As a top-rated signage firm serving schools and colleges in Bloomington and the wider McLean County region, we at Simply Divine Signs understand the impact of a stunning entrance sign. It’s often the first impression visitors receive of your esteemed institution. Our custom signs enhance your campus’s prestige and visibility while welcoming students and families. But we know deciding on the perfect sign is challenging. What message do you want to convey? How do you encapsulate your institution’s essence? What materials and design details should you consider? From concept to installation, this guide breaks down the process of creating a one-of-a-kind entrance sign that builds school spirit and delivers the ‘wow’ factor.
Clarifying Your Signage Goals
The first step is outlining the purpose you want your sign to serve. Do you need a sign that is easily visible from the road to direct people to your campus? Or a more intimate sign with your school crest that greets those who arrive? Determining key goals helps our artistic team transform your message into impactful signage. During consultations, we explore important queries like:
- What feelings do you want the sign to evoke in visitors?
- How can the signage reinforce your brand identity and values?
- Does it need to provide directional or navigational assistance?
- What architectural elements should the signage complement?
By answering these questions, we gain critical insights to craft signage that meets both functional and emotional objectives. The end result is a custom entrance sign that visitors instantly connect with on a deeper level.
Designing With Your Brand in Mind
Your school or college’s brand is what sets you apart. It’s conveyed through logos, colors, fonts, images, and more. For signage to feel authentic, it must align with your established visual identity. Our skilled designers adeptly translate unique branding elements into stunning sign creations through:
- Typography: We select lettering styles and sizes that communicate your brand’s tone and visual hierarchy. Bold, all-caps fonts might reinforce school spirit. An elegant serif typeface could nod to tradition.
- Color Palettes: Incorporating signature school colors, metallic accents, or complementary hues creates cohesion between buildings and signage for high visual impact. We also consider legibility needs.
- Icons: From familiar mascot illustrations to abstract symbols, customized icons make signs more engaging and memorable. They’re excellent for conveying ideas quickly.
- Materials: The surfaces, textures, shapes used influence the look and feel tremendously. Natural materials like stone connote timelessness whereas sleek steel denotes modernity. We determine options fitting for you.
- Lighting: For nighttime visibility, illumination is key. Backlighting casts a striking glow while downlighting creates a more subtle effect. We advise on lighting design for functionality and drama.
By uniting these elements with your distinctive brand touchpoints kept in mind, we produce signage that powerfully communicates your essence.
Crafting Signs that Withstand the Elements
Once the design direction is set, we focus our efforts on constructing signs durable enough to maintain their integrity and beauty over many years. As a leading sign company, we only utilize premium materials capable of enduring tough Midwest conditions through intense sun, rain, snow, and fluctuating temperatures. Our specialized material options include:
- Wood: Expertly finished and sealed hardwood signs impart a polished, timeless statement. We also can incorporate hand-carved designs for added dimensionality.
- Metal: From aluminum to steel to iron, metal signs offer sleek styling and industrial strength. We use special treatments to prevent corrosion and fading.
- Acrylic: With vivid color-fastness and UV protection, acrylic allows for vibrant graphics that pop. It’s also easily customized into diverse shapes.
- Digital Print: Through advanced large-format printing, we reproduce highly detailed logos, photography, textures and more on weather-resistant vinyls.
- Masonry: For institutions seeking permanence, we construct sturdy signs from stone, brick, and concrete built to endure for generations.
By leveraging these rugged materials manufactured specifically for exterior use, your custom signage maintains its integrity through the area’s variable climate.
Strategic Placement for Maximum Impact
Where you position entrance signage affects its visibility and impression. Our team considers vital factors like sight lines, distance, landscaping, and lighting angles when advising on optimal placement. We also examine existing structures and terrain to align signage accordingly. Key placement tips include:
- Angle signs perpendicular to incoming vehicular traffic for the widest viewing range from the road
- Ensure signs are adequately sized and elevated for clear visibility
- Illuminate signs to enhance nighttime presence
- Situate signs in proper scale within the built environment so they don’t get overpowered or overwhelm
- Allow breathing room around signs so landscaping doesn’t encroach and obscure
By plotting placement intentionally, your custom sign transforms into a striking campus focal point that grabs attention from near and far.
Complete Campus Signage Solutions
While entrance signs make powerful statements, additional signage is often needed across campuses for wayfinding, parking, and event advertising. As a full-service sign company, Simply Divine Signs creates complete signage packages that work cohesively together to elevate functionality and aesthetics campus-wide. From directional signs to building IDs, donor walls, and digital displays, our comprehensive signage solutions enhance navigation and effectively convey information while representing your brand consistently. Investing in a unified signage system amplifies recognition and eliminates visual confusion.
Realizing the Full Potential of Your Signage
For schools and colleges seeking to bolster their image and better connect with audiences, a tailored entrance sign serves as an invaluable asset for years to come. Our seasoned team brings artistic innovation, technical mastery and customer dedication to every signage project. We guide you through each design decision to create statement signage that packs visual impact and instills pride across your entire institution. Let’s explore how Simply Divine Signs can help your campus signage realize its full potential. Contact us today for a consultation.