Tuesday, October 22, 2013

The Effective Use Of Wayfinding Signs

Wayfinding signs are a convenient and easy to understand for of sign that are designed to provide direction and ensure a steady flow of foot traffic around a building, premise, or location. There are many different design options with this type of sign and there are a similarly diverse range of applications for which they can be used.

When creating the design for wayfinding signs you should consider a number of factors, such as whether they will be used indoors or outdoors, whether they will be easily visible, and also whether they effectively convey the message that you want them to. Using wayfinding signs effectively can benefit you as well as visitors to your business or premises.

What Are Wayfinding Signs?
Wayfinding signs; http://www.is-group.co.uk/About-Us/Types-of-Signs/Wayfinding-Signs - are a group of signs that are used in many locales and destinations in order to provide simple and clear directions. They are often seen at the side of roads but also on footpaths, in town and city centres, and in various commercial locations as well as sites of interest. They not only benefit visitors to a site but also the site owner.

Typically, these signs use particular colours depending on the type of destination they are directing people to. Road signs, for example, may use blue to denote public services, brown for points of interest, and white for town centre directions. When you are attempting to manage the flow of traffic through your own premises or site, however, you can choose the colours that you want to use but you should ensure uniformity because this helps people recognise the purpose of the signs.

Wayfinding Sign Applications
There are many ways that these signs can be used and in many different locations. Shopping centres are a good example of how they can be used to ensure that foot traffic finds its way around all of the most important shops and other areas and if you have visited a zoo or even a tourist town or village you will have seen arrows pointing to various locations.

If you have a commercial property or even an office you too can use wayfinding to help direct traffic. Your visitors will not become frustrated by getting lost and they will not need to ask directions from your members of staff. Furthermore, you will be able to ensure that they walk past or to the most important areas.

Design Options
Consider where and how the signs will be used. Those that are being placed outdoors will have very different demands to those used indoors. Metal, plastic, and wood are among the most common material choices when it comes to creating good looking and effective signs.

You will also need to choose the colour and shape of the sign, as well as the font and text that is to be displayed. Some signs can benefit from the use of images but these should be simple and clear because overly complex images that are difficult to see and recognise can cause confusion rather than avoid it.

Using Wayfinding Signs For Your Business
While it is common to see wayfinding signs directing around towns and streets they can be used in many other areas too. If you have a lot of rooms within your business premises, or you have an outdoor venue then this type of sign can be especially beneficial for you and your visitors.

Plan the flow of traffic before you add signs. If all of your signs point to a single location you will experience congestion in this area and may find that other areas are completely free of visitors. Also plan the wording, images, and design of the signs so that you can employ some uniformity between all of your signs.



Author: Andrew Durbin, Follow me on Google+

Make An Impact With Monolith Signs

Monolith signs are large and free standing signs that are usually placed outside a location or business in order to display information about that business. They can be used to convey a brief marketing message and are often used to show prices outside venues like petrol stations.

There are many options to consider when designing monolith signs including whether or not they should be illuminated, and also what shape to use for the construction. While there is no one specific answer to these questions there are factors to consider that will help ensure that you made the right choice.

What Are Monolith Signs?
Monolith signs are, as their name suggests, monolithic. They are tall and free standing and they can have a huge impact on those that see them. The size and the fact that they stand out so well means that monolith signs can be very effective.

Such signs are usually found outdoors and while they normally tower above smaller buildings, it is possible to have more compact signs designed. These smaller monolith signs can be a very effective form of branding and they can be used to indicate a particular location or site.

Usage And Applications
There are many instances where monolith signs are regularly used. Big supermarkets will usually utilise them in order to let people know that they are there and these may also include some details about what is actually found in the store along with the branding and tag line for that particular chain of shops.

Petrol stations also like the use of monolith signs and as well as offering the name and design of the company they use signs that can be updated and changed daily to show the prices of petrol at the time.

Size And Design
Monolith signs are usually large by their very definition, however this isn’t always the case and smaller signs can be highly effective as a means of advertising a smaller site. They can even be used to give direction and to indicate certain areas within a particular location.

The shape of the monolith sign is important. Two sided signs are only visible from two directions whereas three sided designs that have curved surfaces can essentially be seen from anywhere. Use colours that stand out and a design and logo that are memorable and you will enjoy the best results from displaying your monolith signs- http://www.is-group.co.uk/About-Us/Types-of-Signs/Monolith-Totem-Signs

Illuminated Signs
One of the big considerations when deploying your own monolith signs is whether they should be illuminated or not. Lighting can either be placed behind the display, inside the sign, or it can be placed on the ground so that it shines up and at the sign content.

Considering how early it goes dark during the winter months and how late it stays dark, lighting signs should be considered important. The signs will not be any use if they are not lit up during the darker hours and if your business or organisation stays open late or opens its doors early then this becomes even more important.

Monolith Signs For Your Business
You can include a large amount of information on monolith signs but they are typically used to catch the attention of drivers from a distance away. This means that the use of a single large image, or two smaller images will normally have the greatest impact and the best results.

Too much information on a single monolith sign means that the sign will need to be prohibitively large or the content so small that it cannot be viewed except from up close. Try to find the right balance between displaying information and ensuring the sign is useful.




Author: Andrew Durbin, Follow me on Google+