Signage Checklist

Sometimes clients miss critical pieces of information when ordering signs; so we thought we’d provide a simple signage checklist. Might as well tick these off, to avoid being ticked off later if your sign misses the mark, and you’re smacking yourself in the forehead (hopefully not on your brand new sign!). Here goes…and yes we’ll plan to add to this list as we go!

1. Spell Check your Sign. Make 100% sure that all of the sign is checked for correct, or even preferred spelling. This can also be a missing word, like a “to” or a “the”. Such attention to detail can make the difference between looking amateur or professional.
2. Be Precise about Colours. Not everyone knows what shade their logos exactly are.  To avoid confusion, check and select your colour via Pantones or CMYK numbers online; this can be done through referring to a printed booklet or online colour charts.
3. Consider Visibility in Choosing the Size. It’s very important to know from how far away your sign will be viewed. Too many words, or too-small an image, and the sign loses effectiveness for passing traffic. Click here to refer to our guide on “How Large Should your Sign Be?”
4. Does it Have the Right Data on it? Many signs are missing critical data – like a website address, phone number or business hours. It might be as simple as adding a “24h” or “8-5 daily” to the main sign, or a website address. Remember, a sign is your sales representative when you cannot be.
5. Bring us Photos and Measurements of the Location. Don’t just say, “I want a sign about this big.” You could easily over or underestimate the location and environment in which it will be displayed. Take photos close to, and further away from the location, and put a ruler or measuring tape in the photos. That will help us immensely in creating the ideal size. For larger jobs, we will, of course, visit your location to measure it ourselves prior to getting final specifications.
6. Check the Mounting Options. You might be surprised to learn that you’ve planned to mount your sign on a concrete wall that won’t take typical hangers, or that it can’t be breached with mounting equipment that will keep your sign stable. Be sure to carefully check for mounting options, including electrical outlets. If you need hanging equipment attached, bolt mounts, or grommets, it can all be done before the sign leaves the shop. Safety is also always a concern; you don’t want to be one of those people whose heavy sign crashed from the string attached to a false ceiling!
7. Consider night visibility. You don’t need to work at night, but it’s pretty cheap to have your sign doing so for you. Consider if your inside or outside sign should be visible at night, and whether it needs to look its best in full brightness (day) or night. It can be difficult to try to find ways to light a sign after it’s been designed.
8. Durability. At Topmade, we can UV-protect, laminate, coat, trim, and choose substrates that will take a lot of abuse without showing wear. Think carefully about what all the most careless people you know might do to your sign (well, don’t dwell too long on that!)….and then use “Murphy’s Law” to keep us in the loop as to what your sign might be subjected to. Getting the right material will surely be cheaper than replacing the whole sign later.

Do you have more suggestions? Please get in touch, and we’d be happy to help you get the best signage for your business’ needs!