5 Design Secrets Your Opponent Doesn't Know


What’ s the secret to a great yard sign?  The answer is simple… Keep your yard sign simple.  Remember that campaign signs are usually placed on a lawn of a residence or business and most of the viewing occurs from cars that are traveling at speeds of 30 – 35 MPH.  Therefore, viewers have approximately one to two seconds to read your sign.  Your goal is to grab the viewer’ s attention and communicate your message as quickly as possible.

K.I.S.S. – KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID
Your target demo needs to know your name and the political office you’ re seeking.    Hence, the fewer letters, the better.  The words will be larger and more visible.  You’ ve got a limited amount of text space, so use it wisely.

NAME/OFFICE
Obviously, your name is the most important information your sign will contain.  Including your last name only is adequate unless there is a reason to separate your name from someone else running for the same office.  When stating the office you’ re running for, … KEEP IT SIMPLE.  “ For Governor” may work better than “ For Governor of xxxx and xxxx and xxxx.”   If an incumbent is running for office, you may want to use RE-ELECT, KEEP or something similar.

DISCLAIMER
It is your responsibility to find out the requirements for the disclaimer clause and give this information to your screen printer.  Disclaimers vary in different districts, so it’ s your responsibility to learn your state and federal laws regarding printing and distributing political advertising.  The exact wording, location, and required size is usually dictated by the election authority governing your campaign.

FONT
The more fonts (a.k.a. type styles) used, the more difficult a campaign sign will be to read, so limit your font choices to one or two per layout.  Fonts such as Arial are the easiest to read from a distance and in most cases should be used for your headline or primary message.  Fonts such as Arial, Times New Roman and Cooper are great for your secondary message.