In a 2016 study for the Interdisciplinary Journal of Signage and Wayfinding, researchers James Kellaris and Karen Machleit, identified the four primary functions of custom lobby signs as follows:
- Identification of business
- Wayfinding
- Branding
- Advertising
Today’s post takes a closer look at each of these essential functions to make sure you are getting your money’s worth with your custom lobby signs. Read on or call 615-649-5003 for a free custom lobby sign consultation in Nashville, TN.
Facilitate Better Business Identification With Custom Lobby Signs
According to a new report by the Sign Research Foundation, which surveyed more than 100,000 consumers about signage perceptions, as many as 61% of consumers have failed to find a business they intended to visit because their signage was too small, too inconspicuous, or unclear.
In the same way that storefront, pylon, and monument signs help consumers spot your business from the road, people rely on clear, conspicuous lobby signs to identify their destinations in malls, plazas, and office buildings.
If your lobby signs are not doing their job, there are plenty of ways to tweak your design, such as:
- Incorporating eye-catching, on-brand graphics
- Illuminating your sign
- Creating more contrast between the font and substrate
- Increasing font size
- Adding more white space to reduce visual complexity and make your message stand out
If you need help, the team at MetroCenter Signworks is standing by! We have helped countless local companies level up their lobbies with stunning custom signage, and we can do the same for you.
Improve Wayfinding Outcomes With Custom Lobby Signs
Wayfinding goes well beyond business identification. Even after consumers find your office or place of business, they will rely on effective wayfinding signage to provide positive customer experiences.
For instance, imagine entering a dental office that lacks optimized lobby signage. The receptionist is not available to greet you, so you are left standing there, unsure where to check in, who to talk to, or what next steps you need to take. Best case scenario, you waste a bit of time and stand around confused until the receptionist comes to your rescue, but you might just as easily get fed up and leave, or even miss your appointment, without ever knowing you where you were supposed to be!
The best custom lobby signs provide simple wayfinding instructions to direct visitors to the next point of contact, thereby preventing these kinds of negative customer experiences. Whether you want to point visitors to touch-screen check-in stations, receptionists, or classic take-a-number systems, it all starts with an effective custom lobby sign design.
Build Serious Brand Authority With Custom Lobby Signs
According to Kellaris and Machleit (2016), custom lobby signs “may also serve as inferential cues and basis for thin-slice judgments about the businesses they represent” (p. 1). Their conjecture was substantiated in a series of studies conducted at the University of Cincinnati, where 79% of study participants indicated that they could “infer the quality of a business from its signage,” while another 41.5% made quality assumptions based on sign design alone.
If you want to build big brand authority, start with a winning custom lobby sign design. Since lobby signs are among the first things visitors look for upon arrival, they provide guaranteed impressions, making them the perfect platform to showcase your brand identity.
Advertise Your Business With Custom Lobby Signs
Thinking back on our previous point about guaranteed impressions, it is easy to see why custom lobby signs make the perfect in-store “billboards” for your big sales promotions. At MetroCenter Signworks, any ad copy or design is within reach.
Free Quotes On Custom Lobby Signs In Nashville, TN
If your custom lobby signs are not doing their jobs, our team can help. Call 615-649-5003 or visit the MetroCenter Signworks website to book a free consultation and get a same-day quote on any custom lobby sign design.
References
Kellaris, J. J., & Machleit, K. A. (2016). Signage as marketing communication: A conceptual model and research propositions. Interdisciplinary Journal of Signage and Wayfinding, 1(1).