that you used. It is not recommended that you use a typeface that uses cursive or is very hard to read. Your goal is to create a sign that's as easy to read as possible for as many customers as possible.
Your logo needs to be unique, too.
When someone sees your logo, you don't want them to associate your business with someone else in the industry. This means making your logo easily recognizable and incorporating a color scheme that resonates with your audience and business.
Hiring someone to create your sign is the absolute best way to ensure that your business gets the attention that it deserves. Professionals will know how to make it clear and concise while also easy to read and appealing to your target audience.
Choose Your Placement Properly
Where will you place your restaurant sign? You can purchase outdoor sign stands, or you can place them under windows or on the building itself. You'll need to understand what the best placement is dependent upon your building and the size of your signboard.
If a passing motorist sees your restaurant, they have three to four seconds to see your message and stop.
But, if you rely heavily on foot traffic, there's a chance that your sign could be much smaller while still attracting patrons into your restaurant.
You want to take a lot of time to better understand how your consumers view your sign. This may mean walking back to the road to see if it is easily readable, and how easy it is to read during the daytime when the sun is beating or at night.
You need to choose the right outdoor sign material that will not be too reflective and distract from what the sign says and make it difficult to read.
You also want to place a restaurant "Open" nameplate on your door.
Convey Your Message
A restaurant sign needs to clearly convey your restaurant's message to potential customers. For example, if you own a pizzeria, you'll want to mention that you have the best pizza in town on your sign.
If your restaurant's name is "Maria's", no one will know what type of food you offer unless you put "Maria's pizzeria".
Of course, restaurant signage should have some mention of the food that you are offering. This can be authentic Irish cuisine or authentic Chinese cuisine, but it should be descriptive and allow your potential customers to know what type of restaurant you operate.
When you create an outdoor signage, you also want to make sure that its message is conveyed in other forms of your marketing. This can be under social media sites or inside your restaurant. Your logo should be included and allow you to build up your brand's reputation so that when people see your logo in advertisements, they know which restaurant they're looking at.
Hire an Outdoor Sign Holder
If you want your establishment to really stand out, you can hire a sign holder. These individuals will stand outside and greet customers who walk in the door. While this may not be possible when it's raining or snowing, it adds a nice touch to fancier restaurants.
They can also tell people waiting in line what the average wait time is as well as tell them of your daily specials.
Illuminate Your Signs
If your restaurant is open late, you don't want your customers to be squinting to read your sign. Proper illumination can help add to the ambiance of your restaurant as well as make it easier for customers to know whether you're open or not.
You'll find that most high-end restaurants in bigger cities have an outdoor LED "Open" as well as an outdoor "Welcome" that's illuminated.
The reason to have an illuminated sign is that it allows your customers to see whether you're open or not at a glance. If someone is driving by and they're hungry, they may not stop to see if you're open if you don't have a sign in place.
Maintenance will be the final step in your signage process. It will be exposed to the elements, posing a risk of damage or becoming less readable over time. You want to create a sign that has a long life, and this starts with proper maintenance.
If you're using LED lights, it's important to have the LEDs changed regularly so that they're always easy to read.
If your signage is older and starting to get damaged or letters are missing, have someone fix or replace it. These small details will show your customer that you pay attention to the small details of your business and don't mind investing in your brand's future. If you allow your sign to become too warn or unreadable, it may show that you're not serious about keeping your restaurant open.