1) Follow the forecast. It pays to map out your needs for the coming year with your signage dealer. This way, when Coca-Cola is selling like hot cakes in the summer or when frozen drink sales drop in the fall, your signage will be in step with waxing and waning product trends. Forecasting calls for a sunny bottom line by substituting hasty replacements with predetermined promotions.

2) Up your inventory controls. So you ordered that summer signage early, but when June rolled around, you found it was the victim of a storage room spill or employee mishandling. By implementing a system like Print on Demand, you can use templates to create custom signs that usually ship within 24 hours. This cutting edge inventory approach frees up storage space and gives you greater flexibility without sacrificing brand identity.

3) Take it past temporary. Factor your sign’s display time into your budgeting. Many marketers fail to see beyond the present and find themselves paying more to make a temporary sign permanent. If you know your signage will have a lasting effect, spring for more permanent materials now and save later when it outlasts the competition.

4) Stick to the 7-word rule. Research shows that when it comes to signs, people do more “looking” than “reading.” Seven words is the limit for what most people actually absorb — recall decreases after this point. Remember, less is more in the word department — you can always use colors and creative design to drive your message home.

5) Lay down the law. Many legal issues surround signage — investing in improper and unapproved signs leaves you in a financial and federal dilemma. Make sure you also leave room in the budget for essentials like disability signage for the handicapped and visually impaired as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act. On the plus side, the government offers tax refunds to ADA-compliant businesses.

Remember, effective signage reaches more people per dollar than any other advertising medium. In a scenario from ArchiTech Magazine, if you display a $200 sign for one year at a location where just 10,000 cars pass by daily, you’ve reached over 3.5 million people —about 15 customers for every penny you spent.

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