New customers do not hang around. If they cannot find you then they will go elsewhere. So clear and well-positioned signs are critical to removing the obstacles to them finding you before they become too frustrated.
Put Signs at Decision Points
A customer following directions will make choices at junctions, at car park exits and at building entrances. These are the places where they need to be reminded of where they are going. So provide a sign at each of these decision points and not just at your front door.
Show Your Name and What You Do
So that new customers know who you are: Your sign should clearly state the name of your business and what you do. It should be visible from a sufficient distance. This means that just displaying the name of your business is not enough. People who have not heard of you before need more information. Adding a short descriptor to your sign, such as “accountants” or “the best bakery in town” for example, helps new customers to quickly recognise that they have found the right place.
For signs Exeter, take a look at exeter.nettl.com/signs.
Remember that a stranger reading your signage will process it in an instant so it is best to keep the hierarchy of information simple and ensure that the primary message is the largest. As stated in UK guidelines for pedestrian wayfinding, visual cues need to be as quick as possible to be picked up by the pedestrian and work in an intuitive manner.
Use Contrast and Size, Not Decoration
Legibility will come from contrast and size of lettering, not from the intricacy of the font or the colourful graphics. So, for example, dark letters on a light background or light letters on a dark background are best.
This applies to all signs. Street signs and entrance signs should be the same. This means that the colours, the font and your logo should all be consistent from the time a potential customer sees your street sign right through to the entrance of your shop.