Are you looking for creative ways to keep your signage and visual graphics fresh and relevant? Using magnetic receptive graphics gives you a number of ways to easily change, update and extend your brand message throughout your retail space or office building.
A key benefit of utilizing magnetic receptive print media from Visual Magnetics' MagnaMedia® line of films, fabrics and veneers is the ability to design with layers in mind. We often call designing with Visual Magnetics like "Photoshop in real life," because it empowers you to incorporate 2-3 layers of media, move elements around and design in real-time throughout a graphic's lifetime.
Here are three ways to design your messages with magnetic receptive graphics:
1. Emphasize lifestyle images for retail
In retail, you can utilize a lifestyle image as the first layer of media on your graphic and create additional layers for promotional messaging-- such as "50% Off" or "Fall Sale"-- that can be layered on top. These additional layers can move anywhere on your lifestyle image, and reprinting an entire graphic and reinstalling it to communicate new messaging will no longer be necessary. You will love being able to change promotional messaging as-things-happen, because it makes roll-outs easier for store employees and saves costs on shipping on printing. You also get the flexibility of being able to move elements around very easily, creating more dynamic in-store advertising. Elements simply have to be picked up and placed on the base-graphic to be seamlessly installed.
2. Incorporate layers for menu boards
You can incorporate layers in cafés and restaurants, since menu boards often change to promote weekly or seasonal offerings. Using any of Visual Magnetics' media can provide a dynamic, changeable menu board design. Our new VM-CHALKboard PLUS media works particularly well, since it is optimized for use with liquid chalk, and flawlessly combines hand drawn chalk and printed elements. Once a base template has been designed for a menu board, layers can be created so that prices or featured items can change as needed. So, for a coffee house that features weekly blends, printing blend names onto small layers and keeping them on hand makes it easy for staff to update and promote them according to what's available. Using Visual Magnetics, you can add a new menu board item easier than whipping up a frothy cappuccino, and it won't interrupt a café's regular flow of business.
3. Create dynamic seasonal layers
You can also use layers to create dynamic interactive applications in any setting, using environmental graphics that have creative, layered elements that are meant to be touched and moved around. At the Visual Magnetics headquarters in Massachusetts, we have an interactive application in our office foyer that changes seasonally-- a beautiful image of a bare tree gets bright green leaves during summer, beautiful red leaves during autumn, snowflakes during the winter and blossoms in the spring. Creating interactive collages with our materials is another application that works wonderfully because installations can be refreshed easily, surprising and delighting visitors. For collages, small, medium and large thematic pieces can be layered onto a base graphic in a new, dynamic design whenever the old arrangement feels fatigued. For example, a pet store can include an interactive collage behind the cash wrap, layering images of different animals to create an engaging, changeable application for its customers.
All of the examples above are great ways to wrap your head around designing in layers and we hope that you're excited to explore the potential of designing with our materials. Stay tuned for the second blog in this series on "5 Quick Tips for Designing in Layers."
This article was written by Naomi Mukai, Manager of PR/Digital Strategy for Visual Magnetics.
Visual Magnetics has been transforming walls and surfaces since CEO Joe Deetz invented magnetic paint in 1992. In 2007, the company introduced MagnaMedia®, the world's first magnetic-receptive print media. MagnaMedia is a component of the award winning Visual Magnetics Graphic System®, which is used by over 300 leading retailers as an elegant and cost-effective solution for in-store graphics. With over 17 unique finishing options such as fabrics, veneers and dry-erase, all MagnaMedia is made in the USA and is PVC-free, with an entire line dedicated to 100% post-consumer and natural, sustainable bases.
