Signage

A 2005 report from The Interland Group (PDF File) showed that only 10 percent of small businesses felt that outdoor advertising was an essential marketing tool (tied with telemarketing). As businesses find other more effective marketing tools, billboards have become more message-oriented – politicians, special interest groups, people proposing marriage. Controversial messages often invite vandalism, which carries its own set of problems – and often unwanted media attention.

Even tourism businesses rely increasingly on “new media” with web-based advertising as well as promotions through auto clubs, airlines, hotels and credit card companies. Travel-oriented billboard (the ones billboard companies insist are essential for the traveling public) made up about a fourth of the billboards I’ve surveyed in Alabama. Check it out yourself – you’ll find that at least half of the billboards you see are advertising products and services (“Drink this beer.” “Call this lawyer.”). A large percentage of billboards that do indicate a destination are not for travel-oriented businesses but rather for automobile dealers, furniture stores and similar retail establishments. About one in four billboards will be for a restaurant, hotel, gas station or tourist attraction. So these billboards are dominating sections of roadways, distracting vistors from the beauty of our state, but not providing any benefit to the community in return.
We encourage small cities to consider the impact of billboards on their communities, and whether they will enhance or be a detriment to your citizens. If you do not want billboards, you do not have to accept them – you can adopt laws that prohibit billboards.

The Digital Age

If your city has billboards already, then you should take steps to deal with the new LED/electronic billboards.  Many cities have rewritten their sign ordinances to either not allow LED signs (e.g. Trussville), or to restrict them as to location, brightness, and message changing speed (e.g. Tuscaloosa).

LED boards, which resemble a “Jumbotron” television, are very bright and use huge amounts of electricity compared to traditional boards that are lit only at night. A small town might find one of these to be garish and unattractive, as well as producing a great deal of light that could bother residents.

If your sign ordinance does not address LED boards, you should consider an immediate temporary moratorium on electronic signs while you’re looking at your ordinance. If you don’t have a moratorium, then a billboard company could swap out one of their regular boards for a Jumbotron while you’re considering your sign code.

Sign control is good for business

Sometimes it seems easier get rid of billboards than to control regular on-premise signs, but it’s worth the effort. If you’ve ever gone to a business district that was overrun with a confusion of signs, you know that it’s not only hard to find a specific business, but also it doesn’t make you want to come back again.

When a community has consistent and attractive signage, visitors and prospective customers see more. If your busisness district is appealing, then someone who’s come in to patronize one business is more likely to check out others in the vicinity. When signs aren’t controlled, you’ll see a race to get a bigger, taller, flashier sign, until the entire business district is one big visual mess. Think about an energetic group of children at day camp – each one trying to out-yell the other for the counselor’s attention, with the result that no one gets heard.

Every community deserves to be attractive and prosperous. Businesses and residents can be proud of where they live and work. Any town can do it – by making sure that your first impression is your best impression.

Scenic Alabama can provide samples of sign ordinances, make presentations to city councils and civic groups, and connect city officials with resources. Please feel free to call Lisa Harris, Executive Director, at (205) 322-2120 or (205) 335-7718. Visit our website at www.scenicalabama.org.