Drove past a diner I used to hit up 10 years ago and their sign was a total mess now

I was back in my hometown last weekend and decided to grab breakfast at this old diner I loved in college. The place used to have this clean, hand-painted sign that felt super welcoming, but now it's this cheap vinyl wrap with comic sans font all over it. When I walked in, I noticed the menu board had mismatched fonts and clip art that looked straight out of 1998. The owner told me they redid it all 2 years ago because their nephew offered to do it for $300 cash. I get trying to save money, but that sign is turning away older regulars and younger people don't even stop because it looks so dated. Have any of you dealt with a client who went with a family member's design instead of something professional? How did you talk them out of it?

2 comments

2 Comments

rose_murray12d ago

Isn't family loyalty worth more than a fancy sign anyway?

joel28012d ago

...and it keeps happening everywhere now. People think graphic design is just slapping stuff together. They see their nephew has a computer and a printer and boom. But a sign is the first thing a customer sees. That first impression matters a ton. It's like showing up to a job interview in sweatpants because your cousin said it's fine.