![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.speedpro.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/01-Signage-Design-Ideas.png\")
<\/p>\nIf you\u2019re a restaurant owner looking for ways to grab people\u2019s attention and draw in hungry crowds, it\u2019s time to think about your signage. A captivating restaurant sign will make your restaurant stand out from competitors and entice people to come inside and make a purchase. Great outdoor signage also provides an opportunity to spread your brand and enhance your marketing efforts. Whether you want to advertise a grand opening or a new menu item, a bright, bold sign will stop people in their tracks and relay the message.<\/p>\n
So, how do you choose the most effective sign to advertise your restaurant outside? To design a sign that impresses onlookers, evokes curiosity and sticks in people\u2019s minds, you need to know a few design basics. In this post, we\u2019ll show you how to advertise your restaurant outside with tips and ideas for creating signs that sparkle and pop.<\/p>\n
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A promotional sign should be designed to turn heads and generate excitement about your restaurant. How do you do that if other restaurants surround your business? It\u2019s easier than you think \u2014 but it does take some planning and consideration. Here are design ideas that will make people eager to choose your restaurant over competitors.<\/p>\n
When designing a promotional restaurant sign, you\u2019ll want to think about color combinations and contrast. Contrast affects the readability of a sign and helps people view your sign from a distance. The Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA) recommends choosing colors with high contrast<\/a>. In other words, choose a light text for a dark background, and dark text for a light background. High contrast improves readability and memory recall. Consider the top 18 most visible color combinations ranked from highest visibility to lowest:<\/p>\n Keep these color combinations in mind when designing your sign to you ensure you have high contrast. If you wish to use lower contrast colors, like yellow on white, for example, you can increase readability by adding shadows or borders to the text.<\/p>\n If you want to design window decals to advertise your restaurant, you\u2019ll need to consider which colors will pop against the window. Since many business windows appear dark from the outside, you might choose white or yellow lettering to make your sign stand out. If the interior is well-lit, black or dark green lettering can jump out beautifully.<\/p>\n Some colors are more stimulating and attention-grabbing than others. For example, red is a popular color used widely in restaurants because it\u2019s exciting, energetic and believed to stimulate the appetite<\/a>. Red also creates a sense of urgency and encourages customers to buy. Yellows and oranges make excellent restaurant sign colors because they are warm, cheerful and more likely to inspire hunger than calming appetite-curbing colors like blue. If you are promoting a sale or grand opening, go with sign colors that are bright, bold and full of life.<\/p>\n Also, avoid using too many different colors at once. A rainbow of colors confuses viewers and detracts from the message. Lastly, choose colors that relate to you what you\u2019re selling. For example, if you\u2019re promoting vegan food, you might choose green as the predominant color. Green symbolizes health and sends the message that your food is fresh and nourishing. If you\u2019re opening a pizza restaurant, think tomato red.<\/p>\n Imagine you\u2019re a hungry customer walking down a street crowded with restaurants. You feel like you haven\u2019t eaten for days, and you don\u2019t want to waste time browsing through page after page of menu items. You want something quick and simple to stop your grumbling belly. What would appeal to you more \u2013 a sign with a paragraph of text describing a restaurant\u2019s age-old cooking methods, or a sign that says, \u201cBuy fresh hot pizza now\u201d?<\/p>\n Signs should be simple and to the point. You want to avoid cramming too many words in one space. Visual clutter causes confusion and can turn customers away. Consider this \u2013 people spend around six seconds<\/a> reading a billboard. In other words, you do not have too much time to get your message across. Therefore, include no more than six words on your promotional sign, and make sure your sign is easy to understand.<\/p>\n If you want to add graphics, choose images that enhance your message. So, for example, if you own a pizza restaurant named Cool Cat Pizza, it makes sense to use an image of a cartoon cat eating a slice of pizza. On the other hand, if you own a specialty hot dog shop, it doesn\u2019t make sense to add a picture of a cat eating pizza. In such a case, customers will likely look at your sign, scratch their heads and move to the restaurant that doesn\u2019t confuse them.<\/p>\n When it comes to typeface, avoid decorative fonts and opt for easy-to-read sans serif fonts instead<\/a>, and do not use more than two different typefaces. Also, avoid italics and all capital letters cause that can make it hard to tell letters apart.<\/p>\n Signs should leap into vision as customers pass your restaurant. Make sure your sign is large enough people can easily read it as they walk or drive by. Generally, the bigger something is, the easier it is to read. You\u2019ll want the most important words to be the largest size.<\/p>\n Also, check to make sure your sign will be visible at all times and not hidden behind trees or other objects.<\/p>\n To make sure your positive message reaches a crowd, don\u2019t forget to include negative space. According to the United States Sign Council Foundation, negative space, or the open space surrounding the text in a sign, is critical to legibility. Your sign should be composed of at least 60 percent<\/a> negative space. Keep this tip in mind to design a sign that\u2019s clutter-free and easy to read from a distance.<\/p>\n Before you transform your restaurant sign idea into an eye-catching display, consider the following tips to ensure your message makes a great first impression and leaves a lasting impact.<\/p>\n Imagine you want to promote the opening day of your unique hamburger joint, but you have one problem \u2014 your building is shaped like an ice cream cone. How do you make sure everyone sees your advertisement for the big event? You\u2019ll have to get creative with sign placement to make sure you cover every angle. This may mean using different banner shapes or the window space for signage.<\/p>\n If you want drivers to see your sign, avoid placing the sign parallel to the road. Parallel signs are difficult for drivers to read. Instead, place the sign in a position that faces traffic.<\/p>\n Even though you might be sleeping at 3 a.m., that doesn\u2019t mean your potential customers are. Nighttime provides an excellent opportunity to dazzle onlookers with bright lights and attractive digital signage. You can use digital, neon or light-emitting diode (LED) signs to advertise your restaurant night or day. For example, hang a digital sign in the window to showcase new menu items as they change, or to spread the word about sales or events.<\/p>\n Consider your audience and what they may find funny, then use humor to build a feel-good atmosphere and a warm welcome. For instance, a casual pizza shop might ask customers to \u201cGet a pizza the action\u201d on the grand opening day. Did you just open a bakery? Make sure customers \u201ccrumb\u201d again.<\/p>\n Nostalgia never goes out of style. You can draw customers to your restaurant in a competitive area through the power of nostalgia. For example, imagine you are a customer craving fish and chips. You\u2019re in an area with two different fish and chip joints on the same block. Where would you rather eat \u2013 the place that advertises \u201cFish and chips $3,\u201d or the place that has a sign reading, \u201cServing world-famous fish and chips since 1930.\u201d You may agree that the second restaurant seems to have better quality food from the get-go.<\/p>\n If you want to spread news of a sale to as many people as possible, let customers know your restaurant has an online presence where they can follow you for news, menu updates and events. You can place simple window decals of social media icons on the front door under your restaurant hours, for example. That\u2019s enough to do the trick and invite customers to follow you.<\/p>\n Use restaurant signage as an opportunity to promote your brand and make it memorable. For example, you might design a sign featuring your restaurant\u2019s logo. Your logo should communicate your restaurant\u2019s purpose in one glance. You can use your restaurant style for inspiration or include food-related elements in the design. Research other restaurants to see what works.<\/p>\n Regarding logo shape, simplicity is key. Simplicity is easier to remember than complicated designs or shapes. Make sure your logo is displayed both inside and outside of the restaurant. Lastly, use a trademark color scheme and be consistent with all of your logo prints. A great logo is critical for brand recognition, promoting happy feelings about your brand and securing customer loyalty.<\/p>\n Every single word on a sign must count. Unlike a menu, there\u2019s not enough room to include extravagant descriptions on a sign. An outdoor restaurant sign is meant to capture attention and deliver a message as quickly as possible. Therefore, choose every word wisely to make sure it expresses your message perfectly and encourages customers to take action.<\/p>\n You have many options when it comes to choosing the type of sign to use for advertising your restaurant. It can be as simple as a chalkboard advertising daily specials or as creative as a window covered in jaw-dropping graphics. If you want to grab people\u2019s attention from afar, think big and bold. Here are a few sign types to consider.<\/p>\n Banners are ideal for promoting a restaurant because they offer high-visibility<\/a>, are made of durable materials and can be customized to include text, logos and more. Cast vinyl is a premium material that can last for years, calendar vinyl is the traditional material used for banners, and mesh vinyl produces translucency. You can choose the size, shape, colors and graphics to design banners that meet your needs and goals.<\/p>\n\n
2. Choose Showstopping Colors<\/h3>\n
3. Keep It Simple<\/h3>\n
![\"Avoid](\"https:\/\/www.speedpro.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/02-Keep-It-Simple.png\")
<\/p>\n4. Go Big<\/h3>\n
5. Leave Room for Negative Space<\/h3>\n
Restaurant Promotional Sign Tips<\/h2>\n
1. Consider the View<\/h3>\n
2. Advertise 24\/7<\/h3>\n
3. Make Them Chuckle<\/h3>\n
4. Nostalgia Works<\/h3>\n
5. Don\u2019t Forget Social Media<\/h3>\n
6. Remember to Promote Your Brand<\/h3>\n
![\"Use](\"https:\/\/www.speedpro.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/03-Promote-Your-Brand.png\")
<\/p>\n7. Choose Words Carefully<\/h3>\n
Types of Restaurant Signs to Use<\/h2>\n
![\"Types](\"https:\/\/www.speedpro.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/04-Types-of-Restaurant-Signs.png\")
<\/p>\n1. Banners<\/h3>\n
2. Window Graphics<\/h3>\n