Lucy - BQ Magazine EditorMarketing. It can be a bit of a minefield for small businesses, can’t it? Knowing what the right type of marking is for you, what to avoid, how to implement local SEO, social media, and much more is enough to make your brain explode.
But sometimes, it doesn’t need to be that complicated. Some of the simplest forms of marketing can be enough for your small business. You don’t need to think outside the box; you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. You simply need to make sure your marketing message is clear and hits the right audience. For small local businesses, this audience is usually on your doorstep.
There are many tried and tested marketing approaches for local businesses that are still effective. One such method is the yard sign. A yard sign is essentially a sign that you pop out on display, typically on a yard, and let it do the marketing for you. You can use custom printed yard signs in residential yards; for example, if you’ve just completed work at a property and want people to know it’s you who completed the transformation, you can use them at events; for example, a busy local market to make your stall stand out a bit more, outside of a store to entice people in, or for outdoor advertising anywhere you are allowed to leave a sign.
But what are the benefits of using yard signs for small businesses?
1. Excellent for Highlighting Promotions and Seasonal Offers
Pretty self-explanatory. If you have an offer promoting seasonal lines or deals, then your yard sign can help you get the word out. Once you know where you’re putting the sign, you can use it to inform people of what is going on in your business and share your offers or promotions with locals who might see it. The best part is, once the offer or promotion has run its course, you can simply take the sign down and put it away until you need it again.
2. They’re Attention Grabbing
Designed correctly, or let’s be honest, even badly, yard signs are eye-catching. It opens after that, and the message is that people’s heads will always turn to look at a sign when they see one. Yard signs are designed to be attention-grabbing and the perfect medium for you to add anything to get your business in front of as many people as possible. This bold and unapologetic marketing method can give you the confidence that your business will stand out, even in a crowded market, boosting your confidence about your business’s visibility.
3. Cost Effective
Yard signs can be pulled out or left out for long periods, meaning that if you invest in high-quality signs, they will be more cost-effective than other forms of marketing, such as radio ads or leaflets, which you may need to pay for every few months. This cost-effectiveness can give you peace of mind, knowing that you’re making a smart investment in your business’s visibility, reassuring you about your marketing investment.
You just need to create the perfect evergreen graphics and message for your yard sign. Then, it can be left wherever you want to leave it and used for many years to come.
4. Increase Brand Awareness
Even if people don’t need your services or products, your signage can help you increase brand awareness. If, in the future, they require what your business provides, you will be at the forefront of their minds. Or they will think of your business and recommend it to others simply because your sign has etched a palace in their memory.
Content For Your Socials
Another way they can increase brand awareness is if people snap a pic with them (you could use this to run a promotion encouraging them to share on social media, maybe?) and post it to their social media channels or send it to friends. This allows you to increase brand awareness without actually having to do too much yourself.
If you want to increase brand awareness in a noninvasive yet impactful way, a yard sign could be exactly what you need.
The humble yard sign has been used as an effective marketing tool for many years, and this isn’t likely to change in the future. From adding a sign to the home you’re trying to sell or have sold as a real estate agent to telling passersby your landscaping company completed the work in this property’s yard or grabbing people’s attention to divert them into your store, multiple sectors can benefit from the yard sign and use it as an effective marketing tool.