Caffe Nero, Starbucks, Harrods, Chanel, Hugo Boss, Subway…wherever you look, the biggest of the big brands are using carefully branded awnings to promote their businesses. The good news is that your business can join them by investing in a quality business awning and stamping your own identity over it.
Branding: more than just a logo
Your brand is not just your signage and logo. It is about how your customers perceive you as a business and includes everything from logo and decor to stationery and even how your staff treat customers. If you have smartly-dressed, courteous staff and a spotless interior yet your business awning is tatty and coming away from the wall, your customers may leave with an uneasy feeling because your awning is at odds with the rest of your brand messaging. They may not have even consciously registered the state of your canopy – they just don’t completely trust you.
To help promote your brand, your awning should be consistent with the rest of your business. For example, if you own a shop that specialises in decorating fancy cakes then an intricate awning in pastel shades, comlete with frilly valance, will fit well with your brand. However, if you are an uber-trendy fashion boutique you will attract more of your target market with a simple, minimalist awning. A bold, in your face company can get away with a big, brightly lit awning, while a traditional and established local business might choose an awning with a retro vintage look. For optimal effect, you can echo design elements from inside your business (for example, font, colour or pattern) in your business awning, ensuring your awning looks like it has always been part of the premises.
If you need help with designing a suitable business awning, the better awning companies often employ an in-house design team who can give you all the advice you need to make an informed decision. Failing that, a well-established awning company will have experienced staff who have installed hundreds of awnings between them. They can give you some handy hits and tips about what works and what doesn’t work.
Quality shows
Regardless of how big, colourful or avant garde your awning is, it has to be well made to have a beneficial effect on your business. A fading logo on cracking vinyl hanging from rusted, broken supports does nothing for anybody’s image.
Of course, branding is only one of the benefits that commercial awnings bring to your business. You can also save energy bills by curtailing your use of air-conditioning; protect stock from UV rays and shelter your customers from rain, sun or wind.
This article has been created by Voluchi on behalf of Barlow Blinds, a supplier of blinds in Leicester and throughout Leicestershire.