Help me with the verbage for my deli sign please.

[not what you'd expect]

Hi

We are having a new sign made and I would love some input from you guys.

The sign in question is about 60 inches wide by 30 inches tall. It hangs in the center of a walkway that leads from Main street to our deli. The purpose of the sign is mostly to let tourists know that we are back there, since we aren't visible from the street.

We want people to know that we have both indoor and outdoor dining and that we offer breakfast and lunch, but other than that, I'm not sure what to focus on.

So I'm looking for ideas.

By the way, for those of you that are interested, things are going pretty well. We are in the black for the first time and our averages are climbing. We are getting a lot of buzz around town too. People really like our food!

[Johnny Bravo]

Holy Crap!
Awesome Sandwiches!
------>

[ZipperJJ]

SAMMICH!!


(extra text to allow for my all-caps signage)

[Procrustus]

Put "something" in quotes, even if it shouldn't be

[Boyo Jim]

One end of the sign should be arrow shaped (or painted if you must) pointing toward your entrance so people get the idea to go that way. "Patio dining" sounds nice.

[Lukeinva]

Deli al Fresco ===>

[SeaDragonTattoo]

Awesome Delicious Deli this way ===>>
Breakfast. Lunch. Indoor/Outdoor seating.
You should eat!!

[Becky2844]

Don't know the fou-fou factor but since the first word after the business name could be the hook, you might want to start with either "alfresco" or "patio" and then "& indoor seating." Then...We're On a Roll with our breakfast & lunch!
???
Something like that?

[Lynn Bodoni]

"Unexpected Deli
Breakfast and Lunch
Indoors or out"
and an arrow.

[GaryM]

"If you're not hungry now, wait 'til you see our menu!"

With an arrow of course.

[GuanoLad]

Discover the open secret. Discover our open sandwich.

[TriPolar]

Get some really good graphics on there to draw the eye. Pictures of food particularly. Don't count on people reading.

Is this outdoors? Any chance of using a chalkboard or whiteboard you can change?

[Peanuthead]

Name of Establishment
Breakfast - Lunch
Patio dining available.

[zoid]

HOT Live Nude Girls!!! ==>


Yoy have to admit it would drive foot traffic.

[Boyo Jim]

Originally Posted by zoid

HOT Live Nude Girls!!! ==>


Yoy have to admit it would drive foot traffic.

With this one, you could be a little more stylish with the arrow -- perhaps an upward curve, maybe a little blunter a point. Do you serve cream?

[zoid]

Plus just think about it...

Bunch of guys stroll in, "Uh, is this where the girs are?"
not what you'd expect laughs "Sorry guys, that sign is from the old owner, I guess they just never took it down. Wanna sammwich? We got turkey and Swiss on special today, it comes with fries and a cup of chilli. Plus I'll hook you up with a free fountain drink."

[6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast]

outdoor and indoor seating
for spectacular breakfast
and lunchtime eating

[not what you'd expect]

Zoid, that cracked me up.

Unfortunately, the arrow thing won't work. That would send everyone to a competitor.

Tripolar, No, it's a permanent sign. Peanuthead, that's pretty much what we have come up with.

Thanks all of you.

[Sigmagirl]

A picture of a dog rolling a meatball with its nose would work for me. Plus an arrow pointing to a big meatball sandwich.

[cmkeller]

"1920's-style deli"

[kaylasdad99]

Originally Posted by Procrustus

Put "something" in quotes, even if it shouldn't be

Dang. Ninja'd by Procrustus.

[Baal Houtham]

Originally Posted by Lukeinva

Deli al Fresco ===>

Originally Posted by Becky2844

Don't know the fou-fou factor

Originally Posted by TriPolar

Get some really good graphics on there to draw the eye. Pictures of food particularly. Don't count on people reading.

Originally Posted by Peanuthead

Name of Establishment
Breakfast - Lunch
Patio dining available.

I like those comments. Avoid cutesy unless you're sure cutesy sells. Some locales require foo-foo, but it hurts my brain.

Big Name
Breakfast - Lunch
Patio & Indoor

An arrow is good. Finding the money for a sign craftsman is good (rather than a cranked out assembly line product.) They can come up with something charming that will fit business, fit the location and still catch eyes.

[Lust4Life]

No advice but wishing you the best of luck for the future !


Dopers rule !

[Esox Lucius]

The Deli They Don't Want You To Know About!

[Jeff Lichtman]

What type of deli is it? Italian? Jewish? German? Something else? Put it on the sign - the less generic-sounding the description, the more people will pay attention to it.

Do you have some special menu item that sells really well? Mention it on the sign. "Home of the Super Bratwurst Sub" gets attention.

[sisu]

HUNGRY?
Try our World Renowned Food

always seems to work, well I'm in Australia and even I have now heard of you!

[Motorgirl]

Can you paint it with chalkboard paint and change the message regularly?

[elbows]

Two or three awesome pictures of your yummy food and the words;

'Secret Deli' and an arrow pointing the way.

I'd go to see what a Secret Deli consisted of, without a doubt!

But mostly, congrats on a job well done, few new restaurants see the black in such short order, you're definitely on your way! Well Done!

[Leaffan]

It's verbiage by the way.

[Mosier]

"Prepare To Eat"

The sign will of course be in the shape of a deli sandwich.

[even sven]

I'd include an example or two of particular foods that might be relevant to the location/mood/weather.

If you are in a hot place, something like "Ice cold lemonade! Home made ice cream!" In a cooler place, "Piping hot chili, oven warm brownies." Maybe include both- one in red writing and one in blue.

If you choose well, it may just spark a craving in some people. Someone could be walking down the street and think "Yeah, you know, a lemonade sounds perfect right now." If you can incorporate something that kids may want, it could induce begging (though that might go either way for unhealthy food- it might be better to just mention that kid-friendly items are available.)

[sisu]

Secret Deli, is pretty cool.

The Best Deli you never heard of.

Hey what is your tourists demographic? Country, state, age etc

[not what you'd expect]

Originally Posted by Leaffan

It's verbiage by the way.

Oy, thanks for the correction. Good thing I didn't put that on our sign.

No, Motorgirl, it can't be easily changed.

I think we're going to end up keeping it fairly simple. Maybe add American Style Deli. The foundation is talking about putting our menu on a digital type sign in the same area, so simple is probably going to work best in the end.

Thanks everyone. We aren't safe yet, but we really do feel pretty good about where we are. Three months ago I spent three days crying over our first yelp review, which was not too flattering, but now we're up to 11 reviews not counting the filtered ones and we have a 4 1/2 star rating. They like us! They really like us!

[Max the Immortal]

I'm reminded of this sign.

[ioioio]

I think simple verbiage is most effective. How about making it look like a sandwich: upper & lower bread border, with inner meat, tomato, and lettuce? You could even add a pickle graphic on the side. Better yet, a pointing pickle.

------------
Deli Name
Breakfast - Lunch
Patio & Indoor
------------

[not what you'd expect]

I like that Laina. Max, that's funny!

Sisu, We do get a fair share of tourists. People traveling to and from Tahoe. Apple Hill Season is coming up and we are told it is the busiest season for the whole town.

Thanks again.