Signs are an essential visual communication tool that help us navigate through our daily lives. Being in one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world, you can’t help but to be bombarded with signs everywhere you go. However, most people seldom stop to consider why some signs are better or worse than others. The assignment this week was to find signs around the city that do a poor job communicating their intended message. There are many types of signs, but for this assignment I decided to focus on store signs. Store signs are more visually complex and ofen try to have meaning beyond the written text. I started looking for bad signage in the upper west side, though had little success since the area is rather gentrified and most stores were large brand names. eg. Pottery Barn, Victoria Secret, Best Buy, etc. I then walked through the mid-town area where there are many more small businesses. Needless to say, I found some bad signs. Below are some examples of bad signs I found and my recommendations on how the signs could be improved.
 
 
IMG_2008IMG_2010

Why this sign is bad?
- Sign doesn’t really make sense when you read it, “A Relax Me”
- It looks like some thought was put into the logo design, but it does not have a clear message
- There are 3 types of fonts.

How can we make it better?
- Have it be in proper English
- If you gonna have logo, try to tie in better.

 
 

IMG_2016

Why this sign is bad?
- Why is ‘L’ and the ‘N’ separate ???
- Letter alignment is all over the place
- Color palette is dull
- Design behind the big ‘B’ is strange

How can we make it better?
- Don’t separate the ‘L’ and the ‘N’
- Make use of the grid in the lettering
- Have the sign be a little more dynamic
 
 

IMG_2012

Why this sign is bad?
- Awful colors and design, looks like a kid’s art school project
- Using 3 or more fonts

How can we make it better?
- No need to put the word “Wine” on the wine bottle
- Pick more dynamic colors
- Keep the sign festive, since this is the intended direction, just don’t be gaudy
- Use a decorative font for the store name, use a simple plain font for everything else