As you work on branding or re-branding your company, there are steps to follow in order to ensure the brand image you create follows the right visual representation.
Keep your objective in mind while focusing on building a design that can strengthen your image and identity while generating a reaction on the side of your target market that will result in a strong positioning amongst your competition.
Identify your target audience, unique selling proposition, market reach, key differentiators, long-term and short-term goals.
Establish how you would like the logo to represent your values.
Decide on the design: logo, icon or a combination of both.
Would you prefer the full name of the company? or abbreviation of the company’s name?
The tag line is an element to consider if your goal is to create deep understanding of your organization especially if your company’s name does not project what your business is about.
Your logo goes beyond the artwork and letters to share a story about who you are, what you offer and what makes you different; thus the importance of it and the necessity to allocate enough time, planning, and research in order to go through the process and be able to complete successful outcomes for your brand to leave lasting positive impressions in the marketplace.
We have touched in previous blog posts on why it is necessary for your business to establish good presence through prominent and effective signage that grabs the attention of your target market. The following includes some additional information from credible sources that support our previous blog posts and discussions:
SmallBusiness.Chron.com shares:
“Function – Signs serve as a type of silent salesperson for your business. Exterior signs draw attention to your place of business and help differentiate it from others on the street. Interior signs help customers locate merchandise and can lead to impulse sales when added to special displays. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration website, signs serve as a primary link between a business and its customers.”
Types – Exterior signs can be ground-mounted or building-mounted. Ground-mounted signs can take on a variety of shapes and sizes, and are typically mounted near a road to attract the attention of passing motorists. Building-mounted signs are attached to the place of business and may be useful in areas where foot traffic is prevalent, such as a downtown shopping area.
Significance – Signs can be an essential component of a business’s overall marketing strategy. A sign that contains a business’s logo can help reinforce its brand. Signs are also used to draw attention to promotions and to convey information about the business. Because an exterior sign is visible 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, its effect is continuous.” Click HERE to read more
The setting, design and effect of your booth constitute the first impression that you will leave on the attendees of a trade show. All of these elements can be turned into more effective resources if your lighting in your booth is set in a way to catch attention and entice people to learn more about what you do.
– Dim lights are mainly useful in settings with a tone of romance such as a bar or restaurant.
– Bright lights work best in a retail environment in order to keep shoppers alert and engage them in a fun experience.
The lighting of your booth creates the experience for your audience and adds a factor of engagement. As you design your booth and trade show setting, keep in mind the role of light so that you tailor a satisfying and appealing experience for your visitors as you introduce your company and services. With the right choice of light, you can bring focus to specific products/services or simply highlight your booth details.
Getting ready for a trade show could be an exhausting task that requires a lot of planning in addition to the actual set up of your space or display booth. Here are a few tips to help make your job easier:
– Reach out to the management of the event and learn all the details including size, wall space availability, access to electrical outlets, and more.
Your products/services need to be the center of attention. As you plan your display, make sure that you do not overdo and clutter your space.
Keep your message simple and to the point. Stay focused on your core message that will leave a lasting impression and try to avoid bombarding the attendees with tons of messages that will go unnoticed.
Consider including a video on a widescreen projection/TV screen that can capture people’s attention.
Think about the reasons of why the attendees will stop at your booth – is it the product/service? Is it the design? Is it your welcoming message and nice attitude?
Keep it simple but be creative – Focus on building your brand and creating awareness for your product/service.
Consider opening up your booth by eliminating the table across the front and eliminating any barriers that will prevent the attendees from “walking in”.
You may want to implement the use of large, clean and attractive images. Keep it simple but consider bold for lasting impressions.
Making the wrong choice might simply hinder such a process.
Keep your audience in mind and think carefully about them when you start your design process. Can you get their attention to read a lot of text? Where will your sign be located? Is it going to be at a busy street where drivers are rushing to get to work or next to a cash register where your clients will have time to read it?
With the thousands of available fonts, try to keep the following in mind as you are making decisions:
Serif fonts, such as Times New Roman, are usually perfect for brochures, newsletters and business plans.
Sans Serif fonts are easy to read with large size text.
Script and Cursive fonts are perceived to be stylish and used for invitations and place cards.
Text fonts are the most difficult to read.
Novelty fonts can work either way depending on how you use them.
Another element to think about is the use of capital or lowercase letters. The use of all capitals might project yelling. A combination of capital and lowercase letters should be the easiest to read.
We work with many Graphic Artists, and Michael Ward is the best of the best, so it should be no surprise that his talents extend beyond the keyboard to other media. I was delighted when he came by Focal Point Signs today and shared the good news that his original art work will be featured at Casa Romantica in downtown San Clemente.
The show is entitled “The Mystery of the Ordinary” which is an excellent name for his body of work. The Casa Romantica web site describes him this way; “A self-taught artist, Michael Ward captures what British-born philosopher Alan Watts called “the mystery of the ordinary” in his acrylic paintings of things we often overlook in our daily lives. Based on photographic images, his neo-realistic interpretations of unspectacular environments and people in the world around us are composed and rendered in such a way as to bring out the beauty in what one might have previously considered mundane, if not ugly.”
His work is so good I felt compelled not only to blog about it, but to make a video of it. Of course I also had to plug the fact that we do reproductions on Canvas and Posters. Luckily we have the HPL26500 which is capable of reproducing photographic quality images in large format and on a number of fabrics including canvas, poster paper, vinyl and wall paper. So if you are an artist who is considering making limited editions, call us at 714-204-1080. If you are an art lover and into neo-realism, go see Michael’s exhibit. You can learn more by visiting tmichaelward.com or casaromantica.org. Casa Romantica is located at 415 Avenida Granada in San Clemente and Michael’s show starts on Tuesday, January 14, 2014.
714-204-0180 We work with businesses in all of Orange County, but predominately in Tustin, Irvine, Costa Mesa and Newport Beach, to find solutions for promoting their business through signage. One avenue to creatively market is through turning your car, truck, or fleet into mobile bill boards. Car wraps are extremely popular, but not every business can afford a full car wrap first time out. If this is the case for you, consider doing a magnet to start out.
There are pros and cons to using car and truck magnets. The pros are: If you live in an HOA that prohibits commercial vehicle parking your magnet may be removed to avoid any conflict, whereas a wrap…not so much. This is also handy if you’re going to dinner or a high school reunion. The cons are: dirt can easily get between the magnet and the paint surface and end up scratching the paint. Regular maintenance is required to properly care for your car magnet. Also, please be warned; if you go on the internet and find a cheap online order car magnet site, chances are the magnet will be of the quality you just paid for. We custom print your magnet using latex ink on 3M vinyl with a UV laminate to protect the color on your magnet sign for years to come. There is no better quality anywhere. That said, here is a guide for maintaining your car magnet.
Expectations
Your sign is made from the finest “state of the art” magnetic material
available to bring you the best in magnetic mobile advertising. As with
anything kept outside, it will weather over time, but proper care can
lengthen its life. We cannot be held responsible for any misapplication
or misuse of your signage.
Installation
1. Wash and wipe your vehicle clean, and then dry it.
2. Wax the vehicle surface over which the magnetic sign is being
placed with a high quality wax for the protection of your vehicle.
3. Touch the magnetic sign to the vehicle. If it isn’t exactly where you
want it, remove it and replace it – don’t slide it. Do not apply a
magnetic sign to a newly repainted vehicle – allow at least 60 days for
fresh paint to cure.
Cleaning
Remove your sign from the vehicle once a week and wipe both the
vehicle and the front and back of the sign clean and dry. Re-wax the
vehicle. Put the sign back on in a slightly different spot each time. To
clean the face of magnetic signs, use a sponge and mild detergent. Do
not immerse in water. Wipe dry. Never steam clean signs or take
through a car wash.
Storage
Magnetic signs must be stored either flat on a metal surface or rolled
up in a tube. WARNING! Do not store magnetic signs unrolled and
unprotected inside a hot vehicle. The passenger compartment of your
car, truck or van on a hot day can reach temperatures equivalent to
those of an oven, especially with windows closed. These extremely
high temperatures can distort and destroy your signs unless they are
rolled up into a tube. The best way to store magnetic signs when not
on your vehicle is to keep them rolled (with the magnetic side in and
the printed side out) in a common, inexpensive mailing tube. A 3”
diameter tube is ideal – do not use a smaller tube. Do not roll signs
tightly – roll as large as can be easily fit into the tube. Temperature
need not be a concern when the sign is attached to the vehicle.
Do not damage signs by folding, creasing, or putting heavy objects on
top of them. If signs should get severely bent out of shape due to poor
maintenance, do not use them. They can usually be straightened out
by placing them on a flat metal surface for a day or so, such as a filing
cabinet, desk, refrigerator, etc., which is also an alternative way to
store your signs when not in use on your vehicle.
If you need a magnet, partial or full vehicle wrap, give us a call at 714-204-0180.
Visit our home page at fpcustomsigns.com.
We make signs. One of a kind signs. Custom designed, fabricated and installed, just for you. It’s a big deal to get a new sign, so choosing your sign company is important. I bet 30% of our business comes from decision makers who already have a sign company, but need a better, more responsive, more caring sign company. We thought if you are looking for a new sign, you’d probably like to get to know us a little better, so we put together this one minute video.
What we didn’t include in the video are all of our services and products. But we hope at the end you’ll get an idea of the people who make this company, and the values and mission we honor. Thank you for considering Focal Point Signs! Call us at 714-204-0180.
