Businesses today face increasing competition to attract customers. While digital marketing has its place, outdoor business signs offer a unique advantage: tangible, long-lasting visibility. Unlike fleeting online ads or easily ignored emails, outdoor signs create a physical presence that can’t be missed.

Investing in high-quality outdoor signage is a cost-effective marketing strategy with a significant return on investment (ROI). Unlike digital ads that can be easily scrolled past or ignored, outdoor signs capture attention and leave a lasting impression on passersby. Additionally, outdoor signs are often considered a long-term investment as they can last for years, providing consistent value over time. Let’s explore a few of the reasons why investing in exterior business signs is a smart move for any business

1. Increases Revenue

One of the biggest reasons a business should invest in an exterior business sign is that it can significantly boost revenue. A well-designed outdoor retail sign can attract potential customers and make your business more visible and inviting. Here’s a few more ways outdoor business signage can increase revenue:

Increased Foot Traffic: A prominent sign draws attention, encouraging more people to visit a store or business.
Constant Advertisement: Unlike digital ads, an outdoor business sign is always visible, serving as a continuous advertisement.
Memorable Presence: A unique and attractive sign ensures that even those who don’t need those business services immediately will remember your client’s business for future needs.
Impulse Purchases: Eye-catching signs can entice passersby to make spontaneous decisions to visit your client’s business, leading to immediate sales.

These benefits can support a great Return of Investment (ROI) for your clients. El Paso Sign Company, writing on Medium.com, suggested that the ROI of signage is calculated by (Benefit – Cost) / Cost = ROI.

This means that 1$ invested returns $1.50. By this calculation, El Paso Sign Company suggests signage will return a 50% return¹.

2. Shows Brand Consistency

Brand consistency is crucial for building trust and recognition among your client’s target audience. Especially when a business operates in multiple locations, it’s essential to maintain a consistent brand identity to build trust and recognition among the target audience. Outdoor business signage plays a crucial role in achieving this consistency.

An outdoor business sign plays a key role in establishing and maintaining this consistency.

Reinforcement of Brand Identity: Featuring your client’s brand logo, colors, and fonts on a custom channel letter sign reinforces the brand identity every time it’s seen, even across different locations
Increased Brand Recognition: Consistent signs help solidify a brand in the minds of potential customers, regardless of the location, making it easier for them to remember and recognize your client’s business.
Professional Image: Uniformity across all marketing channels, including outdoor business signage, creates a cohesive and professional image, even when catering to different local markets.
Customer Loyalty: A consistent brand presence builds trust and loyalty, ensuring your client’s business is the go-to choice for their consumers.
Competitive Edge: Strong, consistent branding can set a brand apart from competitors, making the business memorable and trustworthy in the long term.
Customization for Local Markets: While maintaining brand consistency is essential, we can also incorporate location-specific Flat Cut Outs (FCOs) to cater to local markets. For example, we can add local addresses or phone numbers to outdoor signs, or customize interior signage with location-specific design elements, such as faux neon signs featuring local landmarks or references. This combination of brand consistency and local customization ensures that each location feels connected to the overall brand while also appealing to the unique needs and preferences of its local customers.

Plus, having multiple types of signs in multiple locations can support sales increases, recently studied by The Signage Foundation, Inc. In their report, they found a strong correlation between sales increases and the number of signs.

Quantitative conclusions included: One additional sign yielded sales increases of 4.75 percent, an impact greater than the increases brought on by a larger building, longer hours, or longevity at the location. The addition of a new building sign, pole sign, or freestanding multi-tenant sign was found to add between 5 and 15 percent to a site’s sales revenue².

Related Article: Color Psychology & Outdoor Business Signs

3. Continually Reminds Passerby Traffic of Business

Outdoor business signs are a powerful tool for your customers to keep their business top-of-mind for passerby traffic, both auto and pedestrian. Here’s how these signs can help remind potential and existing customers about their business and its offerings:

Constant Visibility: Unlike digital ads that appear and disappear, outdoor business signs provide continuous exposure. Whether people are walking or driving by, these signs ensure that your customers’ businesses remain visible and memorable.
Repetition: Frequent exposure to a business sign helps embed the business in the minds of potential customers. The more often they see it, the more likely they are to remember the business when they need relevant products or services.
Local Presence: For businesses that rely on local customers, a prominent sign establishes their presence in the community, reminding locals that they’re there to meet their needs.

4. Increases the Number of Impulse Purchases

An effective exterior business sign can drive impulse purchases, turning casual passersby into paying customers for your clients. Here’s how these signs can help increase impulse purchases:

Instant Attraction: Eye-catching designs and compelling messages can grab the attention of people passing by, encouraging them to stop and check out what the business has to offer.
Promotional Opportunities: Your customers can use their signs to advertise special offers, discounts, or new arrivals. These promotions can entice passersby to make unplanned visits to the store.
Convenient Reminders: Well-placed signs can remind people of immediate needs they may have forgotten, prompting spontaneous visits to the business.
Emotional Triggers: Effective signage can evoke emotions or create a sense of urgency, which are key drivers for impulse buying. For example, a sign showcasing a limited-time offer can create a fear of missing out (FOMO), encouraging immediate action.

5. Promotes Qualified Prospects

Outdoor business signs do more than just attract attention—they help drive qualified prospects to your customers’ businesses. Here’s how signs can filter and attract the right audience:

Clear Messaging: Signs that clearly state what products or services the business offers help attract individuals who are already interested in or need those specific offerings.
Targeted Attraction: By highlighting key products, services, or unique selling points, signs attract a more targeted audience, ensuring that the people walking through the door are more likely to convert into paying customers.
Efficient Use of Resources: When a sign effectively communicates what a business offers, it reduces the number of unqualified inquiries, allowing staff to focus on serving genuinely interested customers.
Immediate Relevance: Signs can include specific details or calls to action, such as “Free Consultations” or “Special Discounts on Electronics,” which further qualify prospects before they even enter the store.

6. Creates Continuous Brand Awareness

Business signs in general, are essential for creating and maintaining continuous brand awareness. However, outdoor signage takes brand awareness and consistency to another level. Here’s how:

Persistent Presence: Outdoor signs are always on display, working around the clock to keep the brand visible to both new and returning customers.
Consistent Branding: Featuring consistent branding elements such as logos, colors, and taglines reinforces brand identity every time someone sees them. This repetition helps to solidify the brand in the minds of potential customers. Products like channel letter logo boxes excel in reinforcing brand identity.
Wide Reach: Outdoor signs can reach a broad audience, including people who may not be exposed to other forms of advertising. This helps in expanding the brand’s reach and recognition.

Related Article: Which Colors are Best for Restaurant Signage

7. Decreases Sales Time and Expense

Imagine a marketing tool that provides a steady stream of new business prospects without the need for constant reinvestment. That’s the power of an outdoor sign. An outdoor sign for business provides an opportunity to reduce sales time and expenses by:

Consistent Lead Generation: Once installed, a sign continuously attracts new customers, reducing the need for additional advertising campaigns.
Cost-Effective Marketing: Unlike digital ads or other forms of advertising that require ongoing investment, a single sign can provide years of service, making it a cost-effective marketing tool.
Reduced Sales Effort: By clearly communicating what the business offers, signs attract qualified leads who are already interested, reducing the time and effort required to convert them into paying customers.
Long-Term Benefits: The initial investment in a sign pays off over time as it keeps drawing in new prospects, ensuring a steady flow of business with minimal additional expense.

8. Signage Gains New Customers

Visibility is key to expanding a customer base, and nothing achieves this quite like a prominent outdoor sign. Here’s how increased visibility can gain new customers:

High Visibility: Outdoor signs are hard to miss, especially when placed in high-traffic areas. This ensures that a large number of people see the business, increasing the likelihood of attracting new customers.
First Impressions: A striking sign can create a positive first impression, making potential customers curious to learn more about the business.
Brand Exposure: Continuous exposure to the sign helps embed the business in the minds of passersby, making it more likely they will choose it when in need of the products or services offered.

9. Lit Channel Letter Signs Work 24/7

Imagine having a marketing tool that operates day and night, rain or shine. Lit channel letter signs offer this advantage by being visible at all times. Here’s how they work around the clock for your customers:

24/7 Visibility: Lit channel letter signs remain visible day and night, ensuring that the business is always noticeable, even after regular business hours.
Weather Resilience: These signs are designed to be visible in various weather conditions, from bright sunlight to heavy rain, ensuring constant visibility.
Increased Safety: Well-lit signs can also enhance the safety and security of the business location, making it more inviting for customers to visit after dark.

10. Outdoor Business Signs Produce Foot Traffic

Think of a sign as a magnet, drawing people towards the business and increasing foot traffic. An eye-catching and strategically placed sign not only grabs attention but also piques curiosity, encouraging potential customers to explore what the business has to offer. Here’s how signs can boost a business’s foot traffic:

Easy Navigation: Clear and visible signage helps customers easily locate the business, reducing the chances of them getting lost or choosing a competitor.
Impulse Visits: An inviting sign can prompt spontaneous visits from people who may not have planned to stop by but are intrigued by what they see.
Enhanced Discoverability: For businesses located in busy areas, a standout sign sets them apart from surrounding establishments, making them more discoverable to potential customers

Maximize Your Business Potential with Outdoor Signage

Outdoor business signs are a crucial investment for any business, restaurant, or shop looking to increase visibility, attract qualified prospects, and drive foot traffic. By providing continuous brand awareness and functioning as a 24/7 advertisement, these signs offer an impressive return on investment. They help businesses gain new customers, promote qualified prospects, and even decrease sales time and expense by consistently drawing in potential customers without the need for ongoing marketing expenditures. Lit channel letter signs, in particular, work around the clock, remaining visible in all weather conditions and enhancing both the attractiveness and safety of a business location.

Plus, because signage has a high ROI, as demonstrated in this blog, your client’s sign could pay for itself within the first two months of installation. Request a quote today and discover how Direct Sign Wholesale’s custom lit channel letter signs can take your client’s business to the next level.

¹ https://ortweinsign.com/blog/the-roi-of-on-premise-signage-vs-other-mediums/

² https://www.poyantsigns.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/On_Premise_Signage_Report.pdf

10 Reasons To Invest in Outdoor Business Signs