Channel Letters - 360 Signs

Channel Letter Signs Get the Word Out

March 8, 2012 By Tom Humphries Leave a Comment

Your business needs to be visible so customers can easily spot you and visit. The most effective ways to advertise your location is to have channel letter signs to get the word out. Using a reputable sign company to design and install a channel letter sign is a great way to grab attention and brand your location.

A channel letter sign is a 3D graphic sign that is custom made to your specifications from sheet metal. Aluminum is a commonly used metal because it does not rust. The sheet metal is formed and creates the back of the channel that is used to form the letter to be used in the sign. The sides of the channel letter are then bent and welded to create a solid can in the shape of the letter. These letters are custom painted and lights are installed inside, making a channel letter sign an eye-catching addition to your business. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Channel Letters Tagged With: austin tx channel letters, channel letters austin texas, illuminated channel letters

Channel Letter Signs Attract Attention

February 21, 2012 By Tom Humphries Leave a Comment

Your business sign is not just something that tells the public your name. It is a statement about the business itself. By the same token, your logo is like a personal signature for your company. Both your sign and your logo are unique and they express a lot about the tone and style of your business, from professional to whimsical. Often, a business sign also conveys either what type of establishment it is, or reveals much about it. They are also good for advertising purposes. The bolder and more conspicuous your sign, the more attention it draws and the more likely it is to stay in a person’s memory banks! That’s why we’d like to tell you about Channel Letters. Channel letter signs are those lighted, 3-D signs that are so cool and that YOU notice all over town!

If you really want to attract attention to your place of business, you need a sign with Channel Letters. The three dimensional aspect of channel letter signs makes your sign and logo more visible and from longer distances. Channel letter signs also look classier and more professional than a standard, one-dimensional sign. Even in the daylight, when most businesses do not have their signs lit, channel letter signs capture the eye.

Filed Under: Channel Letters Tagged With: austin tx illuminated channel letters, channel letters austin texas, ld channel letters

LED Signs | Multi-color Channel Letters

December 23, 2011 By Tom Humphries Leave a Comment

Video display technology over the last twenty years has increased at a blistering rate. Cathode ray tubes have given way to LED’s. Earlier display technology needed to be projected, today LED’s allow for a flat display device. The technology evolved from commercial products to consumer multimedia products. Almost every car, house and office incorporates LED technology. Signs are adopting this form of illumination and video display as well.

LED’s do everything from illuminated channel letters to creating HD quality displays for stadiums and arenas. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Channel Letters Tagged With: austin texas LED channel letter signs, channel letter signs austin tx, LED signs

Service Business Signs Attract Impulse Visitors

December 7, 2011 By Tom Humphries Leave a Comment

Signs are the most consistently effective profit-generating tool for small businesses. Service business signs not only help a business to attract new customers, they increase impulse sales and cement brand recognition of your business with both existing and potential customers.

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As a business you need people to know more about what you can do than is practical to say on your permanent business sign. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Channel Letters, Service Businesses Tagged With: austin texas channel letter signs, building signs austin tx, business signs, service business s

Signs Austin | Channel Letter Signs Attract Attention

November 10, 2011 By Tom Humphries Leave a Comment

Channel letters are illuminated letter or logo signs with channels or dimension to them. The channel portion of the letter houses the wiring and LED or neon lighting. Non-illuminated channel letters, sometime referred to as dimensional letters or fabricated letters are also popular because of their dimension and legibility. Since channel letters are fabricated they can be almost any size or shape. Typically channel letters are constructed from aluminum, but some are made from plastic. The two most popular forms of illumination are neon and LED. Due to the tubing and wiring necessary for neon, most neon channel letters are 4”-5” deep. LED channel letters can range from 3”-5” deep. Both illumination options are effective at attracting attention.
[Read more...]

Filed Under: Channel Letters Tagged With: channel letter signs, commercial illuminated signs, illuminated letter signs, signs 3D letters

Signs Austin | Attract Attention with Channel Letter Signs

August 26, 2011 By Tom Humphries Leave a Comment

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They are also good for advertising purposes. The bolder and more conspicuous your sign, the more attention it draws and the more likely it is to stay in a person’s memory banks! Channel letter signs are both bold and conspicuous.

If you really want to attract attention to your place of business, you need a channel letter sign. The three dimensional aspect of channel letter signs makes your sign and logo more visible and the illumination enables people to see it from longer distances. Channel letter signs also look more professional than a standard, flat cabinet signs. Even in the daylight, when most businesses do not have their sign isn’t lit, channel lettersigns capture the eye.

Filed Under: Channel Letters

Signs Austin | Restaurant Signs

August 10, 2011 By Tom Humphries Leave a Comment

Recently I watched an episode of Restaurant Impossible with Chef Robert Irvine. The purpose of the show is to turnaround a fledgling restaurant on a budget of ten thousand dollars. Obviously the key to any restaurant’s turnaround is the food. Chef Irvine helps the restaurant’s owners come up with new menu ideas and offers his culinary expertise when it comes to quick flavorful dishes that can be easily replicated. After the food, the Chef and his staff’s next focus on the restaurant’s signs.

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In the episode that I watched, the restaurant Meglio’s, had outdated signs and menus from another restaurant. Whether you are changing the food or just the style of restaurant, updated exterior signs, interior signs and menus are a must. In many instances just updating signs and menus will give a restaurant a whole new feel and attract new customers.

Successful restaurant signs should illicit an almost Pavlovian response from viewers. The keys to good restaurant signs are visibility, legibility and uniqueness. Your sign should be a reflection of your restaurant and the food that you serve. Signs are not only your best salesman, they work 7×24 and don’t require overtime pay, but they are an extension of your “culture”.

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Whether your serving up the best chicken fried steak or the most delicate foie gras your signs and menus are crucial. Exterior restaurant signs are typically illuminated channel letters and often include a pylon sign face. Menu boards run from chalk boards to illuminated cabinets to digital signage. Digital signage is increasing in popularity because it offers infinite flexibilty and the costs continue to drop. In restaurants, signs are a feast for the eyes.

Filed Under: Channel Letters, Restaurant Signage

Signs Austin | Three Keys to Channel Letters

July 27, 2011 By Tom Humphries 1 Comment

Channel letters are one of the best marketing and brand recognition tools available. They can be seen in shopping malls on many office buildings and lots of restaurants. Channel letters come in a wide variety of lettering types, fonts, styles, and LED or Neon illumination.

There are three ways a Channel letter can be utilized,

1. Individual (surface mounted as individual letters mounted directly to the wall)

2. Raceway (mounted to a rectangular box that is mounted to the wall)

3. Mounted to a sign cabinet face (large sign cabinet that is mounted to the wall)

Historically, all channel letters were neon illuminated. Now you have two options when considering how your sign will be illuminated. LED illuminated channel letters are energy efficient, low power, and low maintenance compared to neon illuminated ones. The small module design of an LED system virtually eliminates breakage as well. LED channel letters provide the opportunity to create savings over a period of time, even though the initial cost of this product can be a little higher than neon letters depending on the color. Some advantages of Neon are purely aesthetic. Neon illumination has a certain warm glow that many argue LED has yet to match. This is particularly true for reverse and front/back lit channel letter signs. Neon’s 360 degree illumination is very easy on the eyes when used with front/back lit letters. LED’s focused “light cone” is not as good with these letter types.

Channel Letters are a highly effective form of advertisement and can be shaped to any letter style or logo. It is visible during the day and even more visible at night. A properly designed channel letter sign can effectively communicate your message for many years.

Filed Under: Channel Letters

Why Make a Fake Sign?

July 25, 2011 By Tom Humphries Leave a Comment

Signs are truly a part of the American and World landscape. Even in the pseudo world of movies, signs still play an important role. Due to trademark and licensing agreements many signs in movies are part of product placement or completely made up. Signs add validity to businesses in life and in cinema. Here are a few examples of famous signs in movies.

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Pulp Fiction has to be one of my all time favorite movies. The sign above is from “Jack Rabbit Slims” the 1950-60’s themed restaurant in the movie. While this sign was completely fabricated for the film, it is still an effective sign. The use of red neon allows the viewer to read “Jack Rabbit” very clearly. The large 3 dimensional rabbit itself is a great use of the fictional restaurant’s logo. Notice how big and dominate it is. Also, it is very unique which allows the viewer to recall this image more effectively. This sign also incorporates the restaurant’s tagline. Below the rabbit reads “The Next Best Thing to a Time Machine”. From this sign we can infer that this restaurant has a racing vintage theme. If you have seen Pulp Fiction, then you know this sign is very apropos for this venue.

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This movie sign is from the comedic classic Wayne’s World. Again this store front and sign were made for the movie. While Stan Mikita was a famous Chicago Blackhawk, he did not own this donut shop. To set this sign apart and again make it visible on the silver screen the larger than life figure is prominently displayed on the store’s rooftop. If you have driven down Burnet Rd in Austin, there are many signs similar to this.

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Here is an example of a great looking monument sign. This sign is for Initech, the fake business from Office Space. Again this is not a real sign, but a computer rendering of a sign. While the sign is not real, it is still an effective rendering of a monument sign.

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This second monument sign is from the diabolical company Cyberdyne Systems. This is another effective sign, while the sign looks tame the Terminators created by this company are not.

Signs are important in reality and in the virtual world of movies. If a movie is willing to spend this much time on the look of their signs, don’t you think it is important that you spend more?

Filed Under: Channel Letters, Monument Signs

Austin Signs | Interior Channel Letter Signs

July 20, 2011 By Tom Humphries 1 Comment

Channel letters are not just for exterior signage. For simple interior signs that need to be illuminated, channel letters are a great option. Since channel letters are welded aluminum, they often have height and width minimums that make them too large for some interior applications. However, if you are looking to add a statement to your lobby an interior channel logo is a great option.

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For the right client channel letters in their lobby can be a perfect fit. The depth of the channel letter gives the logo a substantial pronounced depth off the wall. Lobby signs can be more subtle using a reverse or halo effect. As LED technology advances so do color options. Currently there are a wide variety of LED’s in most primary color shades. For complex or intricate logo’s we often use a vinyl graphic for the face of the channel letter. If there are varying colors in your logo we can use different colored LED’s to produce different lighting effects.

At 360 Signs we are committed to providing our clients with the most functional and visually stunning signs possible. We are rarely the least expensive option, but rather the more often the most creative option. We love a challenge and welcome the opportunity to turn your inspiration into a creative masterpiece.

photo credit to sign expo nyc.

Filed Under: Channel Letters, Lobby Signs