Design Essentials: Mistakes to Avoid When Designing Your Sign

About to design a new sign? Make sure you avoid these mistakes!

A common mistake customers make when buying signage is not putting enough attention and effort into layout and design. When it comes to font choices and sizes, spacing, and even colors, customers often think, "it's just a simple sign, it doesn't matter". They're wrong. It does matter – in fact, it matters a lot! But, you won't make this mistake. We're going to share with you exactly how to make your sign both visible and visibly interesting…

There are 13 common mistakes made when designing signage (yes, 13!). Here are the top 4 – and how to avoid them. And, don't worry, we've got a link to the rest at the bottom of the article.

1. Design Mistake #1: Not making your message clear – Can your audience tell immediately what type of business you're in? Is it obvious what you do or what you offer? Is your message clear? Don't make an investment in a sign that doesn't work for you! Adding descriptive words or phrases below your logo or graphic is priceless. Use that square footage! Remember, signage is 24-hour marketing – make sure it does exactly what you need it to do!
2. Design Mistake #2: Choosing a font style that is not legible from afar – certain fonts (and effects) are great for business cards and other marketing tools, but they can greatly diminish the effectiveness of a sign. Make sure your font choices are conducive to the size and style of sign you are having produced. Keep the number of fonts to a minimum – two max. If you use too many fonts, it becomes difficult to read. And, for professional signage, stick with professional-looking fonts – you want your message to be read and remembered for the right reasons!
3. Design Mistake #3: USING ALL CAPITAL LETTERS – Did we just do that? Sorry. It's easy to think that using full caps makes your message more legible, but actually it doesn't – especially not when it comes to signage. Passing motorists only have 2-3 seconds to read your message, and usually they are a great distance away. Make it easier for them by minimizing the use of all caps. Besides, visual tests have scientifically verified that Upper and Lower Case Text is more legible from a distance than ALL UPPER CASE LETTERS. See, you can trust us – it's been scientifically proven!
4. Design Mistake #4: Using the wrong color combination – Studies show that adding extra color improves reader retention by 78%, so definitely use big, bold colors when designing your signs. Just, make sure you contrast them. Use a darker background with lighter color lettering, or vice versa. Contrasting colors drastically increases readability from a distance. If you don't, the text and background of your sign will blend from afar and it won't be legible, thus defeating the purpose for your sign.

These are just a few of the mistakes to avoid when it comes to the design of your sign. The ultimate goal is to design a sign that will work for you, not against you. So, make sure you carefully and strategically formulate the messaging and design the layout. In the long run, the benefits far outweigh the time invested! (For more mistakes, click here.)