ARCHIVE: Category Archive for: Sign Design

May 2023 Newsletter

Featured Article MSA Featured in Signs of the Times Magazine! Metro Sign & Awning’s work at Arcadian Hotel was recently featured in this edition of Sign of the Times Magazine article by Debora Toth! This project included both exterior and interior signage. To check out more of MSA’s noteworthy signage, click here. Project Highlight Wall Graphics Package Another beautiful graphics package was recently installed, in collaboration with Selbert Perkins Design, at Mass General Brigham in Salem, NH. This project included 3 separate interior wall graphics that tell a story – all visible from the street outside. To view the full project wrap-up, click here. Project Highlight Interstate Electric We recently had the privilege of creating and installing various types of

While the U.S. is seeing a definite increase in mixed-use developments, they’re actually not a new concept. In fact, according to Deloitte, mixed-use properties were strategies used about 50 years ago to rejuvenate urban areas. And as population density increases, real estate prices remain high and office occupancy remains low, mixed-use developments offer an attractive option for developers, companies, tenants, and residents. Live, Work, Shop, Play A trend that had been growing in popularity even prior to COVID-19, the pandemic accelerated the planning, design, and construction of mixed-use developments. In fact, in Boston alone, there are at least seven major mixed-use projects under construction right now. These properties empower residents and visitors to have more control in their choices and

J.R.R. Tolkien said, “Not all those who wander are lost.” But in general, travelers prefer to know where they’re going. Whether an environment’s familiar or not, well designed signage helps ensure that only those who want to wander are free to do so — and everyone else can successfully find their way without getting lost. Wayfinding, or directional, signs serve four main purposes: Pointing people where they need to go. Identifying landmarks (rooms, concourses, wings, and other important features). Informing people about regulations and instructions a space requires them to follow. Defining the space, because transportation hubs are large, open spaces, and wayfinding branding helps define and bring consistency to the property. As with wayfinding signs used in other facilities like

Welcome to 2022. We greet every year with optimism wondering what good things the months will bring. Some of us use January as a personal ‘reset,’ perhaps changing the route we jog or editing our wardrobes to update our own personal brand. What about your business’s brand? Is it time for a refresh there, too? After all, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. Make that first impression count! The Effectiveness of Exterior Signage You could think of on-premise, outdoor signs as the durable workhorse of all advertising types since they’re promoting your business 24/7 for years to showcase your company and brand. Exterior signs generate a strong ROI by helping define your brand while driving

Signage offers a visual and branding advertising strategy with tremendous power. Essential for building brand visibility and increasing awareness, well-designed and thoughtfully placed signage can last decades and will attract thousands of customers to a brand over time. Exterior signs stay evergreen, delivering continuous, repeated impressions to help reach business goals by: Attracting prospective customers—76% of consumers enter businesses because of the signs. Creating brand value—68% of consumers believe a business’s signs reflect the quality of its service and products. Driving impulse sales. Establishing a brand—a sign can attract up to 50% of a new business’s initial customers. Giving customers a first, and lasting, impression of a business—75% of consumers told others about businesses they noticed because of the signage.

With vaccines readily available and the post-COVID landscape evolving, businesses will continue examining and creating policies to ensure the safety of their employees returning to in-person work — and the safety of customers and visitors, too. In many cases, companies have also recognized the value of offering their employees a hybrid approach: working part-time virtually and part-time in person. This strategy makes sense for companies who’ve incorporated virtual meetings as a complement to in-person meetings with clients and visitors. More than a year of remote work is challenging the way we view traditional work models. A Microsoft 2021 report found 73% respondents desiring flexible, hybrid work options after the pandemic ended, and 66% of businesses indicating a plan to redesign physical

With warmer weather upon us, vaccination rates increasing, and restrictions lifting, people have been venturing out to visit their favorite restaurants in person. The pandemic hit the restaurant industry very hard — and while it’ll take time for the industry to recover from its 2020 losses, owners can take heart based on the results of a recent June survey conducted by Morning Consult: 70% feel safe eating at a restaurant, a 3% increase from the end of May 67% feel safe dining indoors 76% feel safe dining outside 59% indicated they’ll feel comfortable dining out by July Consumer excitement about eating out continues to grow and friends and family who’ve not seen each other in person for months look forward to connecting

A connected network knows no boundaries as it enables people internally and externally to connect around purpose and common needs and interests.

Why It’s So Easy to Love Neon Lights

Neon lights evoke a certain nostalgia. This long-lived lighting, while not as efficient as LED neon lights, is durable and long-lived, often lasting for 50 years or more. The technology behind neon is over 100 years old. Its invention predates the battery, phonograph & other simpler technology. Still a favorite of interior architects because of its uniqueness as an American experience especially in the post-WWII era, the neon light owes its existence to another innovation: the process of air liquefaction. This process converts gases (like neon) to liquid via cooling and reheating. However, because bulbs require large quantities of neon and pure neon is difficult to obtain, it took 10 years after developing air liquefaction to patent neon lamps. Learn

For more than 100 years, neon signs have blazed brightly, humming faintly as their curved and bent tubes illuminate the night. From New York’s Times Square and Miami’s Ocean Drive, to Las Vegas’s strip and Tokyo’s Shinjuku, neon light signs advertise products, companies, and so much more. An Evolution in Technology Neon’s lo-fi tech made it attractive to even smaller businesses. Barber shops and restaurants, bars and local entertainment venues hung signs to attract attention. These bright, colorful signs shine even through dense fog and rain. But they’re still more expensive than LED neon signage. In fact, the very first neon signs cost up to $12,000. While prices have dropped considerably, they still represent a significant investment of marketing dollars.