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How to Audit Your Raleigh Wayfinding and Architectural Signage

2/23/2022 | admin

Architectural and wayfinding signage are an integral part of a successful Raleigh business.

They help drive new business when people driving by see them and allow people to find your exact location—something that is a bit more challenging when using Google or Apple Maps. It’s advisable to conduct an architectural and wayfinding signage audit once a quarter. This will allow you to catch little things before they turn into major issues that could negatively affect business. It will also help you ensure that the signage is up to date and conveys accurate information. If you’re like most Raleigh business owners, you probably don’t look at your architectural and wayfinding signage very often. After all, as the years go by, we often grow accustomed to seeing the same signage over and over again—and we might overlook certain things. Read on to learn more about how to perform an audit on your architectural and wayfinding signage.

Performing a Signage Audit

Before performing your audit, make sure you have a pen and notepad handy. It will allow you to write down your thoughts immediately and prevent you from forgetting the things you learned during your audit. As you make your way around the parking lot and exterior of your building, consider the following questions:

Do my signs need maintenance of any sort?
Are they cracked, yellowed, dirty, or damaged?
Is the information on my signage up-to-date?
Is vegetation obscuring the signage?
Do my wayfinding signs convey easy-to-understand information?
If applicable, does the lighting on my signage work?

If there’s a huge digital architectural sign in the parking lot of your building that displays the businesses located there, give that a look as well. Are the information and logo used for your business accurate and current? Or is the digital sign working at all? Believe it or not, these signs often malfunction, and it can take upwards of several months before someone notices and fixes them. Your customers most likely will not inform your employees of a broken outdoor digital sign. You should also make sure that all holiday promotions on the digital sign are gone. Many Raleigh digital signs still display Christmas and New Year’s messaging well into March. If there’s a problem, get in touch with your landlord or property management company as quickly as possible. After you’ve completed auditing your building signs, you should move on to the indoor signage. For example, if your business is in a plaza with other companies, put yourself in the shoes of a first-time customer or client—can you use the wayfinding signage to find your office or store easily?

An Obvious Problem

As a Raleigh business owner, you probably don’t pay attention to your outdoor signage on a regular basis. Or if you do, you’ve become so accustomed to seeing the same sight day in, and day out, there’s an extremely good chance that you’re missing something. When you perform your audit, take an employee or two with you. They might point out things that you’re missing—such as a sign that’s yellowing or cracked. Or the fact that the location where you installed your current architectural sign can’t be seen clearly from the nearby intersection.

A Reflection of Your Brand

Your outdoor and wayfinding signage is a clear reflection of your company brand. Let’s pretend that you own a restaurant, and your architectural sign is yellowing and cracked in several spots. When a potential customer drives by, they will subconsciously and unintentionally associate your stale old sign with the quality of your food. New outdoor signage can help attract new business. It will also cause drivers who see your sign every day to take notice that something is different. This can also help instill and improve trust as it shows that you care about every aspect of your business.

Branding and Marketing Help in Raleigh

Don’t take your architectural and outdoor signage for granted! They’re one of the first things customers see when they pull up to your business. Just a quick 15-minute audit every four months will help ensure that your signs are up to date and working as intended. Put your best foot forward and let the signage experts at AlphaGraphics of Raleigh help you create the perfect architectural or wayfinding sign. Our expert in-house designers will help you with the design of your sign so that it makes the biggest impact upon those who view it. At AlphaGraphics of Raleigh, we’re much more than a print shop—we’re also marketing experts who you can count on to help you when it comes time to market your business. To learn more about how AlphaGraphics of Downtown Raleigh can help with your content marketing needs, you may email us, request a quote, or call us at (919) 832-2828.

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