Window signs. Desk Signs. Posters. It is often an overlooked piece of advertising. They all have a purpose in your dealership and we’re here to give you some ideas of how they can help you!

Advertising In Your Dealership

Imagine you walk into a store with no posters. No signs. NO information at all. How would you feel? Lost? Confused? Would you feel comfortable making a purchase? When making a purchase as big as a car, customers want to be informed.

Posters throughout your dealership can help make them aware of what your dealership is offering. These signs can help provide clarity. The more a customer knows about the product, the more comfortable they feel about buying it.

According to ZenMerchandiser.com, point of sale signage can influence up to 85% of purchases. They liken store signage to an actual additional sales rep!

Would you rather watch the tips in the blog? Head over to the video for a quick visual explanation on dealership signage.

Consistency Is Key

If your dealership is spending money in advertising, chances are that you include incentives and special offers in your advertising, to really grab customers’ attention. Once you have their attention and they arrive to your dealership, you want them to have a sense of familiarity. Like they have seen that message before, came to your dealership because of it, and when they arrive they see it again and they know they are in the right place.

What Makes a Good Showroom Sign?

You may be asking, “what should I include in these signs?” and that’s a great question! Anytime our automotive design team creates a poster we find that following a similar format makes for a clean but easy to understand poster.

Beginning at the top we start with a headline, usually your campaign for the month, but can also include a sale or event you are having like “Holiday Cash Card” or an event “giveaway”. Including your campaign for the month, or a similar look, will help tie your poster in with the rest of your advertising.

The body section would include your main message. This is where you would include incentives, an offer or more details about your giveaway. Depending on how much information you need to include in this area you can also include a lineup of vehicles or a picture of what you will be giving away. Make it visual and interesting to get customer’s attention!

The bottom of your poster is left for disclaimers or information on where a customer can learn more information about what is included in this poster, along with a manufacturer or dealership logo. Although they are seeing this in your dealership, it’s always good to reinforce the brand.

If you or someone at your dealership does not have the ability to design a poster for you, you can ask your automotive advertising agency to provide you with creative, and even ask them to have it printed for you. We provide design, printing, and delivery to our clients.

Where Should the Signage be Placed?

Now that you’ve designed and ordered your poster another key factor is where to put them. Signs should be large enough that customers can read them. We often recommend a 24 x 36 inch poster. This is large enough that you can read from a distance but not too large that it will take away from your showroom. These can be placed on an easel or in a frame.

We recommend placing at least two signs (depending on your dealership size) in the showroom. The first should go near an entrance. This enforces the consistent messaging throughout your advertising and helps the customers feel at ease knowing they are in the right dealership. If your dealership is large enough that there are multiple entrances customers can use, place another one by the other entrance. If you only have one entrance, you can place the other one by one of the vehicles. For instance, if you are advertising a Chevy Equinox, place the sign by an Equinox. This way you know those who are looking at the Equinox will be interested in the incentive you have on that vehicle.

Another place we often put signs is in the service waiting room. Chances are you are communicating with service customers who are ready to trade up or who have equity in their current vehicle. This is a great way to plant the seed and let them know if you have a special going on or what incentives are available that month.

Each manufacturer has their dealerships set up a little differently, so you will know where the best places are for your signs. Just make sure they are in high traffic areas and are easy to be seen. It’s also important to note that some manufacturers do not let dealerships place signs in the showroom, so it’s best to check beforehand if you aren’t sure. Most do, so if you feel you want to add this to your overall strategy, you’re ready to get started!