Social distancing and safety signage isn’t going away anytime soon. While your business needs to adhere to those mandates a while longer, customers are tired of seeing the same generic signs everywhere they go. What’s even worse are the handwritten signs and the peeling tape that’s spread along the floor. Having worn, outdated, or dirty signage could be sending the wrong message about your brand.
Now is the time to refresh and replace your COVID-19 signage. But beyond that, it’s time to rethink how you do safety signage altogether! Your signs can—and should—be used as a tool to reinforce your brand messages and boost your marketing efforts.
Consider these four ways to maximize your marketing with social distancing signage.
1. Align with Your Branding
At this point, everyone knows the guidelines for social distancing in public. Signs mainly serve as reminders to ensure customers follow those practices within your building. For this reason, consider changing those generic neon or bright red signs to something that more closely aligns with your brand.
You can tell the story of your business by redesigning your social distancing signage to match your branding and décor. Incorporate elements of your brand identity, such as colors, fonts, shapes, and images—or even your brand mascot or character—to make signs unique to your business. Doing so will increase brand awareness and create a more pleasant experience for customers while reinforcing safety standards.
2. Advertise Your Products
Your social distancing signage isn’t only good for branding—it can also help promote what your business has to offer! Try incorporating product messaging and imagery into your signs in place of the usual social distancing symbols and language.
For example, if you own a car dealership, you can promote the vehicles you sell by encouraging customers to stand a “Camry” or a “Jetta” length apart. Alternatively, if you run a burger joint, you could redesign your floor graphics to feature a different delicious-looking burger every six feet.
This clever advertising strategy also provides opportunities for cross-selling and upselling, particularly when it’s used near the point of sale or where customers will be waiting in line.
3. Get Creative
Few people would call the average health and safety sign “fun,” but that doesn’t mean it can’t be! Social distancing signage doesn’t need to have one standard look for every business. You have the opportunity to mix it up and be creative.
There are tons of ways to “wow” customers with your creativity. Signage can be aligned with holidays, major events, or the seasons—think snowflakes in the winter or flip-flops in the summer. You can also tie industry information into your signs. For example, gyms might include a quick health fact on every graphic, while a wine shop might theme its social distancing signs around different varietals.
The more creative you are with your signage, the more you’ll surprise your customers. This leads to a more memorable visit to your business and leaves them with a positive impression of your brand. Plus, creative signs are more eye-catching, meaning people are more likely to pay attention and adhere to what they say.
4. Generate Leads
Safety signage doesn’t have to be a static experience that only enforces healthy behaviors inside your business. It can also be used as a powerful lead generation tool that encourages customers to engage with your brand long after they’ve visited your physical location.
This is easily achieved by adding QR codes to your signs. With a quick scan, customers are directed to a webpage where they can sign up for a loyalty program, subscribe to your marketing emails or newsletter, download your app, or receive a discount code!
These lead generation tactics help draw customers’ attention to your signage and provide an added incentive for them. In the end, this helps you build long-term relationships with your audience across multiple platforms.
Create Strategic Signage That Works for Your Brand
Social distancing signage doesn’t have to be standard. You can turn something necessary for public health and safety into a unique opportunity for business marketing and branding!
If it’s time for your business to update your signage, partner with AlphaGraphics Middleton to replace your worn or outdated signs with something brand new. We can help you create customized designs that get noticed and bolster your marketing efforts, so you can put your best foot forward.