How To Get Creative With Monument Signage & Channel Letters
If you’re thinking about upgrading the look of your property’s entrance, consider using monument signage and channel letters. This signage and design style can welcome visitors while introducing and reinforcing your brand in a beautiful and creative way.
Let’s look at a few ways you can use monument signage and channel letters to update the entrance to your office, theme park, multifamily property, or retail business.
What Is Monument Signage?
Monument signage refers to ground-based signs that are usually placed at the entrance of a property near the parking lot or close to the road. Think about the giant SeaWorld sign along I-4 or a sign made out of stone that greets you as you enter a neighborhood. Those are examples of monument signage.
These signs introduce drivers and visitors to the brand while also becoming part of the local environment. They can either be designed in a bright way to attract the eye or in a natural design to match the local flora and fauna.
What Is Channel Lettering?
Channel letters are custom stand-alone letters used on exterior signage. They are used on signs where the letters are attached to a base, rather than printed on one piece of material. Channel lettering can help you express your creativity because they are one of the most flexible lettering options on the market.
Look at our design for Sparkman Wharf to see bold channel letters in action. These letters light up with custom LED neon flex tubes and are easy to see from across the road. The Wharf is also a fun gathering point in Tampa Bay, which means visitors and locals alike want to take pictures with this statement signage.
Tips for Using Monument Signage & Channel Letters
If you want to get creative with the entrance of your property using monument signage and channel letters, try a few of these best practices.
1. Play with colors and lighting.
There are multiple levers you can pull with your design style for monument signage. Two of the main features are your colors and signage lighting.
Your color choices often reflect your branding. However, you can decide which colors are featured most prominently and which ones provide accepts to your brand. For example, you may decide to opt for a fresh white sign with blue accents – even if your logo is light blue on dark blue.
Color choice and lighting work together to create a unified look. You can uplight your sign (where lights on the ground illuminate the letters), backlight it (where the light comes from behind), or use a variety of other styles to create a unique look. Your lighting can create a sense of motion or establish your brand firmly in that location.
Think about the colors you want to use, and then turn to your lighting. When these two elements work together, they can create a sign that draws in all kinds of eyes.
Related: 4 Ways to Use Lighting To Complement Your Exterior Signage
2. Use unique brand styles.
You want monument signage that attracts customers and makes them want to learn more about your business. Think about the ground-based signs you see for national parks. The clear yellow letters and brown background are easy to see while conveying a natural feel. The U.S. National Park Service branding is recognizable across the nation (and even the world).
At Creative Sign Designs, we have worked to guide customers on their signage through their branding. At Busch Gardens, we created monument signage for their entrance, utilizing the unique tree logo that is designed to look like a roller coaster. The monument looks like a tree growing from the ground but is uplit with LEDs to make the colors pop just as much at night as during the day. Your creativity starts at the design table. We can then take your brand and make your signage outstanding.
3. Use LED illumination.
Your exterior signage needs to be clear and reliable. You don’t want to install a sign made of cheap materials that will look worn or break within a few months or years. Not only is this a bad experience (your customers will think your brand is low-quality if you can’t keep your sign fixed), but it also creates more work for your team and costs you more to keep your sign working.
One of the great things about LED lighting is that it isn’t that much more expensive than your down-market alternatives. In fact, it can help you save money in the long run. LEDs last 50x longer than incandescent bulbs and can reduce energy consumption by up to 70%. If you want your signage to be noticed, it needs to be reliable. LED lighting can help.
Related: 5 Considerations For Exterior Sign Maintenance That Lasts For Years
4. Get creative with your materials.
One of the benefits of installing monument signage is that you don’t have to worry about choosing light materials that can be mounted on a wall or on a pole. This means you can look for heavier materials that also match your brand.
Consider developing a base made of stone or framing your sign with natural stones from your region. You can also play with different metals and monument thickness to create an engaging experience that people want to look at. The sheer flexibility with this signage makes it one of the most creative options for displaying your brand in your business.
Get Creative with Monumental Signage & Channel Letters
You don’t have to be especially creative to design monument signage that attracts your customers – you just have to hire the right people for the job. At Creative Sign Designs, we have a team ready to help you with the creative design of your monument signage.
Let us help you. Request a consultation today and see how we can help you identify where your monumental signage should go and how you can design it to attract attention.
