A New Era of Street Pole Banners | Main Street America
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Street pole banners preserve the historic character of main streets while fostering community awareness and engagement. These visual reminders ignite confidence in commercial districts, and new developments in the signage industry have created more ways to use banners than ever before.

Banners have a long history on the American Main Street. While municipalities continue to use them to mark seasons, celebrate holidays, and promote special events, banner production continues to evolve. New technology allows banner-makers to provide sharper resolution, brighter colors, and greater weather-resistance. Towns in colder areas can save thousands of dollars with longer-lasting banners, and improved graphic art programs allow clients tighter control over their design.  

The economic strategy, or underlying logic, of banner use is also changing. Recent demographic data gives some insight into the future of Main Street banners. As millenials gradually accrue the financial resources that eluded them during the recession, many are opting to revitalize and inhabit the urban real estate abandoned by previous generations. Although some Main Streets still have more empty store fronts than occupied ones, the push to repopulate urban centers may lead to a resurgence in commerce and, as a result, signage in those areas.

Perhaps the biggest revolution in banner usage coincides with the rise of social media. Not only can banners mark physical locations, they can also designate Wi-Fi hotspots and other virtual landmarks. Graphics can now include scannable QR codes that provide coupons or text message codes that provide updates on city events. Banners may also direct people to Twitter hashtags or Flickr and Instagram threads that allow individuals to view and add to digital archives and postings about community experiences.

Although often thought to be shorter-term investments, banners can pay off through creative repurposing. A December 2014 article in “Crain’s Chicago Business” describes how one city office is auctioning off 150 banners from a rugby match between the United States and New Zealand teams. Although their marketing purpose had been served, the office can now profit from the obsolete banners. Other Main Street programs could see similar returns by auctioning off their aging banners, framing them as gifts for donors, or donating them to local heritage museums. Any money raised could be used to fund a new set of banners.

When we speak of “Main Street America,” we speak of the shared experiences of Americans across the country. It is not surprising that we look to Main Streets as a source of cultural, as well as economic, renewal. Not only are they geographic centers.  They also provide continuity across generations by uniting an area’s traditions, values, and aspirations. As time moves forward, preservation can be a constant struggle. New banner usage and production can keep historic areas current while tapping into the iconic image of Main Street America.

Jay Jensen works for FlagandBanner.com, an Allied Member of the National Main Street Center. Previously known as Arkansas Flag and Banner, the Little Rock-based company was established in 1975 by Kerry McCoy.  Although the company’s slogan has become “more than just a flag store,” FlagandBanner still takes pride in selling the most patriotic of American symbols—the red, white and blue U.S. flag. 

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