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Every ski area has a wide selection of signs. And no doubt you think that your ski area has all the signs you need—perhaps even more than you need. After all, there are signs showing the guest where to park, where to buy a lift ticket, where to rent skis, buy lunch, find the restroom, which lift to ride, where to stand in line, and which runs are open or closed. And that’s just the beginning. Ski areas have a vast array of signs from multiple departments, all trying to educate and inform the guest.

But consider this question as you get ready to open your slopes: does your ski area really have the signs it needs? This isn’t about just adding more signs; this is about making sure that the signs you have in place are the right signs for your ski area operations, and that they are in the right locations.

It may be hard to know how effective your signs are because guests rarely praise a ski area for its signage. At the same time, it’s easy to think of examples of guests not paying attention to signs that are already in place. Still, it’s important to do your best to keep your guests informed and, on occasion, warned.

Unfortunately, your ski area guests can be quick to criticize if something goes wrong and the guest is injured. Your injured guest may decide after the fact that there should have been a sign in place to warn her of a potential hazard.

Even more unfortunately, if the injured guest decides to sue the ski area, juries may penalize the ski area if they believe signage might have helped prevent the accident. In several recent ski area lawsuits, juries were critical of what they considered to be the lack of appropriate signage at the ski area. If you have to defend your ski area in court, you want to show the jury that appropriate signs and warnings were, in fact, in place.


Positive Signs
How do you decide what signs are appropriate for your particular ski area? A good consistent approach to signage will go a long way toward both educating and protecting your guests. Signs should be clear, concise and appropriately placed.

Every ski area must have, at a minimum, the signs that are required by state statutes and codes. If you have any doubts about signs that are legally required for your ski area, check with your ski area’s attorney to make sure you are in compliance with all the applicable codes.

In addition to the required signs, think about the other signs your ski area has in place, and why. What’s the purpose of the sign? Is the sign there to provide information that deals with the guest’s comfort, such as where to get food or rent skis? Is the sign there to encourage the guest to spend money at your resort, such as a promotion on discounted passes or sale merchandise? Is the sign there to protect the guest or warn about hazards? The purpose of the sign will help dictate location, wording, and even the color of the sign.

Signs should be placed where they will do the most good—but be aware that even the best-placed and -designed signs will not ensure that a guest will notice, read and comply with the sign’s message. Warning signs, especially, should be located so that the guest has the opportunity to change his or her behavior before it’s too late. For example, if a particular lift serves only expert terrain, guests need access to that information before they board the lift—and from a customer service standpoint, before they get in line. If a terrain area is closed, that information should be provided before the guest starts down the closed slope.

Critical safety information should be provided in a way that stands out from information that is there merely for the guest’s convenience. A tasteful sign that blends in with the décor is fine for locating the ski shop, but a sign designating the easiest way down from the top of the mountain should be conspicuous—that is, it should attract attention and be easy to read.

If your guest skis to a trail intersection where there is a forest of signs, warning information should stand out so it doesn’t disappear in the maze of other signage. Similarly, a sign that is covered in snow so it can’t be read, or a sign that is so wordy that the message is unclear, won’t be very helpful to your guests. Also, a sign that is too faded by weather to read, or a sign with letters missing, or a sign too small to see, is not likely to get your message across.


The Jury Test
Here’s a simple, real-world test: If you had to defend your ski area in court, would you be proud to bring your ski area’s signs into the courtroom and show them to a jury? If the answer to that question is no, then consider what you should change so that you would be proud to display your signs to even the most critical audience. If your signs aren’t good enough to show off to a jury, how helpful are those signs to your guests?

If you choose not to put signs in a particular area, be ready to defend why you made that decision, too.

And if you do have signs, make sure they are in place. Having signs that are sitting in a shed somewhere because employees were too busy to put them out, or not having signs because no one got around to buying or making the right signs, is not a very satisfactory explanation for a lack of signage.

A good understanding of the ski statutes and case law in your particular state will also help you decide what signs are appropriate to comply with your own state’s standards for your slopes. It doesn’t hurt to see what other ski areas in your state do with signage and compare that to your own signage plan.

It’s a good idea to take a good look around the area at the beginning of the season, and try to see it as your guests do. Are there any locations where signs would be useful to those who are unfamiliar with your area? If so, consider installing a sign—they are a relatively small investment compared to the other amenities at your ski area, but the return on that investment can be huge.