The contribution of the placards to the urban landscape
May 20, 2010
Banners are an element of the urban landscape and, as such, they should follow a line consistent with your environment, but at the same time should have such different point that attracts attention. We must put an end to the idea that a banner is an expense, the reality is different. A label is an investment in the future, a commitment to an old, cheap and effective type of advertising.
How can the city and the citizen benefit?
The banner is an integral part of the urban universe, and is part of the landscape that surrounds us and decorate and given image to the streets of our city. It is an advertising element that we do more or less beautiful and liveable environments, provide useful information to citizens and publishing our own businesses. Outside of the traditional conception of the placards as identifiers of premises and companies, they have a wide range of applications and utilities that made the urban landscape and the network of services in each city.
Luminance and urban signs, traffic signs, informational fences, informative posters in different traffic routes, draw a concrete picture of each city. They are elements of great importance not only for the information and services offered by, but also as a decorative element of the city. You spend on your side without pay too much attention to them but they are there, in every street, every corner, every establishment and whatever you want or they are not the reference that guides us by urban environments, and why not, the stroke that gives color to the gray urban landscape.
This is why that councils have realized the importance that they have these housings in the image which projects the urban residents and tourists and have begun to regulate outdoor advertising of their metropolis by municipal ordinances. A recent example is the city of Madrid, which has developed a regulatory Ordinance of outdoor advertising to harmonize the image of the city.
What benefits will it brings to the employer?
As we have said previously, the label is part of the urban landscape, however, is a very specific support that has three purposes; It seeks to draw the attention of potential customers, identify the services provided in the establishment and create sales by impulse. It is more than a simple advertising claim, is also responsible for the largest or smallest number of visits and the element key which projected the image of the local or company to which represents.
The label in addition to acting as trim as information sign of activity of the local who advertises, is key in the volume of visits of the establishment.
The foundation of the United States signaling has published several studies which showed that the use of a label right and at the same time attractive increases the number of visits in more than 100%. It has been proven that these advertising media are among the cheapest and most effective advertising systems.
The sign is not an expense, is an investment for the future that pays for itself quickly and has a direct impact on a number of factors which are directly related to the number of visits of the establishment and the image of the brandhis memory and trust that it generates.
However, it is not so easy to make this efficient, from Aserluz, the Spanish Association of entrepreneurs of luminous signs and related industries, it is recommended that each employer ask himself three questions.
Do know my clients what I do?
Is it really my different label?
I is it generating I visits?
From there should analyse a number of very important factors involved in determining the value and profitability of the signs of my banner:
-The correct positioning and a dihedral angle which is visible and that projects both passers-by and urban traffic information.
-The color should maintain a chromatic harmony with the environment but at the same time try to highlight and influence as a differentiating element of the landscape, while maintaining a contrast for the correct readability of characters.
-The size must be governed by guidelines established by law in each municipality without losing the visibility to customers.
-Attractive design that produces visual impact, uncertainty, curiosity, and to generate a lasting image in memory of customers trying to always look for these to associate its brand to the product in question.
-A proper maintenance carried out by the label professionals, who are also trained to prepare the report of luminance.
A practical example
Cash Converters is a clear example of how the external image, banner, can change the overall image of a company, the confidence generated by the establishment in the public and increase the number of visitors and customers. So much so, that the percentage of visits in the shops has increased from 40% to 90% since the installation of the new façades.
Alejandro Reguero, director of Marketing of the company, detailed us the cosmetic reform that the company has applied to its external image: "we have renewed our logo, our corporate identity, seeking to project values of modernity, dynamism and are very attractive from visual point of view".
According to Alejandro Reguero company has managed to capture some new brand values, through for example the main color (Rubine Red) and the material of the label (Panaflex), Cash Converters has transformed the image of store in neighborhood by a new image of chain.
"The end result on the street is very important differentiated from the rest of shops, easy location and identification of the store for current and potential clients" explains the director of Marketing of Cash Converters.
A very important aspect for Cash Converters has also been the relevance that have new banners from point of view of both road traffic as a pedestrian brand knowledge generation. The objective in this respect is that banners function as billboards, or not is the open shop.