At its core, signage is the deliberate design and use of signs, symbols, and visual cues to convey information, most often to support a business message.
Whether a hand-painted tavern board, a neon storefront marquee, or a digital display, signage translates identity, intent, and direction into a visual language that can be understood at a glance.
In a business context, signage refers to any graphic display intended to identify, inform, direct, or promote. It encompasses a wide range of forms, including exterior storefront signs, interior point-of-purchase displays, vehicle wraps, window graphics, billboards, digital screens, and symbolic icons such as restroom or hazard signs. What unifies these forms is their communicative purpose: they distill a message into a visual shorthand that can be processed quickly and consistently.
Signs have long been used for commercial purposes. Long before widespread literacy, merchants relied on pictorial symbols to identify their trades. Archaeological evidence from ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome shows shopkeepers marking their premises with carvings or painted emblems, such as a boot for a cobbler, a bunch of grapes for a wine cellar, and a mortar and pestle for an apothecary. These early signs served as both identification and advertising.
During the Middle Ages in Europe, guilds formalized the use of signs. Trades adopted standardized symbols (shears for tailors, a key for locksmiths, a tankard for inns), creating a visual vocabulary that cut across language barriers. Hanging signs became common in towns, often elaborately crafted in wood or metal. As literacy increased and printing technologies advanced, text began to appear alongside imagery, giving rise to the modern shop sign.
The Industrial Revolution transformed signage again. Urbanization, mass production, and new materials such as enamel, gaslights, and later electricity enabled brighter, larger, and more durable signs. By the early 20th century, neon lighting and illuminated marquees turned signage into a defining feature of commercial districts. The late 20th and early 21st centuries introduced digital displays, LED technology, and programmable signage, expanding the medium into dynamic, interactive communication.
Signage performs several interconnected functions, such as identification (what the business is and where it is located), promotion (advertising products, services, and brand identity), information (hours, pricing, policies, and product details), wayfinding and navigation (directions), and regulatory and safety communication (rules, warnings, and compliance instructions).
Over time, signage has developed conventions that help viewers interpret messages quickly. These include typography, as legibility is paramount. Sans-serif fonts dominate modern signs because they remain readable at a distance and in motion. Colors carry both cultural and functional meanings, such as red for warning, green for direction, and blue for service. Businesses also use brand colors to reinforce identity. Symbols and icons, such as universal icons (restrooms, accessibility, parking, Wi-Fi), allow rapid comprehension regardless of language. Hierarchy is also important: effective signs prioritize information, with the most important message larger and more prominent, with supporting details arranged beneath. Contrast and visibility, such as high contrast between text and background, can improve readability.
Signage encompasses an array of physical and digital forms, including exterior signs, interior signs, portable and temporary signs, vehicle and fleet graphics, and digital signage. Each form serves a specific purpose, shaped by environment, audience, and business goals.
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Based in Glenside, Pennsylvania, this U.S. political and promotional products supplier specializes in campaign yard signs and campaign giveaways, including double-sided yard signs, corrugated plastic signs, banners, buttons, bumper stickers, pens, magnets, and apparel, as well as novelty and giveaway items such as campaign candy with custom wrappers. Its product inventory is highlighted on its website, which includes customization options and price structure, often based on quantity.
https://www.capitolpromotions.com/
Founded in 1954, Custom Signs is a US-based custom sign maker offering engraved plastic, brass, aluminum, ADA-compliant, acrylic, and yard signs, as well as bulk ordering tools, most of which are produced in Jacksonville, Florida. The long-running, family- and employee-driven operation emphasizes its U.S. production, with all orders shipping from Jacksonville to addresses across the continental U.S. Its products, customization features, production, shipping, and return policies are stated.
https://www.customsigns.com/
The retail and custom display supplier is headquartered in Fall River, Massachusetts. Founded as part of George Patton Associates, a long-standing supplier with a large catalog of retail and event merchandising products, Display2Go sells point-of-sale displays, trade show exhibits, custom printed signage, and exhibit rentals. The e-commerce site catalogs its signage, banners, and literature holders; trade show, events, and presentations; product displays and merchandising; and digital displays.
https://www.displays2go.com/
The US-based architectural signmaker offers custom interior and exterior business signage with nationwide shipping and turnkey installation. Located in LaGrange, Illinois, the company's core services include custom business signs, plaques, dimensional letters, lobby signs, backlit signs, metal and glass donor recognition, and memorial plaques, with an emphasis on high-quality architectural signage built to last. Turnkey options include design, proofing, production, shipping, and installation.
https://www.impactsigns.com/
In business for more than 25 years, Letters & Logos is a UK-based signmaker offering a wide range of signage and vehicle graphics services, offering a "no quibble guarantee." According to its website, its primary services and products include external and internal signs, vehicle graphics, banners, A-boards, roll-up banners, window graphics, Fascia signs, exhibition stands, and interior decoration. Its services, artwork guidelines, and contacts are provided.
https://www.lettersandlogos.co.uk/
The Swiss digital signage company provides the QL content-management platform for enterprise screen networks. Headquartered in Lausanne, it maintains a North American office in Montreal. Founded in 1998, Navori is a privately held, multi-regional company with 50-60 employees. Its core products and capabilities include QL digital signage CMS, an enterprise-grade content management system for scheduling, playback, and device management, along with real-time data integration.
https://navori.com/
Parish Notice Boards is a UK-based online seller of outdoor and indoor notice boards that advertises its starting prices. The website focuses on parish, church, and community noticeboards, along with related mounting options. Its typical product range includes framed outdoor noticeboards, internal display cases, lockable community cabinets, and mounting and installation accessories. Materials, finishes, online ordering information, and prices are highlighted.
https://www.parish-notice-boards.co.uk/
Offering a Design Studio, indoor and outdoor signs, free worldwide shipping, and phone/email support from its Elmont, New York office, Signage is an online custom sign vendor. Its Design Studio is an online tool for designing, previewing, resizing, and approving production-ready signage in real time, with visual effects and instant mockups. Its product range includes outdoor, indoor, storefront, and wayfinding signage tailored for multi-site brand consistency.
https://signage.com/
Representing a small sign shop in Crown Point, Indiana, that offers yard signs, banners, decals, and adhesive chrome letters, the online store offers next-day or fast turnaround and local pickup. Its primary location is Crown Point, Northwest Indiana, serving Merrillville, St. John, Schererville, Griffith, Cedar Lake, and the northwest Indiana area. Its core services include yard signs, real estate signs, political campaign signs, banners, decals, and adhesive chrome letters and numbers.
https://customonlinesigns.com/
Branded as "Signworld America," the trade-focused signage supplier is based in Rancho Cucamonga, California, with a fulfillment center in Boyertown, Pennsylvania. In addition to its online product and service catalog, customers can visit its showroom and production center in California or schedule in-store pickups at its California or Pennsylvania locations. Its products include custom prints, banner stands, pop-up displays, SEG lightboxes, outdoor signs, substrates, and sign-making supplies.
https://display-wholesale.com/
Stewart Signs is a national sign manufacturer founded in 1968 that sells outdoor LED displays, changeable-letter signs, and light-box signs, used to advertise churches, schools, businesses, and municipalities, as well as civic and military signs. Customers may shop by market or type. Also available is SignCommand, a cloud-based LED sign software application. Its artwork capabilities, contracts, memberships, endorsements, and a portfolio of signs are featured.
https://www.stewartsigns.com/
