| I was visiting a client for the first time, the Union | | | | signs with arrows on the wall to direct people to |
| Sanitary District, 40 miles from my office in the | | | | various points. |
| San Francisco Bay Area, in an industrial part of | | | | Help Customers Avoid Becoming "Lost In Place" |
| Union City, bounded by swampland and factories. | | | | Parking structures at movie theatres, airports and |
| But I was far from lost. | | | | malls are evaluated for efficiency by their signage. |
| - As I exited the freeway onto a major | | | | Their challenge: to help you remember where you |
| thoroughfare, a giant sign announced we were | | | | parked your car. They do it through use of colors, |
| headed the right direction to this site. | | | | symbols, mnemonics and other techniques to help |
| - Another sign signaled a turn onto a side street. | | | | you navigate from and back to your car. |
| - A third sign, a half-mile later, signaled I was to | | | | Where in the Recoleta is Eva Perón? |
| continue straight on the road I was traveling | | | | Ever gotten lost in a cemetery? Consider La |
| - Finally the last sign signaled I'd reached my | | | | Recoleta, a graveyard that is a city unto itself in |
| destination. | | | | Buenos Aries. Without a map, guide or key, how |
| Signage As Service | | | | would one ever find relatives and loved ones, |
| We know time is money. Now we realize signage | | | | including Eva Duarte Perón? There's a sign at |
| is service too. Signs speak a language of their | | | | the entrance, but then you're on your own. |
| own. They tell us where we are, where to go and | | | | Answer the following questions for yourself: |
| how to get there. They can comfort or confuse | | | | - What does your signage say about your |
| us, lead us or lose us. Yet signs do more than | | | | business? |
| that. | | | | - What messages do your signs convey to your |
| Signs tell us what to buy, what options exist, | | | | customers? |
| what is on sale, where to pay and more. Signs | | | | - How easily can they find themselves, your |
| are found on billboards, freeways, buildings, | | | | products, services and staff? |
| websites and many other places. Good signage | | | | - What signs are missing? Are there signs that |
| scores points! Bad signage consigns you to | | | | could elucidate processes, instructions, locations, |
| irrelevance. Give your customers confidence | | | | routes or other pertinent information? |
| through solid signage! | | | | - Is your brand or logo reinforced by your |
| Walk The Line | | | | signage? |
| Hospitals often use colored lines painted on the | | | | Give your customers confidence to find what |
| floor to lead patients and visitors from the | | | | they're looking for, without effort, exertion and |
| information booth to various destinations: | | | | frustration. Don't make them think! |
| Radiology, Lab, Pharmacy, etc. They also use | | | | |