First things first: Not all graphic design is the same. (DUH – said every graphic designer, ever.) My point is that designing for political campaigns is a very different animal. The yard sign/logo is the perfect example. If it’s pretty, you probably can’t read it going 65 mph on the highway… If it has all the “white space” your designer loves, see previous sentence. Everything in a campaign keys off the name of the candidate and how big you can get it on the sign. 

When thinking of your logo, there are three key components: color, name, district information:

1. Color: The primary use of your logo will be on yard signs. Signs are expensive and more so with every additional color. White is not considered a color, it’s typically the base color of the sign, so use white to accent where you can. 
   1. Stick to a one-color yard sign. You can add color or have different versions for other printed materials, but colorful yard signs and giveaways drive overall cost up.
   2. Color and meaning: 
      1. Favorite color: Maybe you’re a Republican but your favorite color is blue. It’s what you have the most of in your closet, and your favorite team’s color. 
      2. Party affiliation: red, blue, green
      3. Local high school or college colors
      4. Role-related: Green for a Treasurer, black for a Coroner, orange for public safety, blue for law enforcement. 
   3. Again, because YOLOgo, it should be a color you like, because you’re going to be around it all the time. Even if you rebrand, the color will likely stay the same.
      1. Gill Studios has the best (IMO) sign design out there, the Gill #192. It’s 26” wide by 16” high and uses a thick card stock, coated in plastic that withstands tornado season in Kansas, and sealed on the sides so it’s easy to slide over the staple-style frame. CBS News highlighted them in 2016.
         1. Gill has standard colors which are cheaper. They’re very basic colors and will be good for all your logo and printing. 
   4. DON’Ts: Yellow should not be by itself on a sign. It is too hard to read, as are soft colors like baby blue or pink. Neon colors tend to fade more quickly in the sun and are difficult to read unless accented with black. 
      1. Photos: If you’re rolling in dough and have done time as a supermodel, maybe put your photo on your sign, but other than that, people just think you’re a real estate agent.
      2. Calendar and color: 
         1. Grass: If you have a spring or early summer election, be careful of a green background as it can blend in with the yard. However, a white background with green lettering would stand out. 
         2. Snow: If you live in a northern state, avoid a white background logo for November elections as snow will be on the ground. A bright color background with white lettering will really pop on a snow-covered lawn.
2. Name: You want your name as big as possible. If you have an impossibly long last name, you may want to focus on your first name. It has also become popular to run primarily on your first name, especially if it is memorable. 
   1. Just like when you’re naming your kid – if you use a nickname on your sign, think through all the bad rhyming conventions playground kids would use… 
   2. If your sign uses a nickname or shortened name, be sure what’s on your sign matches what’s on the ballot. Don’t assume voters know Hank is Henry, Shelly is Michelle, or JD is John D. Smith. 
   3. Font Selection: 
      1. Serif fonts take up more space and are harder to read as they have curls and finishes on each letter. However, some prefer the look of their name with serifs – as the candidate, be sure YOU like how your name looks. As mentioned, it’ll be around a while. 
      2. I recommend sans serif fonts because they are cleaner, can be larger on a sign, and are easier to read, especially going 65 mph. 
         1. COMIC SANS IS NEVER AN OPTION!
         2. Some of my favorite sans serif fonts for yard signs are: 
            1. Futura Condensed 
            2. Acumin Pro Condensed 
            3. Avenir Next Condensed
            4. Myriad Pro Condensed
3. District Info: No one knows the district number they live in. Period. City Council Ward 3 or State House of Representatives District 123 are meaningless to voters and waste precious real estate. Voters only see your signs if they live in or near your district, and they’ll only see your name on the ballot if they live in your district. The most important thing for them to remember is your name. 
   1. Iconography Examples: 
      1. Party affiliation icons can prove useful and are sometimes more telling when left off (especially party)! 
      2. Career icons and titles can provide credibility: CPA, MD, DNA string, nursing hat, judge’s gavel,
      3. Position-related icons: waves for a water board, apple/bus/pencil/school building/mortar board for a school board, Sheriff’s badge or police vehicle for public safety positions, and relevant modes of transportation for transportation boards (airplane, train, bus, etc.).
   2. Shortening examples: 
      1. Shorten to City Council, State House/Senate (or the State’s abbreviation – KS House). Same for the city or county you live in, use abbreviations residents use. 
      2. Stockton Mayor = Stockton
      3. Missouri State Representative = MO House
      4. County Commission District 5 = JoCo Commission
      5. USD 100 School Board = School Board or Springfield Schools

Now that you have your logo, let’s talk about all the places to put it. Stay tuned for tips on print, mail, signs, and tchotchkes! I hope these tips were helpful. I would love to see pictures of unique signs or political logo designs which caught your eye.