The word “banner” is synonymous with an attention-grabbing announcement. Unfortunately, most businesses don’t use their banners to announce new promotions or grab any attention whatsoever.

But you’re not most businesses. You don’t only want your custom banner to be effective in announcing your company’s presence, advertising a special promotion, or drawing in people to a unique event…you want your banner to do much of the work of marketing for you. You want it to stand out, draw peoples’ attention—heck, you want people to take selfies with it in the street.

Great. But until you get creative, none of that is going to happen for you. Here are our suggestions for making sure that it does.

Unexpected or Unusual Outside Placement

Take a look at your environment and ask how a banner can be creatively placed to draw in the most attention possible. In this case, it’s all about context. If you’ve ever seen a word painted on the side of a van only to suddenly become a new word when the door was open, then you’ve seen how advertising placement alone can draw attention. And sometimes, it’s bad attention, as when the brand “Starbucks” becomes the word “Sucks” thanks to the unfortunate sliding of the van door.

Are there any opportunities for you to place a banner in a unique or interesting way? Look around your business space with a pen and a pad and brainstorm.

Get Funny

In the world of dive bars and restaurants, the chalkboard sign is a boundless opportunity for creativity. Sure, some business owners use the chalkboard sign to write “ladies’ night” or cry their latest drink specials. But others use the space to crack a joke.

In every instance above, someone took the time to take a picture and help the chalkboard – and the bar, by association – go viral.

Purchase a Custom Installation

If you’re familiar with our custom banner process here at Sign It Quick, then you know we offer custom installation – nothing about it is “one size fits all.” That means you can even ask our feedback for a creative or outside-the-box installation if that’s what you want for your next promotion. Don’t accept any signage company’s usual process; ask if they can whip up something special for yours.

Host a Promotional Event

Use a banner to announce a unique promotional event, such as giving out free samples of what your business sells. If you can, have the banner be a part of the promotional event, such as one side of your table setup. Hosting a promotional event is a creative way to integrate a banner into a marketing strategy designed to alert people in your area that you’re open for business.

Keep It Simple

Sometimes, the most creative signs are also the most laconic. You’ll notice that one bar chalkboard to which we linked above stated, simply: “Soup of the Day: Whiskey.” That’s good enough for a chuckle and is sure to at least generate some attention. Even some people who might not have considered walking in before suddenly want to see what else the owner has thought of.

Keep your own banner simple. Try an experiment: can you keep your advertising message to ten words or less? Write down some ideas and see if any of them are better than what you initially had in mind.

And if you run out of ideas for creativity, outsource some of it by getting in contact with us and telling us what you’re looking for.