Commercial sign makers are the lifeblood of small business industries here in Australia. For small business storefronts, eye-catching custom signs can deliver extra foot traffic and perhaps even aid in cultivating consumer loyalty. For creative enterprises like graphic designers or architecture firms, your business signage becomes a showcase of your capabilities, providing an opportunity to be eye-catching through innovation.
But a great business sign requires a strong design strategy. The execution of the idea itself is really just the tip of the iceberg. Having produced bespoke designs for countless local business clients in the past, our laser cutting specialists here at Vector & Raster Laser know how important it is to make sure your branding pops on the page before it makes it to print and fabrication. And this is especially the case for signage businesses, as your own company signage and branding ultimately speaks to the quality of your offered business signage solutions.
So how can you make sure your branding pops? You can improve your brand visibility with signage that boasts strong and memorable designs. And as your local experts on all things signage and brand design, our team at Vector & Raster are here today to share their top business signage tips and tricks for supporting brand visibility.
Why brand visibility is essential for signage businesses
Brand visibility refers to how easily your brand is recognised and remembered. High brand visibility is often dictated by qualities like consistency in design, colour psychology, brand tonality and language, brand reputation, and – most importantly – brand identity.
A strong brand identity makes a strong first impression, immediately creating a relationship with the consumer, and inspiring the consumer to interact more with your brand and thus, with your business. If those interactions go well and your consumer keeps coming back to your business and perhaps even referring your business to others, then you’re building momentum on your brand visibility.
In this regard, brand visibility is actually a key driver of commercial success. A more memorable brand means stronger advertising with reduced marketing spends, and stronger customer relationship building. So as a signage business, you’ll want to make sure you really sell yourself with your own business signage solutions to demonstrate that you know how to sell for others.
How to boost brand visibility for your signage business: pro tips from our laser cutting specialists
So how can you boost your brand visibility as a signage business? It all starts with developing your own great brand and brand signage. Here are some of the most impactful business signage tips our laser cutters utilise whenever they work on business branding and signage projects.
Use laser cut signs for precision and impact
For outdoor signs, you want your business signage to be visible, legible, and well-presented in all weather conditions. This is exactly why more and more business owners are swapping out traditional painted signage for laser cut or laser engraved signage instead.
By using laser cutting methods for producing business signage, you can make sure all the design elements of your signs are more durable and dependable. Laser cut signs are also easier to transport, as your signs can be manufactured in one solid yet still lightweight piece. So if you were looking to produce business signage to bring along with you to trade shows, you’ll find that laser cut signs are going to be a great investment for self-promotion when on-the-go.
Use the right materials for your business signage
Speaking of keeping your signs durable yet lightweight, our laser cutters accommodate business clients of all scopes, sizes, and industries by providing a wide range of different laser cutting materials. We’ve had extensive experience producing business signage using different types of wood composite or even hardwood materials, metal materials, and plastic like acrylic and traffolyte.
Layering materials by using different colours or even laser engraving wood to produce two-tone finishes can also help your business signage naturally stand out. These high-contrast plywood sandwich boards are a great example of how even monochrome signage with a great design can help drive foot traffic directly through your door.
When selecting the right materials for your business signage, it’s also highly recommended you consider what kind of setting your sign is likely to be installed in. For example, if your business signage will be installed in industrial environments like factories or laboratories, using corrosion-resistant materials is guaranteed to be a better fit. This is why we recommend traffolyte signage for our industrial clients. The lower cost per unit and superior corrosion resistance when compared to other plastic materials makes traffolyte the most cost-effective material option for most industrial business signage.
Design with ‘visibility’ in mind
Colour theory should always be considered when embarking on any kind of brand design project. You want to make sure your brand colours are always visible, but also want to make sure any textures and finishes you use on your materials don’t impede visibility either. For example, a sign with a glossy finish may not be visible in a sunny outdoor setting.
The same goes for sign placement. Time and time again, we’ve seen businesses design signs that are actually too small to be hung on their storefront. If your sign is too small, it’ll only catch the eyes of passersby within a minimal radius. If you’re looking to boost brand visibility not only for passing pedestrians but also motorists, we recommend securing signs that have a length, width and height larger than 700-750mm to ensure your signs are visible and legible from distances greater than 50 metres.
Here’s a quick overview of ideal sizes for visibility of signage:
- 300mm x 450mm signage = legible for distances of up to 10m
- 450mm x 600mm signage = legible for distances of up to 15-20m
- 600mm x 750mm signage = legible for distances of up to 50m
- 750mm x 900mm signage = legible for distances of up to 50-75m
- 900mm x 1200mm signage = legible for distances of up to 75-100m
Finally, spacing of elements is just as important in brand and logo design as it is for web design. If your brand design is too busy, it can impact visibility of important information (like your company name), or even boost your brand visibility in a less than preferred way. Nobody wants their branding to garner a reputation for being an eyesore!
Combine functionality with aesthetic when designing your brand
Clever design work goes a long way when it comes to supporting brand visibility. You want your branded materials to be informative but also engaging and enjoyable for your audience to interact with. This is why you can expect to see so many business signs that use backlighting or neon lights or even 3D effects to further support brand visibility (across both day and night!).
This particular business signage tip also applies to other branded materials for your business – think laser engraved wooden tabletops so your customers can engage with your logo and branding as they wait, or even the acrylic laser engraved bar menu that’s pictured above. These are both great examples of functional yet aesthetic designs that support the brand behind the business whilst also providing a positive brand engagement experience for customers.
Stay consistent with your designs
Another part of the reason why those custom engraved tabletops and acrylic bar menus work so well is simply because they align well with the tone of the brand and business. The clear acrylic menu with elegant cursive text presents the Courtyard Brasserie as an upscale but still unpretentious establishment. With this context, you can imagine what to expect from the ambience at the brasserie.
This is why developing a brand style guide is so important. With well-defined branding guidelines, you can make sure that your business signage and all other brand visibility investments stay consistent in design, style, and tone. With this consistency, you can cultivate a stronger brand identity which will in turn, help further boost your brand visibility.
Consider your own company signage as an ad for your brand
The most crucial business signage tip that our laser cutting specialists can give to a signage business is this: your storefront is a branding showcase. As business signage is your bread and butter, you want to use whatever resources, platforms, and mediums available to you to promote your own brand and really show your audience base what you can do.
This means using vehicle signage, developing portable displays for trade shows or event branding, and even seeing your business cards as an opportunity to show off your design skills. We actually produce laser cut business cards for a lot of our creative clients for this reason. The unique design of their business cards is always guaranteed to strike a strong first impression and support brand visibility and recognition from the get-go.
How our laser cutting experts can help your brand project
From offering graphic design services to consulting on your laser cut signage project to ensure the strongest possible results, our laser cutters here at Vector & Raster Laser take great pride in supporting small business owners through their brand building projects. Our laser cutting technicians can work with you to determine the best materials for your brand signage, as well as advising on sizing, functionality, durability and other project considerations.
We can produce business signage and other promotional materials like laser cut business cards to quick turnaround times and for projects of all scopes. So no matter whether you’re after laser cut signage for a store opening or even just laser cutting services for a special event, you can rely on our team at Vector & Raster Laser Services to be a strong collaborator, materials supplier, and sign producer.
Elevate your signage business branding with Vector & Raster Laser
Want to see what our business signage specialists can do for you? Get in touch with our laser cutting and design team at Vector & Raster Laser today for more information on our business signage solutions, or simply enquire online to receive a no-obligation free quote on your next brand signage or materials project.
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