Signage

Signage

A great way to let your visitors know that you have a hotspot is to display a "Wi-Fi Here" sign or sticker on your front window or door. This helps catch public attention when people pass by your location. Another great way to promote your Wi-Fi hotspot is by placing tent cards on your tables and desks. For example, if your business is a café, you might want to place the cards on the eat-in tables and by the cash register to ensure that all your visitors know about your hotspot. This is also a way you can inform visitors of the details, such as the network name and pricing information.

You can go about acquiring signage in several ways:

• Get the signs from an organization such as Boingo, which provides marketing materials when you become a partner

• Purchase them

• Create your own

If you joined the Boingo hotspot network, you will likely receive a marketing kit that contains, among other things, ready-to-use stickers and tabletop tent cards. It is highly recommended that you use these items.

If you cannot obtain ready-to-use signage, you can create your own. It is fairly easy to make your own signs, and you can create some neat-looking stickers with supplies from your local office supply store.

For signs, you can use just use plain white paper. To be more attractive, you can experiment with different colored and designed papers. To make window stickers or decals, you can purchase and use special paper or clear plastic sticker sheets that you can print on. Explore your local office supply store for materials.

As far as the text for the signage you create, you can use well-known phrases such as "Wireless Internet Access" or "Wi-Fi Hotspot Here." Of course, if you are offering free access, you definitely want to mention that on the sign. If you create a large-enough design, you can also add some details about the hotspot. For more artistic touches, you can add photos or clip art of related items, such as laptops or PDAs.

You can use familiar images from organizations such as the Wi-Fi ZONE program. The Wi-Fi Alliance licenses the use of its trademarked logo (see Figure 8-1) to Wi-Fi ZONE providers. To become a zone provider, you have to use Wi-Fi certified equipment in your hotspot.

Figure 8-1. Wi-Fi ZONE Logo

Figures 8-2 and 8-3 provide some examples of Wi-Fi hotspot signage.

Figure 8-2. Large Sample Design

Figure 8-3. Small Sample Designs