Please find here below the third part of the article titled "Signs and Your Business" from Ms Karen E. Claus.

In this part Ms Claus clearly explains why on-site signage is so critical for any business.

In case you missed the previous posts, you can read here the first part and the second part.

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STUDIES OF ADVERTISING VALUES AND EFFECTIVENESS

As a means of increasing sales, advertising is one of our Most Valuable Resources. From an advertising and public relations standpoint, the Physical Location Of Your Business can be your most valuable asset.

An average of eighty-five percent of your potential customers are likely to pass by your establishment at least ten times every month. The advertising implications in this Circulation Of Potential Customers around your business location are enormous.

In terms of a comparison, the Advertising Value Of Your Site is the equivalent of your receiving two free full page newspaper ads every month you are in business. Finally, this potential to influence people exists right outside your door, which is the only place where those impressed by your sales message can react to it instantly.

The advertising tool used to Convert Your Location Into Cash is on-site signage. There is little doubt that signs work and that people rely on them for information. On-site signage can, relative to its cost, have an extraordinary influence on the success or failure of a retail business.

One major study involved restaurant chain operators. With their ability to assess relative profit performance among various units, they have found a Direct Correlation between effective on-premise signs and sales volume, in some cases amounting to thousands of dollars in gross revenue per week.

In a typical case study, Colony Kitchens, analyzing twenty-eight locations, found that without fail those stores with adequate signage all had volumes Well Above The Average for the chain as a whole. Researchers at Colorado State University found the same direct correlation between adequate signage and increased business volume.

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In the next post, I will publish the fourth and last part of Ms Karen E. Claus' article, where she tell us about the results of a study conducted by the 3M Company about the effectiveness of advertising media for retail use.

As mentioned in the previous post, today I'm republishing the second part (read here the first part) of the great article titled "Signs And Your Business", written about 20 years ago by Karen E. Claus.

In this second part, she explains which are the four basic criteria used To Judge The Effectiveness of advertising media.

Also, she explores the reasons why signs are so important for your business and why "There Is No Better Advertising dollar value than your on-premise sign."

I am sure you will find the article very interesting.

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THE ADVANTAGES OF SIGNS

On-premise signs are your Most Effective And Efficient means of commercial communication because they are inexpensive, always on the job, and directly oriented to the trade area of your business.

Signs Are Effective

There are Four Basic Criteria used to judge the effectiveness of advertising media: (1) coverage of the trade area, (2) repetition of a message, (3) readership of a message, and (4) cost per thousand exposures of a message.

Let’s see how signs measure up to the above criteria;

• Signs are oriented to your trade area. Signs do not waste your resources by making you pay for wasted advertising coverage. The people who see your sign are the people who live in your trade area.
  
  
  
• Signs are always on the job repeating your message to potential customers. Your on-premise sign communicates to potential customers twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, week after week, month after month, year after year. Every time people pass your business they see your sign. The mere repetition of the message will help them remember your business.
  
  
  
• Nearly everyone reads signs. Signs are practical because nearly everyone is used to looking at and reading signs, even small children. Studies have shown that people read and remember what is on signs. When special items are displayed, sales increase for these particular items within the store.
  
  
  
• Signs are inexpensive. When compared to the cost of advertising in other media, the on-premise sign is very inexpensive. [...] There is no better advertising dollar value than your on-premise sign.

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Next Thursday I will post the third part of the article, titled "Studies of Advertising Values and Effectiveness".

I would like to bring to your attention to a very interesting article about Signs and Displays - written by Karen E. Claus about 20 years ago - that got my attention because it is still so Incredibly Actual.

Ms Claus is one of the most important modern researchers of Signage And Its Effectiveness: her scientific approach to the subject provided truly important insights to anyone in the signage business, Both Manufacturers And End-Users.

Even if her article is not strictly about LED Signage, I still think there are many interesting aspects that should be considered, as for example "why" and "how" a sign does Significantly Affect Your Business.

Today I'm republishing the "Introduction" - and I will post the rest of Ms Claus article in the next few days. Please note that I edited the original text by adding some highlights (ie. bold) to underline what I considered the most important parts.

In a few passages of the article you will find specific references to the American population, but I think most of the principle explained are valid, with some adjustments, to the Population Of Any Country.

Ms Karen E. Claus is also author of "The Sign User's Guide: A Marketing Aid", a very interesting book that I strongly recommend you to read if you are in the Sign Business (either LED or not). You can find it on Amazon.com.

I am sure you will find it interesting.

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SIGNS AND YOUR BUSINESS

By Karen E. Claus
University of California, San Francisco, California

INTRODUCTION

Signs are one of the most efficient and effective communication media available to the small businesses.

Signs help people find you; they reach people who are passing by your establishment.

In short, signs tell people what you are selling. Signs are such a powerful communication medium that it is difficult to estimate the extent of their influence.

What Signs Can Do for Your Business

Signs Give Information About Your Business and Direct People to Your Location

Signs index the environment. This is especially true for travelers, new members of your community, and impulse shoppers who may be on a journey to purchase a particular good or service that you sell. Americans are mobile.

Each year we travel over 1.7 trillion miles by automobile and approximately 19 percent of us change our place of residence.

A primary source of customers for your business is the large number of people who are new to your community or who may be just passing by.

Your sign is the Most Effective Way of reaching this mobile or transient group of potential customers.

Signs Are Street Advertising

• For most businesses the street is where customers are. The message conveyed on the street reaches people who are Close Enough to make a purchase.
  
  
  
• Street advertising also helps people Develop A Memory of the products and services you sell. People tend to buy from businesses they know.
  
  
  
• A sign can Appeal To A Given Group of potential customers. If you have a particular market segment that you wish to attract to your business, your sign can be an important means of bringing these people in.

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In the next part (posted on Tuesday February 6th) Ms Claus further explain what is "The Advantages of Signs"