Storefront and Window Signage for Winter Foot Traffic

Winter changes how people walk past your shop. They move faster, their heads are down, their hoods are up and they are thinking about getting somewhere warm. It also gets dark early, so much of your foot traffic sees your storefront under streetlights and headlights, not sunshine.

Signage that works in July can disappear in December. Here is how to plan windows, sidewalk signs and banners for the season you are actually in.

Design for a Glance, Not a Read

Someone walking briskly in the cold gives your window a glance. That glance has to carry one message. Not your full menu, not every service and not three offers at once.

Ask yourself what you want a passerby to know in that moment. "Open." "Hot coffee." "Gift cards inside." "Walk-ins welcome." Lead with that, make it big and let everything else be secondary.

Contrast Beats Color in Low Light

On a gray afternoon or after dark, subtle color choices turn to mud. Pale gray on white, dark blue on black and thin script fonts all fade out.

• Use strong contrast: dark text on a light background or light text on a dark one.
• Choose thick, simple letterforms over thin or decorative ones.
• Give the main message plenty of space around it.
• Check how your window looks with the lights on inside. Glare and reflections can hide a sign that looked fine on screen.

Windows: Show Some Inside

It is tempting to cover every inch of glass with promotions. Resist it. People want to see a warm, lit space with life inside, and that view is one of the best signs you have.

Window clings ($24.99) are a flexible way to add messages without blocking the view. Put the most important cling at eye level near the door, keep a clear band of glass so people can see in and post your winter hours where someone standing at the door can read them. Seasonal clings also make it easy to change your message as the weeks go by.

Sidewalk Signs: Meet People Where They Walk

An A-frame sign ($139.99) puts your message directly in the path of foot traffic, which matters more when people are not looking up at storefronts. Use it for the thing that changes: today's special, a holiday event or a reason to step in out of the cold.

Write it to be read from across the street. Short words, big type, one idea per side. If you use both sides, make them say the same thing, so people coming from either direction get the message. Before you set it out, check with your landlord or city about where signs can sit, and keep the walkway clear for everyone.

Banners and Flags for Bigger Moments

For a grand opening, a holiday market or a sale weekend, a vinyl banner (from $24.99) on the building front announces it to people driving by, not just walking. A feather flag ($127.99) adds movement that catches the eye from the road. Yard signs ($24.99) can point the way if your entrance is around a corner or set back from the street.

Keep banner text even shorter than window text. Drivers get a second or two, not a minute.

Do Not Forget the Floor

Once people are inside, floor decals ($24.99) can greet them, point them toward the counter, mark a line or highlight a holiday display. They work well in entryways where people look down to stamp off snow.

The Walk-Past Test

Before you order, try this. Go outside at dusk. Walk past your shop at normal speed from both directions, then look from across the street. Ask:

1. Can I tell what this business is in one glance?
2. Can I tell if it is open?
3. Is there one clear reason to come in today?
4. Can I read the hours from the door?

Whatever fails the test is where your new signage should go.

Dec 7 to 13: 10% Off Signage

From Monday, December 7 through Sunday, December 13, signage is 10% off, including window clings, A-frame signs, banners, flags, yard signs and floor decals. The discount applies automatically at checkout, and the code SIGNS10 also works. See everything in our signage section.

Need the sign designed, not just printed? Our design services can build artwork that reads in a glance, and every print order includes a free artwork review. Questions about sizes or placement? Get in touch and we will help you plan it.

— Alan