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If we were to tell you that signage nowadays is an essential part of our everyday lives, chances are that you would most likely agree. After all, seeing various signs for stores, roads, and inside establishments is pretty common. In fact, it’s so common that people often associate what an establishment offers based on its signage.
A lot of businesses and establishments utilise signage for different reasons. However, there’s a lot of folks out there that don’t know what is a signage and what it’s for. Well, we’re here today to talk about what signage really is and their true purpose.
The True Meaning of Signage
In general, signage is construed as any type of graphic display that aims to impart information, or instruction, to people. Delving deeper, signage is actually revealed as the use or design of symbols and signs to convey a message meant for a particular market. Additionally, it can also pertain to signs that are grouped together, or accounted for collectively.
The most common type of signage that people see is wayfinding signs, which are often found on the streets. One can also find them inside huge establishments like malls or office buildings. They also come in various shapes and sizes, from small lawn signs to large billboards.
The Purpose and Use of Signage
The question “what is a signage,” can be best answered by taking a look at the common purposes and use signage has. They are often used to give directions, boost safety awareness, promote, provide information, or identify. Let us expound on their purposes with some signs:
• Wayfinding Signs
Being inside a vast establishment like corporations, shopping malls, and hospitals, can be pretty daunting. In fact, it’s easier to get lost in them than to actually find the place you want to go to. This is where the importance of signage comes in the form of directional signs. With these signs, it’ll be easier for customers or visitors to navigate their way through the vast structural complex. Wayfinding signs can also be used for large-scale outdoor events like festivals, or places that have multiples entrances or buildings.
• Health & Safety Signs
Health and safety signs are invaluable signage. They’re often found in nurseries, workplaces, offices, schools, and basically almost everywhere. Here at Signs Australia, we understand how important it is to provide signs that warn people about possible threats or hazards, which is why we make it a point to put in more heart to this signage because it’s crucial to everyone’s safety.
• Advertising & Marketing
Aside from wayfinding, signage is most commonly used for advertising and marketing purposes. They are used by companies and businesses to advertise their brands, which help increase their presence to customers. What is a signage that works well for advertising and marketing? Outdoor signage, building wraps, and billboards are just a few examples of signs that provide the best results.
• Aesthetic & Appearance
Although signage often has meaning behind their designs and purpose, there are times when they serve only to improve an establishment’s appearance. Signs Australia is no stranger to these types of signage, and we’ve worked on plenty of them before. We’ve worked on dozens of store signs that weren’t meant to advertise, but to simply let people marvel at how dazzling the sign looks.
• Attract Customers
What truly attracts new customers to a store, restaurant, or business aren’t the products and services. What often pulls them in is the eye-catching signage that piques their interest and tells them to give an establishment a shot. Window displays are good examples since they are quite good at stirring a potential customer’s curiosity, urging them to check what’s inside.
• Recognition
In essence, signage is best used to aid individuals to identify or recognise a brand or location. Brands like Starbucks and Coca-Cola have become experts at utilising their brand sign for recognition, using high-street signs that make their brand visible and easily spotted. On the other hand, franchises and restaurant chains often use shopfronts like Coca-Cola and Starbucks to raise brand recognition based on their locations.
Signage has lots of purposes, so at the end of the day, the question “what is a signage,” can only be answered by asking “why was the signage made?” Here at Signs Australia, we make it a point to have a clear understanding as to why our clients would like to have a particular signage made. We want to understand why, not just because we want to provide the best results; but because we want to make sure that your signs get all the attention!