The Science Behind Signage, Sandwich Boards, and Mission Statements
If you’ve been putting off updating your storefront sign or wondering whether that sandwich board on the sidewalk is really worth the hassle, the research says it’s worth it. Here’s a breakdown of what the data actually shows, and a few caveats worth knowing too.
Permanent Signage Matters More Than You Think
The Sign Research Foundation’s study, “Economic Value of On-Premise Signage,” found that 60% of businesses reported sales increases of 10% or more after adding or updating their sign. A University of Cincinnati national survey backed this up, finding that 20% of consumers said they entered a store specifically because of its sign quality, and 68% used signage just to locate a business in the first place.
Color matters too, though be careful with the numbers here. You’ll see the claim “color increases brand recognition by 80%” everywhere, but that figure has been misquoted for years; the original Loyola University study was actually about color versus black and white in print ads, not signage broadly. Still, real peer-reviewed research shows color does meaningfully affect purchase decisions. Red triggers urgency and quick decisions, which is why it dominates sale signage and fast food branding. Blue signals trust and calm. Yellow reads as cheerful and optimistic.
Sandwich Boards: A Small Investment With a Real Return
For businesses using a sandwich board or A-frame sign on the sidewalk, the numbers are encouraging. Businesses that added a branded A-frame sign saw at least an 8.3% increase in foot traffic. More broadly, a single well-placed on-premise sign can boost annual sales revenue by an average of 4.75%!
Since some municipalities require permits for sidewalk signage, it’s worth checking local bylaws before investing, but the return on a low-cost, portable sign is one of the better ROI plays in small business marketing.
Mission Statements: More Than Just Wall Decoration
This is where it gets interesting. A meta-analysis covering 20 years of empirical research found a small but real positive relationship between mission statements and financial performance. On the employee side, 63% of staff report feeling motivated in companies with a strong mission statement, compared to just 31% where there isn’t one.
The caveat: research also shows fewer than 30% of employees can even recall their own company’s mission statement. Simply printing it and hanging it on a wall isn’t enough. It has to be lived out daily, referenced in training, and reflected in how the business actually treats customers, or it becomes exactly what one critic called it: “feel-good wall art.”
For a real-world example of this in action, 5 Axis Innovations has built physical mission statement displays specifically for retail showrooms, worth a look if you want to see the concept executed well.
The Takeaway
None of these are magic bullets, but stacked together, updated signage, a sandwich board out front, and a visible, meaningfully-lived mission statement, they compound. Each one is a small signal to a potential customer that they’re walking into a business that’s paying attention to the details.
Sources
- Sign Research Foundation, “Economic Value of On-Premise Signage”
- University of Cincinnati national signage survey, cited via businesssignsandmore.com
- Loyola University Maryland color study origin, discussed in insights4print.ceo and reviewinc.com
- Signs.com blog, A-frame sign foot traffic data
- georgeandwilly.com, on-premise sign revenue lift data
- Mission statement meta-analysis, Desmidt, Prinzie, and Decramer 2011, cited via strategyclub.com
- Employee motivation and mission statement statistics, tomislavhorvat.com
