On a Sunday morning, when does your church guest's first impression start?

Often churches think about their first few minutes of service, like the video opener, the media on the screen counting down to service, or the first song as a guest's first impression. Others will say it's in the foyer once people walk through the front door and are greeted by the guest services team, but take a step back from that to recognize where the first impression truly starts: Your parking lot.

Ever look for a restaurant and have to drive around the block to find them as you pass by the second time? Every time our church guests experience any level of confusion, it's an opportunity for them to turn around and go back home. You're sure not to leave your friend alone at the restaurant because you had to circle the block, but a guest may think twice if they have to put too much effort into finding your church.

Visiting a church for the first time comes along with some sense of uncertainty at best.

Once that uncertainty builds up enough, a guest will turn around and leave, so your church's goal for guests must be to remove uncertainty and distractions, and clear signage can be a way to accomplish that.

This will take some intentionality, not simply a few volunteers with handheld signs at your front door, but how do you know where to start and which products to use?

These 5 church welcome sign types are intended to make your guest feel more comfortable during their first visit to your church.

• Welcoming feather flags
• Entrance and exit signage
• Handheld signs
• Light pole signs
• Directions to your main entrance

5 ways that welcome signs for churches can help your guests feel more welcome!

Sign Type #1) Feather Flags that move in the wind

It doesn't take much to make a feather flag flap (which is why they're one of our most popular outdoor products), but that movement is a great eye-catcher. Since we're wired to notice movement, it's hard to miss a feather flag.

Keep your feather flag artwork simple with something like "We're glad you're here" or "You Found Us!" or "Good To See You" or something as simple as your church logo. Since they will be moving, you'll want to avoid too much information or detailed information that could get missed with the movement.

Feather Flags Work For Indoor or Outdoor:

Outdoor Feather flags can be stuck into grass or flower beds and have the option of portable bases for concrete if your parking is in a parking garage or if your sign needs to grab attention on the sidewalk downtown. With the option to have bases, they can also be placed inside when you need to get attention in a shared portable church space like a movie theatre or high school, and with less movement inside, you can adjust your artwork to match.

Remember: Feather flags are for attention, not information.

Sign Type #2) Entrance Sign or Exit Sign

If your parking lot has a specific entrance or exit, then make clear signage indicating that. This may not seem that important since your members who have been coming for years already know the entrance and the exit, but a guest is navigating your church parking lot for the first time. They may not realize which direction you're supposed to drive under the covered driveway by the front door (Is that your portico or your narthex?) or which way to enter the parking lot, so they're not causing a traffic jam with someone leaving from your early service.

Having entrance or exit signs isn't simply a matter of checking a box for having them. If you have a sign but it's hidden in a bush or so small that it can't be read until you're supposed to have already turned, it's time for new signage.

You may also need to consider what those signs look like at night when you have an evening service or concert. Are they lit up, or is there a way to make them stand out more after dusk with a different color?

There may also be times when GPS will take your visitors to a particular entrance to your parking lot. If that HAS to be the exit, make sure there's signage to show where the entrance is. If it could be flexible, then make the GPS location the entrance, since that's where visitors will end up.

Putting your church address into your GPS next time you're heading over there, and see which entrance Siri says you've arrived.

If you're a portable church, A-Frame signs can work well for entrance and exit signage since they'll stand up to a reasonable amount of wind, and they're easy to move around if you need to make adjustments for how your parking lot traffic moves in and out in the future.

Remember: Turn on your GPS and find out which entrances guests will be directed to when they arrive.

If you need to change your entrance and exit signage, have volunteers at those locations with custom handheld signs for the first 3-4 weeks after the change!

Sign Type #3) Handheld Signs for your First Impressions Team

Your first impressions team in your parking lot need to be the people with the best smiles and the most energy, but the best way for them to truly help your guests feel comfortable is with handheld signs.

These splashes of color draw attention with quick messages that won't slow down traffic as they read the handheld but start to communicate that your church is expecting them.

Handheld Signs Say What Your Team Can't Say As Cars Drive Past

Since they won't be able to talk to cars driving by without holding up traffic, handheld signs are a great way to pass on a message like "So glad you're here" or "It's Good To See You" or "We Missed You."

This is a way for your guests to recognize that you've put attention into making them feel welcome and that your church is full of friendly people with smiling faces and a welcoming message.

Remember: Handheld signs provide quick information that makes drivers feel welcome. Use handhelds as tools for your first impressions team, not replacing friendly faces and smiling volunteers.

Sign Type #4) Lightpole Banners Signs To Welcome Church Guests

Like handheld signs, light pole banners are not intended to provide information to guests (since they'll probably miss large amounts of information up high) but rather use them to create an environment that sets the stage for what to expect for the rest of their experience at your church. We also have brackets that can be added to nearly any light pole, even if the poles themselves don't have custom brackets.

Think of the characters in the parking lot when you visit Disney or another theme park. While the light pole banners are in place to help you find your car at the end of the day, they could easily accomplish the same goal using letters or numbers, but instead, they use characters to you're starting to feel immersed in the experience.

Design Your Church's Light Pole Banner Artwork For Decoration

Choose a design from our catalog to match your Christmas theme, Easter weekend signs, your current sermon series, or include your logo with a background for the season. We'll turn any of our catalog artwork into a custom design for your church.

Any parking lot can have grey asphalt and metal light poles, but YOUR church can take the time to start to add a splash of color and set the expectations for the rest of your guest's time at church. Will your church be fun? Traditional? Youthful? Well Polished?

These impressions will start to be created through the artwork and style of your light pole banners. Think of them as the opening credits for a movie - the style, font choices, coloration, high energy activity, or subtle design - all of these elements set the stage for what's coming.

Remember: Use light pole banners are for creating an environment, adding color and decoration. Design the artwork for color and style rather than information, and for a higher impact, match your artwork to your handheld signs.

Sign Type #5) Directions To Your Main Entrance

Have multiple entrances at your church, or a kids entrance and an entrance to your main auditorium? Nothing feels more confusing than walking into somewhere you've never been before and feeling like you accidentally walked in the back door.

Ever been to a friend's house for the first time who has both a front entrance and a side entrance, and you're asking yourself which one you should use? Inevitably, you choose the wrong one and have to trip over the shoes they moved out of the way from the proper entrance.

The same can be true for your guests. Rather than splitting up your first impressions team and handheld signs to cover multiple entrances (unless your entrances are on opposite sides of your building or in 2 separate parking lots) instead, have signs that redirect people to your main entrance or kids entrance where you can be sure to make a high-impact first impression with all of your team in one place.

A-Frame signs work well as outdoor wayfinding signs

A-frame signs in your church parking lot can stand up to the elements, but you may want to re-arrange them for midweek youth services or special events.

Remember: Your first impression team will have a bigger impact when concentrated around a single entrance, rather than splitting up your team and making your guests choose.

Welcome Signs For Churches Set The Stage For Your Guests

Recognize that your parking lot is your guest's first impression of their experience. These 5 types of signs will help you set the stage for what your guest expects to experience.