What size should my business sign be?
If you are a small business a sign is sometimes the most important, if not only way in which you’ll advertise and let your customers know about your existence. Therefore, it’s key to choose the right sign so you can make the most out of it.
The sign should be big enough to include the main information you want to communicate to your audience. When considering the message, you should not only make sure it’s visible, but also that you’ve picked the right font so it’s easy to read, and the font type reflects the personality of your business, its values and mission. The letters should be the right size and the keywords in the text should stand out if necessary by making them bigger or bolder.
When designing and ordering a sign, think about its main purpose. Is it to inform, to promote or to direct your customers to your premises? You might want it to do all of these, however it is good to know what has higher priority over the rest. Also, is this going to be the only sign you will use for your business or are you going to use it in conjunction with other signs of various sizes and containing similar or different messages.
Another important point to consider when deciding on the size of your sign is its position. Depending on where you place it, the size will determine its visibility. Signs can go on walls, rooftops, posts and so on. It’s up to you how close you want to position it to your business premises to achieve the highest impact. Think about whether people will read it as they walk past, drive by or both. Is it going to be an outdoor or an indoor sign?
One of the main purposes of a sign, whether it’s for a business or a private property, is the first impression. Size is something that will help you make the right impression and it’s all relative to the size of the building too. Shape will also determine what’s the correct size. If you want to have a particular shape to convey your message and to match the style of your building or reflect your business identity, then you have to consider whether the size you’ve chosen is going to be the right one so people can immediately recognize the shape you want them to notice.
The material or substrate of which your sign is made will also play a vital role in deciding on its size. Wood for example is a great natural material for signs and it’s a very beautiful one too. While you don’t want the wood to distract people from reading your message, you also want to show it’s quality so the sign should be big enough for the material to shine through and convey the message of solidity and natural beauty.
Depending on your message you’ll select a particular design. Generally it’s good to keep it simple, however, as a rule of thumb, if your sign contains a few elements, this will be reflected in its size so the elements stand a chance to be seen.
Depending on the distance from which you want your sign to be seen, the rule recommended by experts is to have the letters at least one-inch tall for every twenty-five feet of distance. This will ensure that they can be read by people driving past.
If the font you use is more decorative, then you’ll have to increase the size of the letters.
You should also make allowances for white space – spacing between letters and between lines – to ensure the legibility of your sign.
As a general rule, if you have enough space to position a bigger sign and your budget can allow it, it’s best to go for the bigger size, rather than make your sign too small. After all, you want it to serve its main purpose to attract the attention and display a readable message.