Get Rid of the Sales Persons, Keep the Scouts

It is an age-old question. You desire to keep solicitors at bay, but allow Girl Scouts and other children to knock at your door and be welcome to sell their cookies and other goodies.

See the dilemma? Let’s say that you desire a plaque that says “No Solicitors, Except Girl Scouts”. Most know what you mean, but read it through suspicious eyes. All you really want to do is have some privacy and, at the same time, allow a select group to knock on your door. See? A dilemma.

Atlas Signs and Plaques has faced this issue before. Someone wants to let Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, School Organizations, and other youngsters sell their goodies to raise money for the trip to Washington D.C. or New York. The easy solution has evaded us until recently. In the past, Atlas has discouraged such No Soliciting Signs because of our paranoia about our clients sending the wrong message to the neighborhood thought police. Our society is so screwed up at times, that good and pure deeds get taken to the trash along with the real garbage. What a sad situation it is to be forced to edit a simple sign with a distrustful mind.

One solution is to hang a No Soliciting Sign, but pull it in during fund raising season. Another solution is to just say it and let the neighbors think that your home is full of perverts. The first choice has tricky timing issues, the second is just creepy.

Ok, here is the solution that has evaded the civilized world for eons.

It is simple. It is elegant. It is cute. It is clever. It is all about using an unexpected typeface and wording that sends a subtle message that is non-offensive. Alright, this is not a secret since the design is pictured at the top of the page. But here is why it works. Take a font that is traditionally Arts and Crafts or Craftsman style. combine it with a message that has a term that has been associated with Girl Scout cookies forever, change the word order around, and the message has been sent. The No Soliciting Unless You Sell Thin Mints message has been sent loud and clear, but without sounding weird.