2017-12-13 Sandwich board, Car hire, Albufeira

A sandwich board is a type of

advertisement Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

tool composed of two boards with a message or graphic on it and being either carried by a person, with one board in front and one behind in a triangle shape, hinged along the top, creating a "

sandwich A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a po ...

" effect; or set up next to a store advertising its goods. In this way, the advertising message can be read on both sides interchangeably.

History

The increased competition for poster space and the inconveniences of an advertising tax led the advertisers to generate a type of advertisement that moves a handy sales tool to promote sales. The term "

sandwich man A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a po ...

" was coined by

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

. He described these advertisers as "a piece of human flesh between two slices of paste board". Sandwich boards were most popular in the 19th century, and have largely been supplanted by

billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

s, which are more effective in advertising to passers-by who are now likely to be in

automobile A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded ...

s, rather than traveling by foot. However, they are still frequently to be seen on major shopping streets such as

Oxford Street Oxford Street is a major road in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, running from Tottenham Court Road to Marble Arch via Oxford Circus. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, with around half a million daily visitors, and ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

; Champs Élysées,

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

, and 42nd Street,

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

, where they are used to advertise offers from particular stores most often in adjacent side-streets.

Types

There are generally two types of sandwich boards.

Carried version

The carried version is usually attached to straps acting as

suspenders Suspenders (American English, Canadian English), or braces (British English, Australian English) are fabric or leather straps worn over the shoulders to hold up skirts or trousers. The straps may be elasticated, either entirely or only at a ...

, allowing the person wearing the boards to carry the weight on his or her shoulders and keeping the boards balanced on the wearer. The wearer might also pass out flyers or shout advertising

slogan A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a clan, political, commercial, religious, and other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose, with the goal of persuading members of the public or a more defined target group. Th ...

s. These sandwich men are seen parading in a queue cladded in a specific costume. They were gorgeously dressed at the beginning but later they were portrayed wearing shabby clothes in many illustrations that failed to attract consumers attention. In many cities of the world these type of advertisements are considered illegal and is a punishable offence. According to the

London Hackney Carriage Act 1853 London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a maj ...

and Section 9 of the Metropolitan Streets Act 1867, it is not lawful for any person to carry any picture, placard, notice, or advertisement, on any carriage or on horseback or on foot except those which are approved of by the Commissioner of Police.

A-board

Another is called "A-board" which is kept next to the stores, on public transport grounds, such as sidewalks or pedestrian zones to draw the attention of the customers passing by. These A-boards resemble the shape of letter A. In some modern A-boards the conventional two boards have been replaced by a single board hanging within the frame. A-boards are most typically deployed in busy pedestrian areas to advertise businesses. Advertising the business website or social media page on these boards helps the business get recognized locally as well as internationally. This kind of advertising is most popular among bars and restaurants. For some small businesses is it the main type of advertising.

Materials used

Many different types materials are used to make these boards. The carried type is generally made up of light materials like

cardboard Cardboard is a generic term for heavy paper-based products. The construction can range from a thick paper known as paperboard to corrugated fiberboard which is made of multiple plies of material. Natural cardboards can range from grey to light b ...

or paperboard and yarn to hang it to the shoulders. The conventional types of A-boards are traditionally made with any rigid flat material such as fibre board, chip board, wood, plyboard or MDF. Modern A-boards are made with plastic, steel or aluminum and in some of them the hinges are made with leather. Cheaper A-boards are made with wood-frame with cloth nailed upon and printed with screen-print or painted by hand.

Chalkboard A blackboard (also known as a chalkboard) is a reusable writing surface on which text or drawings are made with sticks of calcium sulphate or calcium carbonate, known, when used for this purpose, as chalk. Blackboards were originally made o ...

s are also used as a A-board material, with the advertisement messages written by hand. There are advantages and disadvantages to using different materials. Wooden frames can be damaged by termites. Plastic materials like PVC become fragile with weather and

polyethylene Polyethylene or polythene (abbreviated PE; IUPAC name polyethene or poly(methylene)) is the most commonly produced plastic. It is a polymer, primarily used for packaging (plastic bags, plastic films, geomembranes and containers including ...

sandwich boards get warped in varying temperatures which causes bowing or dishing of the surface, which distorts the message or graphic printed on it. Phthalates used as

plasticizer A plasticizer ( UK: plasticiser) is a substance that is added to a material to make it softer and more flexible, to increase its plasticity, to decrease its viscosity, and/or to decrease friction during its handling in manufacture. Plasticiz ...

s and

lead Lead is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metals, heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale of mineral hardness#Intermediate ...

used for workability and stability in PVC contribute to health complications. Moreover printing on plastic materials which needs a special type of ink is costly. Chalkboard A-boards allow for messages to be easily replaced, but they must be written by hand, and the messages are susceptible to rain. Aluminum or steel frames are comparatively durable, but vulnerable to strong winds and bad weather conditions, especially rain, and wear out over time. On windier days

sandbag A sandbag or dirtbag is a bag or sack made of hessian (burlap), polypropylene or other sturdy materials that is filled with sand or soil and used for such purposes as flood control, military fortification in trenches and bunkers, shielding gl ...

s are sometimes hung under the board as a

counterweight A counterweight is a weight that, by applying an opposite force, provides balance and stability of a mechanical system. The purpose of a counterweight is to make lifting the load faster and more efficient, which saves energy and causes less wea ...

which gives balance and stability. Colors often fade away after prolonged exposure to the sun. The use of different materials in a single object makes these boards unsuitable for recycling.

References

External links

* {{Commons category-inline, Sandwich boards
Victorian Sandwich Board Men
Advertising tools Billboards