Outdoor event signs: work back from set-up day, then walk the site

The usual way outdoor event signs go wrong isn’t the design. It’s the timing: the arrows turn up the day after the fun run, or the backdrop is still in a van when the mayor arrives. So do it in this order. First, sort what takes longest to make and order it first. Second, walk the site as a first-time visitor and put a sign wherever you’d pause. Third, pack a small kit for the jobs nobody planned.

Part one: the calendar comes before the checklist #

Every product page shows its working days to dispatch on Saver, Standard and Express. The count starts when your order and artwork are both confirmed, and the courier usually needs another 1 to 3 working days after that. Count back from the day you set up, not the day the gates open.

Order these first (10 working days, whatever service you pick)

Street Correx: venue arrow signs, A1 Correx triangles and lamp post wraps. Express doesn’t speed these up, so they go on the order before anything else.

Then these (7 on Standard)

Printed tablecloths, with 5 on Express.

Then these (6 on Standard)

Feather flags, teardrop flags and mesh race or festival banners, with 4 on Express.

Then these (4 on Standard)

PVC banners and 850 mm roller banners, with 2 on Express.

Last (3 on Standard)

Correx boards and event sign boards (2 on Express), and backdrops, step and repeat walls and crowd barrier banners (1 on Express). These are the ones you can safely leave until the programme is final.

Add a few days for artwork changes, because there are always changes. Tick an item off your list when it’s ordered with confirmed artwork, not when the design looks finished on someone’s laptop.

Three questions to answer before you pick products #

• What’s underfoot? Grass takes a ground spike. Tarmac, paving and indoor floors need a cross, square or water base, or a car base that sits under a wheel.
• What can you tie to? Crowd barriers, Heras fence, gantries, walls, or nothing at all. Barrier sizes vary between hire firms, so measure one panel before ordering covers. Our page on banners on Heras fencing helps if that’s what you’ve got.
• Will it run again next year? If so, keep the date off the big pieces and put it on a cheap board or poster instead.

Part two: walk the route for outdoor event signs #

Now picture someone who has never been to your site. Follow them from the main road to the portaloos and back to their car. Each stop below is a place they’ll look for outdoor event signs.

The turning off the main road

People miss entrances. A pair of feather flags at the turning (8 ft 6 in / 2.6 m up to 16 ft 1 in / 4.9 m, single or double sided) is visible from a long way back. Venue arrows at 550 × 210 mm do the steering; put the event name above the arrow, big. A free-standing Correx triangle at 1782 × 1001 mm reads from more than one direction. Signs on the public highway and lamp post wraps usually need the highway authority’s say-so, so ask the council early.

The car park

Visitor parking and slow-down signs on Correx, at A3 or larger. Put them where drivers decide, which is usually before the gate, not after it.

The way in

• Crowd barrier banners in 2200 × 800 mm, 2000 × 1000 mm or 2300 × 1000 mm, on PVC, PVC-free or mesh. A line of branded barriers turns a queue into a welcome.
• Roller banners at the registration desk. Keep the message in the top two thirds; tables and people cover the rest.
• An information board on Foamex with the programme, a site map and entry rules.

Getting around

This is where most events skimp. Correx boards from A4 and venue arrows are cheap enough to use lavishly. Sign the exit, toilets, first aid and car park in both directions, because people leave by a different route to the one they came in on.

The main stage, start line or arena

• Step and repeat banners and stage backdrops from 2000 × 2000 mm up to 4000 × 2500 mm. Keep sponsor logos small and repeated, so every photo crop catches at least two.
• Marathon and race banners and festival banners on 260gsm mesh, which lets wind through. That’s the safer pick for gantries and fences in open fields. Our PVC or mesh guide explains why.
• Teardrop flags from 6 ft 11 in (2.1 m), which keep their shape in a light breeze so sponsor names stay readable.

Food, bar and stalls

A PVC banner across the front of each bar or food stall, printed tablecloths on sponsor and exhibitor tables (measure so the front drops to the floor), and Foamex price and menu boards.

Toilets, bins and safety points

Toilet signs with left or right arrows, a fire assembly point sign, no smoking signs where your risk assessment says, and waste and recycling signs over each group of bins. Your event safety plan decides which safety signs go where. The HSE’s event safety pages set out what organisers are responsible for.

Part three: the set-up day kit #

• Spare cable ties, a mallet, gaffer tape and scissors.
• A few blank Correx boards and a fat marker pen, for the sign you forgot.
• Flag bases matched to the ground, checked before you leave. Bases can also be bought on their own. Our guide to putting up a feather flag covers the rest.
• A plan for wind: bring flags down when it picks up.
• A phone for photos. Snap each area once it’s dressed, and next year’s outdoor event signs start from real pictures, not memory.

Delivery and help #

UK mainland delivery is £7.95, free on orders of £100 or more after discounts. Banners over 3 m on any side and boards bigger than A0 add £15, but street Correx is exempt. The delivery page has the details for other areas.

Not sure whether a spot needs a banner, a roller banner or a flag? Read banner, roller banner or flag. For a full pack of outdoor event signs, or a date that’s closer than you’d like, send your list through get a quote.