It’s hard to imagine, but could it be spring just around the corner? At last its that time again to don our coats and venture outdoors. The better weather heralds the start of summer events and entertainments with special promotions and incentives to participate in.

It’s an important period of the year for businesses too, with an increase in trade and an opportunity to maximise profits. Companies will need to be advertising outside where the customers are and what better way to get noticed than by strategically setting up outdoor banners.

These versatile, useful, low cost displays offer benefits for every type of business. You just need to be creative in their design and location, to really make them work for your business. If you’re a little stuck for creative uses for outdoor banners then read on…

Creative Uses For Outdoor Banners

Hatch a plan

As with any special marketing promotion the best place to start is with a plan to ensure your business is organised and able to achieve the objective. Decide specifically what exactly you want to gain from advertising outdoors. Do you need to sell more of a certain product? Are you offering a new service for customers to be aware of? Or maybe it’s just about reminding existing customers who you are and what you do?

Have in mind what type of person or market group you are aiming at and then design your outdoor banner with them in mind. Ensure the strapline, heading or question will appeal to them; will they understand the context and way that it’s worded. It’s not going to make an impact if the style of text is too ‘verbose’ or on the other hand too ‘street.’ If you are targeting young people then keep content concise, up-to-date and fresh with subject matter they will acknowledge and respond to. An older demographic group will take notice of more conventional text, less vivid colours and images that reflect their particular values in life.

Once you have identified who the outdoor banner is for, find the best location for it to be set up. Where are your target group most likely to be at this time of year? What will they be doing and where? This is where your outdoor banners need to be positioned too.

Creative locations for outdoor banners

Outdoor banners are conveniently lightweight meaning you can set them up just about anywhere – as long as it’s legal! But also they are reassuringly resilient to withstand the external elements and in particular, the British weather! Whether your business occupies it’s own premises or not, there are a host of prominent locations where you can fix or stand your outdoor banner. Consider some of these:

Outside your premises – by the door, fascias, on a wall/fence/gate, car park, walkways, trees
At venues – hotel & supermarket car parks; shopping centres; leisure centres & gyms; cafes & restaurants
Throughout the town – particularly when sponsoring an event
At traffic intersections – roundabouts; multi-way traffic signals
On scaffolding frames
Railway & bus stations
Markets

Once you have decided which location (or locations), are best for your campaign think about how much space is available and how you will secure your outdoor banner in order to select the most suitable model for your needs.

Which outdoor banner to choose?

As you’d expect there’s plenty of choice when it comes to investing in an outdoor banner for your business. Some are very simple but effective and can be secured on walls & fencing and some are free standing so they can be relocated when required. They come in many shapes, sizes and format depending on what your preference is and how long it will remain in use. Eazy Print specialise in all things banner and provide outdoor displays for every occasion. The main types of outdoor banner available on the market are summarised below:

PVC banners come in a range of sizes with either single or double sided graphics depending on where you will be placing the display. They are durable, weatherproof and are guaranteed not to fade overtime. Hemming ensures the banner doesn’t fray or unravel and they are securely fixed onto buildings or fencing via metal eyelets and bungee cords. Another option for securing the PVC banner is on its own stand and with the addition of ground pegs to ensure they remain in situ even in strong winds.
If you would like your outdoor banner to stay in the same place for the long term or plan to locate it in an exposed site it would be wiser to choose the Mesh banner which can withstand the full force of nature for longer. Tiny holes in the PVC allow the wind and elements to blow through rather than butt against it continually, reducing the level of tension on the material. These types of outdoor banner are available in very large sizes due to the resilience of the material but are recommended for attachment to walls or buildings
X Banners are individual, free standing tension displays with a water fillable base for extra stability. The frame is in the shape of an ‘X’ and the graphic panels are easily interchangeable if you need to alter your message. As with all outdoor banners they are printed with durable non fade inks and are reinforced with metal eyelets. These displays are easy to set up and dismantle when you need to change location quickly and without fuss.
Outdoor roller banners are single or double sided retractable banners that fold down to the size of a rolled up poster. So if you only need to use your outdoor banner during the summer, they are very compact and easy to store away in their own carry bag. They also require little space when transporting them. The outdoor roller banner is a much sturdier model than those for indoor use and can withstand a force of Beaufort scale 5 if the display is pegged down.

Get creative with your outdoor banners

Best Banner Design

When thinking about what to put on your outdoor banner be mindful that when people view it they will usually be on the move and have lliterally a few seconds to read it. So keep wording to a minimum and to the point and avoid over-cluttering your design. Headings, text and contact details need to be large enough to read and in a legible font. Ensure that you don’t use too many different colours and that they complement or contrast well. Choose one good quality image that summarises your message and catches the eye. If you have chosen well this image should do the work for you and draw in the appropriate audience.

Best use of your banner

Imagine yourself as a passer by who unexpectedly comes upon your outdoor banner and in a moment has read, digested and weighed up the content which will determine your response. What would catch your attention? How quickly would you be able to take in the information and how are you likely to respond?

Putting yourself in your potential customer’s shoes will help you to visualise what will make the most successful design and where would be the optimal place to put it.

Maybe some of the following suggestions will be useful:

Do you own a café, restaurant or bar? Could you use PVC outdoor banners to cordon off an outside area for some external dining during the summer months? Or for beach and forest refreshment kiosks designate an area for dog walkers using the designed banners?

If you are opening a new business or launching a product make the most of communal areas outside your premises such as car parks, walk ways and access roads to advertise the key benefits? Find appropriate locations on main routes to put up PVC banner stands indicating the way to your business, with distance countdowns to the exact location.

Organise entry and walk ways around an outdoor event using a combination of Exo banner walls, roller banners and X banners to guide visitors around the site and give them information about the event or access to public facilities.

Set up a series of simple text only banners designed in the same way to build expectation or interest in a venue suitable for special events such as weddings, anniversaries or family occasions. Each banner would contain a single phrase or question which would be continued on the next banner, following a theme, to get your audience thinking along the lines of what you are offering.

Or you could set up a large highly visible outdoor banner above your shop door inviting everyone in to come and have a look!

Once you get those creative juices going the ideas will come in thick and fast. But if they don’t there is always Plan B! If you’re struggling with creative uses for outdoor banners, give the team at Eazy Print a call on (02380) 700 111… because being creative is what they do best and they will be happy to help!