How to Make a Good Impression with Outdoor Signage

Your restaurant sign does so much more than announce the name of your restaurant. Your sign attracts customers and then sends them a message about what to expect from their dining experience with you. Creating an appropriate sign for your new restaurant should command almost the same level of discussion, interest and creativity as designing the interior of your restaurant.

Yes, it's that important. In fact, a case can be made that the right sign is more important for a new restaurant than for an established one. A steakhouse that's been a community institution for 30 years may be able to get away with an old-fashioned, well-worn sign. That sign may even be part of its charm. Not so with a new restaurant.

Bob Burnett's company, Danthonia Designs, specializes in custom-carved, hand-painted signs. He says, "A new restaurant wants to convey that it's established. A cloth or vinyl banner does not communicate that you have a well-established operation." He adds, "If you don't have decent signage, you're going to end up losing potential customers who pull in somewhere else where the sign is more appealing. Your sign conveys your quality."

If you don't have decent signage, you're going to end up losing potential customers who pull in somewhere else where the sign is more appealing. Your sign conveys your quality. -- Bob Burnett, Dathonia Designs

A sign is an advertisement, but it's more than that. A sign is also an investment in your business. A sign is a promise to your customers. When your customers see a restaurant sign that communicates good food in a pleasing atmosphere, the food and service you provide pay off the promise that your sign makes. That's a lot of pressure to put on one sign -- and that's why you need to carefully consider all of the functions you want your restaurant sign to perform. Here are four goals for your sign: