Dothan, Alabama is like many other cities with sign shops popping up on every corner.  Some of these companies seem to think by simply purchasing a vinyl plotter and software they are a master graphic artist.  I am no Michelangelo painting a masterpiece, but I have learned a few things over the years to help ensure my clients a positive ROI (Return On Investment). While driving around Dothan looking at signs and vehicle lettering some of these companies are turning out I wonder how they benefit the companies advertising plan.  It is sad for the companies who paid for some of these signs and the negative impact it can have on their bottom line.

I saw a lawn care company’s enclosed trailer the other day while pumping gas.  The lawn care trailer was sitting across the small gas station parking lot.  The graphic design was very difficult to read on the side of the trailer.  The graphics looked like a big blob slapped on the side of the trailer.  It was not doing the job for the lawn care company.  Grant it the lawn care company owner most likely requested the vinyl letters to be red with a black outline as his truck is red not knowing this color combination is hard to discern.  It is our job as a graphic artist to advise the client on what colors will work, and guide them to a solution that will provide positive results.  Red letters with a black outline almost always yields a negative result because it is very difficult to discern.  I went over to talk to the lawn care company about their graphics.  They agreed it was very difficult to read and said they would like to talk after the holidays about wrapping the trailer with a more effective message.

When designing signage for road signs, vehicles, trailers, and so on it is important to understand what works for the use of the graphic design.  Factors like viewing distance come into play.  How fast are people passing the sign is a very important question to answer before designing the graphic.  Whats the point of putting a book on your sign when people can not read it as they pass by?  Most people will turn away from signs with more than 6 words.

Another thing I noticed is kerning problems with some of the signs and graphic designs around Dothan.  Kerning is the spacing between the letters on your sign.  The longer the viewing distance the wider the kerning needs to be.  For instance, on a billboard sign kerning would be spaced out to make the sign easier to read as a car travels by the sign at 55 mph.  When designing website graphics we may tighten up the kerning a little to maximize space on the website.  The difference is a computer monitor is 2 feet from your eyes and a billboard can be much more than 200 yards away from you.

The point I am making is you should seek out a sign company and/or graphic design company who understands how to build an effective advertisement.  I am not saying all sign shops and graphic designers in the area have these problems.  You should inspect previous work of a company you are considering working with.  After all it is your business and in many way you are putting your company in the hands of the person generating your advertisements.  Do you want to work with someone with experience in marketing? If so be sure to Contact 509 Media.  If you would like to sit down and talk about how 509 Media can benefit your company be sure to Contact 509 to set up a meeting.

Our services include the follwing:

• Graphic Design
• Logo Design
• Website Design
• Advertising Consulting
• Signs
• Banners
• Vehicle Wraps
• Enclosed Trailer Wraps
• Fleet Graphics
• Window Graphics
• Business Cards
• Stickers
• Ad layout for print and internet
• Ad Placement
• Planning
• Branding
• Personal Branding
• Social Media Marketing
• and more.