Signs of Success^®

The best food. The finest service. The warmest atmosphere. None of it matters if people don’t know that you’re open for business. That’s why good signage matters to your restaurant. It sets the table for so much of your success.

You want your restaurant signage to be eye-catching , customized and compelling enough to set you apart from the  competition. The goal is to communicate your brand values and personality.  Here are a few tips to guide you along the development of your exterior and interior restaurant signage to  help you attract and build a crowd of loyal customers. 

1. Consider Your Sign Placement

Where you place your sign matters.   Ask yourself,  ‘How will my customer see my sign?’ Will they be looking at it through a car window from a distance or will they come upon it while walking on a busy sidewalk? Is there adequate natural or artificial lighting or will you need a power source to illuminate your sign?  . Are there architectural features that add uniqueness to the shape or colors of your sign to create  a memorable connection with your diners?’ Restaurant signage is a visual medium.  The most important consideration is making sure your sign is placed where it will be  seen.

2. Keep it Short and Sweet

The simpler and more concise you make the message on your sign the better. The goal is not only to grab their attention, but give your customer information to make a decision. Communicate in a short, clear and concise way, with easy to read fonts and typeface and eye-grabbing graphics or photos. Keep in mind that in most cases your audience is on the go and you only have seconds to get your sign noticed before they move along to the next visual attraction. Use three colors or less to avoid too much distracting busy-ness in your sign. Every word on your sign must count. Be direct and understood in the quickest way possible.  

3. Go Big and Bold

Your restaurant signage is no time to be shy. You want the world to know that you’re the best at what you do and that you serve the perfect food and drinks to satisfy any craving r.  Use bright color combinations to make your sign jump out and use adjectives that get noticed like ‘best’, ‘favorite’, ‘oldest’ and ‘finest’ to set yourself apart from the competition. Size does matter with signage  The bigger it is the easier it is to read and the greater impact you can make with appealing graphics. 

4. Test Your Color Choices

There’s a reason the color red is so prevalent in restaurant signage. There is a psychology of colors to explain it. Briefly, certain colors have been shown to elicit emotional responses that in turn can trigger a reaction from your customer. Red sparks a hunger impulse. That doesn’t mean that you must have red in your signage to attract customers. It does show how vital it is to realize how a color makes your customer feel. Before launching new signage, let others who you trust see your sign and get their reaction to the colors that you’ve chosen. 

5. Avoid Cluttering Up Your Sign

Trying to fit too much information into your messaging only serves to confuse and distract your customer. Make use of negative space to accentuate your design and allow space between text and graphics so each makes the impact you’re after. It’s important to seek that perfect balance of color, words and images so that your customer can easily grasp what makes your restaurant the one they should choose. . 

6. Use Contrast to Stand Out

Use color combinations that work in unison to improve the readability of your signs and increase memory recall, especially when seen from a distance. It’s best to select colors that bring out the best in each other.  The most popular approaches to give your sign a high-contrast appeal is either to use light-colored text on a dark background or dark-colored text on a light background. Many digital and LED signs offer ways to use animation and digital content to alternate between different fonts and backgrounds to keep contrasts fresh and engaging.

7. Quality Matters

Your customers make judgements about your restaurant based on the appearance of your signs., If they see illuminated signs with burnt out light fixtures or your indoor signs have faded colors or unrepaired damage, they associate the neglect with the quality of your meals and service. Your outdoor and indoor restaurant signage is one your most valuable marketing assets.  In many cases it will be the first impression they’ll have of your restaurant. Choose materials that are durable and continue to look vibrant and appealing for years and require only periodic maintenance. 

8. Stay on Brand

Your signage is a brand ambassador so it’s important to include all your branding elements like color and typography in your signage to build on established recognition, trust and loyalty. For outside signage use it to grab attention and draw your customer into your restaurant.  Interior signs can  create a familiar atmosphere employing brand images and colors for displays and wayfinding. 

9. Work With a Signage Specialist

If you have  your signage strategies in place from the beginning, you’ll save both time and money in the long run. There are a lot of considerations that go into getting your signage just right, including finding the most affordable and effective materials, understanding design and color elements, installation issues that address  local regulations and required permits.  Long-term maintenance  is also an essential element. . An experienced and reliable sign design company can identify potential challenges and eliminate unexpected costs or time delays.

YESCO restaurant sign specialists know how to create the ideal signage solutions to help you spread greater brand awareness and attract more customers. Contact us today.