Sign Spinning

How many meetings have you had about new and creative advertising and signage? Has your company ever had an employee stand out on the street with a sign or in costume to promote some sort of event or special going on at your business?

Costumes and using labor to hold signs aren’t exactly new and ground breaking advertising territory. But if you’re thinking about outdoor advertising, holding signs on streets isn’t far off of being a great idea with one special tweak.

Sign spinning, sometimes known as human directional or human billboards, is a popular practice, skill and now an industry of its own. There are companies that not only produce the signs for this advertising practice, but also hire, train and contract out those employees to companies to spin for them.

Out-of-home advertising has become a strong area to market in because of the ability to reach people during their commutes without giving them the ability to change the channel or use an ad blocker. You can also put signs in targeted areas where you think your audience might be traveling. Sign spinning is another out-of-home advertising medium that can be just as effective as, and possibly cheaper than, buying larger outdoor billboards.

The skill and creativity involved in sign spinning has even sparked a World Championship for this talent.

Instead of  wasting your own labor on holding a sign outside or an unlucky employee wearing a costume, you can hire a sign spinner from a company that hires and trains employees, or you can possibly find a freelance spinner who solicits his skills to multiple companies. There are many benefits to using this form of outdoor advertising

• Out of the box advertising idea
• Cheaper than large billboards
• Affordable labor cost
• Ability to have different signs advertised
• Can change location/placement of advertisement instantaneously without spending extra

Promoting a grand opening, big sale or special event can be a lot easier and more effective with a creative marketing campaign like using sign spinners. People who are impressed or inclined to check out your business or event because of the skill of a sign spinner promoting are also likely to tell you so, giving you a chance to gauge your investment.

There are a few things to consider when deciding to employ this advertising idea:

Color and text size: These signs will be spinning and flipping in different directions all day. Make sure the color stands out and the text on it does as well. That includes the color of the text being a decent contrast from the background color.

Keep it simple: Once again, because of the constant movement of the sign, whatever you are using this sign and practice to promote shouldn’t be too wordy. Short, simple and hopefully catchy messages fit best on these signs.

Information: While you are trying to keep the message simple, consider the information you’re going to be putting on the sign. If the spinner is going to be on a busy corner that isn’t directly in front of your business or event, directions or an address to it should be included. The time and date of this event or sale going on should be included.

Double sided: Display two different messages and increase the amount of information you can put on the sign or put the same message on both sides. Both options allow you to extend the reach of your advertisement and give a little more freedom and creativity in tricks and moves by the sign spinner that will still promote your sign no matter which side he’s flipping and spinning it on.

Weight: These signs obviously need to be lightweight and a certain type of material to be easier to spin and flip as well as showcase your message well enough. Certain materials print better color and graphics better than others.

Even in the digital age, the idea and cost of using sign spinners can be a useful venture. Potential customers can stop auto play videos on Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites that are popular advertising ground.  One feature that can’t be disabled is the power of people. Talented sign spinners could be the ultimate eye catcher that can get advertising space more than the passing glance from consumers.