In the city of Milwaukee, shopping malls face no shortage of competition vying for customers. As a hub for commerce in Wisconsin, the metro area hosts dozens of retail centers and stores looking to attract shoppers. For mall owners and managers, cutting through the noise to reach potential visitors is an ongoing challenge. When every mall promises convenient parking and top brands under one roof, what sets each location apart?
This is where custom pylon signs become invaluable investments. These towering structures along busy roads act as beacons, signaling a mall’s presence to passing cars. They communicate a center’s unique identity and give visitors a reference point for navigation. When designed well, pylon signs achieve the one thing most crucial in retail: visibility.
Optimum Signs, located just outside Milwaukee in Menomonee Falls, understands the impact these signs have on shopping malls throughout the region. Having worked with many area centers and chains to create custom pylon signs, we’ve seen firsthand how transforming these landmarks can be. Beyond just providing directions, they reinforce brand identities, showcase star tenants, display special offers, and most importantly, drive impulse visits and foot traffic. For malls struggling to pull in shoppers, an eye-catching pylon sign acts as a critical tool in their retail survival kit.
Defining Custom Pylon Signs
Before exploring their benefits, let’s clarify what exactly pylon signs are. Sometimes called “tower signs,” these vertically oriented structures sit along busy roads on tall metal poles, specifically angled and positioned for visibility to passing cars. They usually display a mall or center’s branded name and logo prominently at the top. Additional content can include names of anchor stores, wayfinding information, seasonal sales announcements, or public service notifications.
Constructed from durable, weather-resistant materials like aluminum, steel, and Plexiglas, they stand up to tough Midwest weather swings. Careful material selection ensures longevity through Milwaukee’s bitter winters, muggy summers, and windstorms. Internally or externally illuminated with LED lighting, pylon signs maintain visibility 24/7. While offering crucial information to visitors, these signs also become identifiable landmarks that get etched into public memory.
Serving Key Roles for Shopping Malls
When designed and positioned strategically, pylon signs fulfill several key roles for retail centers:
Attracting Impulse Shoppers
Perhaps most importantly, pylon signs alert drivers to a mall’s presence. For motorists unfamiliar with the area, or not planning a shopping trip, an eye-catching pylon sparking curiosity can lead to an impulsive pit stop and spending. Even locals who frequently pass by get subconscious reminders of a mall’s proximity.
Reinforcing Brand Identity
In inclusion of logos, fonts, colors, and other brand elements, pylon signs present a unified identity to visitors. The sign’s style matches branded marketing around the mall, helping to cement an image in shoppers’ minds. When they pull into the parking lot, the pylon sign sets expectations for their overall experience.
Wayfinding and Navigation
Pylon signage also provides important navigational assistance to visitors entering an unfamiliar area. They give clear directions to access points and parking lots. Retail centers often situate signs at key intersections or highway exits to smoothly guide traffic. The towering structures serve as beacons over busy roads.
Showcasing Key Tenants
Many shopping centers sell advertising space on pylon signs to highlight major stores. Anchor tenants like department stores and supermarkets usually receive prominent top billing. Calls outs help signal a mall’s key offerings like fashion, home goods, or big box brands.
Digital Displays
With recent technological advances, digital signage gets incorporated into pylons for easily updatable messages. Displays can promote current sales, coupons, store openings and events, public service alerts during inclement weather, and more. Cloud-based software allows for quick remote changes.
Crafting Cutting-Edge Pylon Signs
The team at Optimum Signs shepherds clients through the comprehensive process of designing, engineering, permitting, and installing pylon signs. Collaborating with mall owners, managers, and marketing teams, we create cohesive concepts that get refined through iterations of sketches, renderings, and discussions.
Careful consideration goes into choosing layouts, materials, sizes, shapes, lighting, and orientations tailored specifically to each property and its surrounding infrastructure. We examine visibility from access roads, height limits, and other environmental factors. State-of-the-art software and imaging technology allow us to simulate real-world placement with digital renderings and drive-by footage. Clients can visualize completed signs in context before fabrication ever begins.
In our Milwaukee-area fabrication facilities, we construct each unique sign with meticulous attention to detail using cutting-edge equipment. Our experienced installation crews then work efficiently to get pylons securely mounted in optimal locations. We further support our clients by offering maintenance plans and services to keep signs looking pristine.
The Powerful Impact on Foot Traffic
Enhanced signage repeatedly generates increased activity for retail venues. While influencing many subtle psychological and perceptual factors, pylon signs have the very tangible and measurable effect of pulling in more visitors to malls.
While investing in a custom-designed pylon sign represents a significant upfront cost, the long-term rewards for extra visitors make the boost in visibility well worth it. The signs pay for themselves over time by consistently funneling new shoppers through the doors.
Standing Tall Above the Competition
Milwaukee shopping mall owners face no shortage of competition for Wisconsin shoppers. Packed highways and airwaves deliver distractions galore for drivers and consumers. Rising above the fray both literally and figuratively with a striking pylon sign makes all the difference in converting eyeballs into foot traffic.
Optimum Signs offers expertise in creating signage that pops. We handle every phase of bringing concepts to life, from permits and engineering to fabrication and maintenance. Our collaborative approach combined with cutting-edge technologies produces stunning, high-performing signs. Even in bustling metro Milwaukee, a strategically placed pylon sign guides shoppers directly to your mall.
Ready to elevate your retail center and revitalize its connection to the community? Reach out today to discuss how a custom pylon sign can establish your Milwaukee mall as a can’t-miss destination.
