Wayfinding Signs

Little Falls Canal Place Wayfinding

This bright, handprinted sign at Canal Place is not only a valuable wayfinding sign, but also a great marketing tool. It is fun and unique, instantly creating a unique sense of place. And with a hashtag conveniently located at the bottom, it makes a perfect backdrop for selfies that market Little Falls.

Little Falls Street Wayfinding

Elsewhere in Little Falls, simple black signs point the way to important tourist destinations in town.

Little Falls History & Business Signs

Pedestrian kiosks offer another option for wayfinding, and the chance to share much more detailed info about a place or amenities.

Herkimer Diamond Mines Wayfinding Signage

An old-fashioned signpost helps orient visitors to important places within the Diamond Mines site, but it also adds to the site’s character and brand and creates a great photo opportunity..

Canalway Trail Signage

The Canalway & Empire State Trail passages have traditional bike signage, meeting federal standards). Additional wayfinding signage along the trail could help direct more riders into villages and towns to support the local economy.

Lackawanna Trail Park

This trail sign at the Lackawanna Trail Park in South Columbia, NY is one of the most common types of wayfinding signage, and one of the easiest.

Old Forge Restroom Sign

It may not be glamorous, but Old Forge’s public restroom sign may be one of the most popular ones around. Providing public restrooms — and telling people where they are — is a critical way to help visitors stay longer and spend more.

Norway General Store Sign

Wayfinding signage can be extremely simple and inexpensive to make, like informal signs that pop up everywhere in communities.

Killington, VT Town Wayfinding

In many resort destinations like Killington, wayfinding signage is spread throughout a whole town or even a region, making sure that visitors can find ski mountains, parks, hotels, and other important amenities.

VINS Park Signage

Within a downtown or destination, locations or amenities may change frequently. There are many options for flexible permanent signage like this one at the Vermont Institute of Natural Science, which make it easy to change out destinations over time.

Lamoille Valley Rail Trail Signage

In Hyde Park, VT, signage focuses on drawing users off the Rail Trail into town, and helping people from town discover the Rail Trail.

Fairlee Pop-Up Wayfinding

The Town of Fairlee wanted to experiment with wayfindign before making it permanent, so they used “Wikiblock” (CNC router”) patterns to cut temporary signs out of plywood and install them around town. The signs could later be moved and reused.

Walk [Your City] Signs

This popular national model is incredibly easy and inexpensive to design and install. The signs are made on durable corrugated plastic, and can be zip tied to lamp posts, fences, or any other vertical post. Just get permission first!

Wayfinding Sign Blank

An easy way to experiment with inexpensive but professional wayfinding is to print custom sign blanks and then add custom lettering using a printer and vinyl sheets. This design is similar to Walk [Your City] and can be printed on 12x12” coroplast.

Photos ©Community Workshop LLC

Where: Everywhere!

What: Signs that help people find their way around a place or learn about destinations

Wayfinding signs are signs that direct people to places and destinations, help them learn about the sites or amenities in an area, or encourage people to travel there. They are everywhere — on streets and trails, in hospitals and shopping malls, at tourist sites. Wayfinding signs can be large or small, professional or handmade, and focused on all sorts of themes or goals.

Why: Help people find what they need and get where they want to go, and showcase community offerings

The main purpose of wayfinding signs is obvious — they make it easier for people to find their way to places or things they need. But there are a lot of other reasons why that’s valuable for people and communities. They can help people find their way to important amenities like libraries, healthcare facilities, schools, playgrounds, parks and trails, which increases use of those services. Good wayfinding signs can serve as marketing tools, informing people of businesses and services and encouraging them to visit or patronize those sites. They can send an important message about a community’s character or brand. They can encourage people to stop, walk, bike, or play. All in all, wayfinding is one of the simplest and most cost-effective community development strategies around, since they are all about highlighting assets that already exist.

More:

• Walk [Your City]: This national project began with an experiment by graduate student Matt Tomasulo, who simply printed signs and hung them up around Raleigh. Each sign said “It’s a ___ minute walk to [destination]” and was designed to show people who easy it is to walk places. These signs are printed cheaply on coroplast, and can be zip tied onto anything. The national website has a toolkit and simple tools for planning and designing your own.

• Learn the rules: If you’re planning signage for bike or pedestrian routes, be sure to get permission and work with transportation authorities. Check out national design guidelines for assistance.

Get Inspired:

• Start small: Just one handmade signpost can make a difference in a community, immediately adding a dose of fun and highlighting local assets.

• Go temporary: If you can’t install permanent signage (yet), start with a pop-up version. Print cheap or simple signs to try out for a short time, or create blanks with chalk paint or dry erase surfaces that you can repurpose for events.

• Get creative: What could signs do or offer beyond just the names of locations? Think about how to use signage to meet other goals like walkability, affordability, or building community.