Have you ever noticed how a lot of small signs on wire H frames pop up all over town on the weekends? Then, just as quickly as they appeared, the signs are gone come Monday morning? No, there aren't sign fairies fluttering around town on the weekend placing and removing signage. Instead, these signs are part of someone's marketing campaign. The small signs, also known as bandit signs, are a common form of marketing generally utilized by homebuilders across the nation. Now here is the good news, you can do it to!



Bandit signs are used as a weekend marketing campaign. The signs are about 3 feet tall by 3 feet wide. They are usually made of plastic and can be inserted onto wire H frame stands that set in the ground. The term "bandit" refers to the illegality of the sign itself. Most cities have an ordinance against bandit signs, but chances are they don't enforce that ordinance, which is why you often see them out.

The campaign concept is to place as many bandit signs at high-traffic intersections and other areas of interest. The signs are put out Friday evening and removed Sunday evening as to not irritate city officials. Quite often you will see several bandit signs on a corner. Most likely, the same person put all those signs out for several different businesses or individuals.

You can launch your own bandit sign campaign quite easily. First, contact a local sign provider, if you don't already have one, and request a quote for some bandit signs. You can probably get a better deal if you buy your signs in bulk. And you might want to consider buying in bulk because bandit signs have a way of disappearing. Make your signs generic so you can reuse them once the property you are marketing sells. If you really want to get creative, have signs made up with directional arrows to help push traffic in your direction.

Once you have your signs in hand, you can launch your bandit campaign. This is something you can do on your own or by using a service that places signs. If you want to go the service route, ask you sign provider if they know of anyone who assists with bandit sign placement. If you want to handle the campaign yourself, scope out the area near your investment property. Identify high-traffic areas where your bandit sign will get the most exposure. Then, Friday evening, the best time is after rush hour, take your signs out and place them in these spots. You may want to keep a map with you so you can pinpoint the location of all your signs. Don't forget to place bandit signs in the yard of your investment property. When Sunday evening rolls around, go back out and pick up your bandit signs. Make sure you retrieve all of your signs. You don't want to leave them out during the week. It may spark complaints that could put the city hot on your trail.

Bandit signs are a great way to drive traffic to your investment property. They are a proven method of successfully marketing in the real estate industry. For a small investment and some minor effort, you too can put a campaign to work for you.