The appeal of campaign yard signs is simple. They’re visible. They’re tangible. They reward the candidate or campaign paying for them with the sight of their name in big letters. That can mean a lot to people who are struggling to get noticed.
Yard signs can give reassurance to candidates who are uncertain they’re having an impact.
It’s important to understand this, because what yard signs don’t do is prove that you’re winning.
Candidates must remember that yard signs don’t vote.
Campaigns will still spend on yard signs, anyway.
But it’s possible to keep the actual value of yard signs in perspective and get whatever value the signs might provide while neither over-spending nor over-interpreting.
Every new candidate insists on having yard signs, and they can rival postage for a local campaign’s biggest expense.
One way to defray this cost is to ask people to make a campaign contribution in return for signs. You should be asking people to give your campaign contributions anyway, but people are generally accustomed to free yard signs.
There are other ways to limit yard signs’ cost. The best options are skipping part of the cost entirely, which is possible with both printing and metal frames. There’s no avoiding some cost for sign material, but if you plan far enough ahead you can get a lot of metal frames for free; every November, people throw away or recycle them in after the last election ends. You can also replace the printer’s bill using stencils, paint and volunteer hours, if you’re a proudly grassroots campaign with limited funds.
If you are getting yard signs professionally printed, consider that you can do without extra colors, and without extra signs. Both are costly and may not provide much value. A citywide campaign in a populous suburb can make just 250 signs seem like they’re everywhere.
One thing which helps with that is a good color. Even a well-designed yard sign will mostly consist of color and a name. There’s limited acreage on each sign, so you think about how to best make your sign noticeable. If 10 other campaigns will be active alongside yours, and you expect at least five of them to have navy blue signs, give serious thought to something else even if blue is your favorite color. Or red.
Once you have signs, the best option you have left to squeeze value out of them is to get as close as possible to 100% use, without going over. Buying 300 signs, then ordering 100 more later on, is much more costly than buying 400 in the first place. But over-ordering isn’t great, either; signs that never left your garage during the entire campaign are a complete waste. No eyeballs will ever see those signs and the money spent to print them could have been used elsewhere in your campaign.
If you ordered a reasonable number of signs and “run out,” that’s a fine problem to have, if you’ve thought ahead.
Many times, campaigns will be very uncomfortable seeing other signs on intersections and medians on Election Day. Make an estimate of how many you want reserved for the final run-up to Election Day and save those.
Trying to find enough homes for all your signs is a more common challenge, though.
Let people know you have signs through all the obvious channels: email, your web site, social media. But signs which don’t vote won’t move themselves, either. Consider providing delivery and “installation” of signs, especially if you have a volunteer who can do it. Someone who asks for a sign will probably put it in their yard, but if you’ve already spent money on the sign why not go that last mile to make certain.
As you discover supporters, ask them if they will display a sign for you. Consider local businesses whose owners support you; a sign in a Main Street window is at least as visible as one in someone’s lawn. Remember, the purpose of the sign is to have someone see it.
If you’ve got a car, have signs in the trunk. If you find someone fully behind you, while canvassing, get their sign to them while you’re already there in their neighborhood. Take signs to your own events, and any event which will let you bring them in with you.
Remember – yard signs still won’t vote.
But, if you spend on them anyway, there’s every reason to take all opportunities to get them in use. If they provide a reminder and incentive to get out meeting people, promoting your name, and following up on contacts you make, you’re getting something worthwhile from them after all.
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