What are sign walkers?
Sign walkers are humans holding signs.
They can be stationary at major intersections, and / or walking
and preferably, waving their signs to attract the attention of passersby.
Other terms that are commonly used to describe sign walkers include
human signs, signwalkers, sign holders, sign wavers, sign twirlers,
sign-walkers, and walking billboards. Whatever you call them, sign
walkers are one of the oldest and still one of the most effective
means of outdoor advertising. The newest and most effective are
called the arrow sign spinners.
What makes sign walkers so effective?
There are many reasons why we see sign
walkers succeed when other more conventional forms of advertising
fail. First and foremost, they target a different customer. The
"impulse" buyer. The impulse buyer is ready
to buy now. He just doesn't realize it yet. The sign
walker creates urgency which is what the impulse buyer needs. Second,
the sign walker targets prospective buyers that are already in your
area and in their car. Traditional methods of advertising such as
direct mail, door hangers, or television advertisements target customers
in their homes. These methods, though effective, still require the
individual to leave their home to visit your sales event. By targeting
people already traveling away from their home you've accomplished
half of your goal. Third, the sign walker uses animation to attract
the attention of people in a way that stationary signs cannot. Motion
advertising such as sky streamers, balloons, giant inflatables and
sign walkers have been a favorite of auto dealerships and other
retailers for a long time. Savvy merchandisers have long realized
the importance of using motion in point of purchase displays, as
well as outdoor advertising. Sign walkers are often accompanied
by store decorations consisting of huge 4-foot signs and 2-foot
community signs strategically placed in the immediate area for added
exposure. Arrow signs are also used to aid in directing traffic
to your location. This is commonly referred to as a sign event,
or sign promotion.
What kind of businesses benefit from sign walkers?
Just about any retail business you
can think of, can use sign walkers as an effective tool to generate
huge amounts of foot traffic to their location. Auto Dealerships,
Furniture Stores, Jewelry Outlets, Linens, Bed & Bath, Restaurants,
Fitness Centers, Retail Chains, Spas, Housing Tracts, Game Room
Furniture, Mattress Stores, Tile and Flooring Outlets, Carpet Stores,
Home Improvement Centers, Hardware Stores, Billiard Tables and more.
How cost effective are sign walkers?
Compared to other forms of advertising,
sign-walkers have consistently outperformed other forms of advertising
such as door hangers and direct mail, print advertising such as
newspaper and magazine ads, and television. For example, sale
events using signs and sign
walkers are considerably cheaper than most other forms
of advertising. They are easily organized at the last minute and
seldom take more than a week to prepare. When you consider that
for only a couple of thousand dollars you can increase your weekend
sales anywhere from 50% -100% or more, it becomes obvious that using
sign-walkers gives you the most bang for your advertising buck!
Signwalkers are also available in costumes to help promote the particular
theme of your event.
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