Your business can profit hugely from the instant brand recognition and energy saving benefits that come with awnings and commercial shade structures. All you have to do is find the best suited awning for your facility. Read on to learn more about the importance of branding as well as appropriate styles and colors for commercial shade structures.
Branding. While the essence of its use may have been in practice for thousands of years, most cultural historians consider the 19th century and the beginnings of mass consumer goods a more useful starting point. Even the name itself, long before its application to product promotion, branding was a way to mark animals like horses and cattle, denoting ownership – either through words, or more commonly, symbols.
As a marketing term, those early roots are very much alive today. Whether its awnings and commercial shade structures or their more modern digital iterations, branding remains vital to a company’s success. Often with fewer words contained in even the shortest elevator pitch, branding is about symbols, about colors, about flashy, (but not aggravating) methods of gaining potential customers’ attentions. Think about it. A large billboard containing the Nike “swoosh” symbol is instantly recognizable. And not only does it instantly telegraph a large, successful company, secondary and tertiary meanings are also wrapped up in that iconic check mark. The same holds true for McDonalds and thousands of other companies.
When it comes to your business, Nike Swooshes and Golden Arches aren’t all there is. Awnings and commercial shade structures have been proven to be very beneficial for businesses as well. Not too long ago, their presence was felt even more acutely on America’s main thoroughfares and downtown commercial districts. There were so many in fact, that pedestrians in some cities could practically avoid getting wet from a rainstorm as so much of sidewalks were covered. Not surprisingly, shops and shop owners benefitted almost immediately following an awnings installation as they enjoyed greater foot traffic from increased visual appeal, lower energy bills due to cooler facilities as a result of the blocked sunrays, and more business from rapid brand recognition. Your business can also make the most of awnings provided you choose the right ones for your facility from the wide variety of shapes and colors of awnings that are available.
The color of fabric awnings depends on its shape and structure as well. The structure of an awning is basically determined by the frame over which the fabric is attached. You can choose from two types of awnings available out there, whether stationary and retractable; however, shade structures and overhangs can be designed in hemispherical shapes too, increasing their surface area and potential for logos and lettering while tending to “stand out” from the typical awnings crowd. Stationary awnings are the classic awning designs you have known and loved. These are fixed frame awnings and are great for covering up odd shaped entryways, doors or even windows. You can get these designed and tailored to suit your business facility and they can give instant visual appeal once installed expertly. Restaurants with patios or balconies can create a great ambiance with well-chosen stationary fabric awnings and also protect their customers from the sun and the rain. And by topping off these benefits with proper logos and lettering, a double visual appeal and branding message is achieved: passersby see comfortable, dry customers while also noting the color and font schemes associated with your business or restaurant. And often these logos, like the billboard example above, can be seen at some distance.
Of course retractable and fixed awnings require maintenance and proper cleaning to ensure that the branding message appears fresh, crisp, and bright at all times. For that matter, backlit awnings are ideal way to further spreading your company’s marketing and message. Nevertheless, fabric awnings are still easy to maintain and clean. Retractable awnings are a shade more advanced (pun intended) than the stationary variety and can be retracted easily by pushing a switch. You can choose these retractable awnings to be automatically or manually controlled or sensor activated (which open or retract as per the Sun’s heat). The choice depends on your budget for awnings.
Once you have chosen the type of awning you want, you can then work on deciding the colors of the fabric – a major consideration when it comes to your company’s message. Just think about Best Buy’s distinctive and contrasting signage and storefront colors of blue, yellow and black. Could you imagine a Best Buy that didn’t have that color arrangement? No. And that’s exactly the point. Keeping that in mind for your own business, here are some pointers for you to do the same:
1.The color can blend in with the rest of the building or stand out proudly. So you have to determine if you desire the awning to blend in seamlessly with your business facility’s façade or whether you want it to be the highlight of your décor.
2.Where your business is located also has a deep impact on your color choice. If you are a bank located in a financial district your color choice will be vastly different from a beach resort located along a popular beach or a designer boutique located in the city’s most fashionable street. Choose earthy and neutral tones for an office among glass buildings and bright sunny tones for a beach resort.
3.You can also ask the experts from your awning company if they have some ideas about what would work for your business the best. Sometimes contrast relative to your neighbors is a good thing. Too much contrast, though tasteful can become tacky very fast.
4.Remember to choose the patterns that match the size of your business. A small awning on a window with wide color stripes will be overwhelming at the same time small stripes on a big awning covering a doorway will be underplayed. So match size with pattern.
5.And lastly, the color of your awning should also correspond with the shades you have used in the interiors or if you prefer – the colors of your brand.
In an age so dominated by digital technology, smartphones, tablets, and mobile web banner ads, it’s easy to forget that branding basics comes down to the physical attributes of a building and how store owners turn pedestrians with eyeballs into patrons with wallets. Large, visible, complimentary and smart lettering and logos, part of today’s awnings and commercial shade structures, remain vital to the brick-and-mortar experience, just as it has been for thousands of years!