Today was the install of the new outdoor sign panels for Buckeye Vision & Aesthetic Center, located on West Wilson Bridge Rd, Columbus, OH. It was a bit tricky, timing it between the rain and the early nightfall. We have a scaffolding unit that we were able to build on the grass next to the existing stand, then it was a matter of placing the new signs in. The new sign is 6’x6′, it is a white polycarbonate material with a laminated hp print applied.
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This sure is some warm weather we’re getting in Columbus. We’ll have a cool dip on Wednesday, and then it will be getting warm again. For Cheryl and myself, we are torn. We don’t mind the nice 60 degree weather, especially when we still have a few things to do outside. However we are very much winter folk and we would like to see some snow this season!
Regardless of the weather or season, we’re still staying busy at the sign shop. This good weather is the perfect time to nab those last Real Estate signs and stick them into the ground before it hardens and freezes. Especially the more economic yard signs with the wire stakes. Don’t forget that we also have other types of frames and stakes for those looking for something a little different or a different size. If you have any questions please give us a call.
In the mean time, please let it snow!
Next Day Signs would like to thank all veterans today for their surface. Thankfully we had a nice and sunny day on Sunday for the parades and the rain was able to hold off till today. For those looking for the great quality large embroidered American flags to hang on flag posts year round, anywhere from 3’x5′ to the extremely large 40′ x 75′, we have those available for order at the shop. Turn-around time is a few days.
Once again we would like to thank all the veterans, and wish you a safe day on the roads in this very rainy weather.
A reminder to everyone in Columbus, Ohio and other areas as Hurricane Sandy blows through, to take inside feather flags, banners, yard signs and possibly even outside window vinyl. While many of our signs are weather proof they are not natural-disaster-proof.
Should the power lines go down over the week, Next Day Signs should still be up and running on our back-up generator. The generators are capable of keeping a few of our computers, sign equipment, a couple lights and the phones working. From the outside it may not look as bright, but you can always double-check if we are open by calling in.
Please stay safe in this weather!
Author: Cheryl –
Conferences are a mixed bag – at their best they offer great ideas for new development, an opportunity to network, and the chance to see/touch/feel products that interest you. The other side is hours of standing, sometimes pushy sales people, and then the pressure of decisions to purchase – go small, go big, or not at all.
This last week I attended the SGIA conference, one of the largest sign conferences in the world. We saw printers that could create banners to cover the side of a building, machinery that would need a new building to house it. But we also saw many products and machinery suited for smaller businesses like ours that will help us to be more productive and increase the offerings to our clients that we can produce right in house.
Now it’s time for the follow-up – review the literature, check the samples, and makes some decisions about what steps forward to take our business. Are you thinking about taking some steps forward this year with your business? Let us help you market your new ideas or products with sign solutions. Stop by with your ideas, notepad scratches or full designs and we’ll work with you to take it to great results in signs, banners, decals, displays, flags, or printing that will take your business to the next level.
Cheryl will be out of the office for half of the week, she’ll be attending the SGIA Expo. A specialty printing and imaging technology conference, the largest of its kind in America, and it just happens to be in Las Vegas, Nevada. She assures me that she is taking the trip merely for the opportunity to see what new products we could work with, possible new machine investments for the business. Yet when she says all this with a smile, it doesn’t make it very convincing.
Card games and shows aside, I think that it is an important visit to make, and it will be our first time having someone attend such a populated event. It is always a good idea to continue to educate yourself on your field of business. There’s always a chance for new changes, new styles or improvements. But I’m making a note here to convince her before next year that she’s too valuable to send, and that I should go instead.
Halloween is only a couple weeks away and coming fast. Many of my friends are pondering how they wish to decorate their home for either parties or trick-or treaters. There are many themes to go for; festival, creepy, scary, historical, and the list goes on. It’s easy enough to pick up decoration items at the local costume store or the seasonal Halloween stores that pop up across town. And if you want something unique and cheap , don’t forget we’ve still got our ‘dollar menu’.
The dollar menu is a selection of smaller substrate signs (normally less than 2’x2′) available for $1. Then you can either buy your own personal lettering for the sign, or buy just the sign to decorate yourself. It can be uniquely phrased then for your party theme, or it can declare the rules if costumes or sacrifices(BYOB) are required.
Have fun! Be safe! and beware of monsters!
This weekend sure was busy, Cheryl drove out of town to celebrate her step-father’s 94th birthday, while I attended my friend’s wedding as a member of the bridal party. Each of us brought a sign gift to our respective parties. Cheryl brought a printed banner with over 25 pictures on it from across her step-father’s lifetime. The family enjoyed looking over the pictures, remembering moments in life from years past.
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For my friend I gave her a 2′ x 2′ congratulatory sign for her wedding to be placed up at the location of the reception. I did not think much of it beyond being a nice touch and a gift. It turned out to be quite useful as the reception area that was booked was hosting two weddings at the same time. The sign, placed on a easel by the door, was just large enough to help attendants from the other wedding to stop from getting lost and stumbling into the wrong area. Signs can always be helpful and have more than one purpose.
The internet has made a big impact on the economy, it takes competition from a local level to a worldwide level. Shops are set up to make one particular product as fast and as cheap as possible, so why shop locally? Well there are many reasons why it’s more efficient to just pay the extra bucks to buy something locally.
1. Product Security. The biggest difference between the viral versus physical stores is the ability to touch and see the product or samples before a big purchase. To be aware of exactly what you are getting rather than a ‘guesstimate’.
2. Face to Face Service. Let’s say you get your product and there’s a mistake, it can happen anywhere in the world, maybe a misspelling, a blotch, the wrong material. If you buy locally you are able to directly express to a person your concerns and receive within moments a response. While e-mails to web-sellers may get either no response or the tag-line of ‘buyer beware’.
3. Last Minute Calls. This doesn’t always work, but sometimes you need something made and you need it in your hands as soon as possible. If you have a connection with a local vendor, they may be able to accommodate you or provide a reasonable alternative that you didn’t consider.
4. Saving Time. When you try and buy something on the web, you spend at least an hour online. AT LEAST. Using a search engine to look for what you want, trying to judge whether or not you think the seller is legit, if the product is what you want, entering in your personal information (billing and shipping location, then credit card information), sometimes you need to make an account just to make your purchase. And this isn’t including how long it takes if you get distracted. (No one gets distracted on the internet right?) When you buy locally, you may drive up to 15mins to the location, place your order in 5 mins, (if it even takes that long) and then drive back, but most likely you’ll use the drive time to stop and do other errands. A total of 35mins. (And if you’re able to call in your order then it’s only 5mins!)
5. Helping your Economy. When you buy locally you help your local economy. That business has the chance to grow, hire more employees that live in the area, perhaps even someone you know. Then those employees take the money they earn and if they spend it locally it creates a revolving system.
One of the reasons people are timid about getting vehicle lettering is of course the idea that it is never coming off again. Or that during the process of the removal the automobile will never look as good as it did before the lettering has been put on in the first place. We’ve all seen the cars on the streets with faded lettering or sticky residue remaining from where there had been a bumper sticker. You might have even seen it on my car if you were looking on the passenger side of it.
Well, I’m here to tell you that I’m just personally lazy when it comes to taking off the lettering on my car. I work in a sign shop 5 days a week, so for me I’ve just been putting off making my car as nice and shiny as it could be, but it is possible. The lettering that we put on your vehicle is called ‘permanent’ because for all standard purposes it is. However it is not permanent in the sense like a tattoo, and is in no way indestructible.
To remove the lettering all you need is the fine point of a blade, you’ll slowly lift up the edge of the lettering and then pull it off with your fingers. Depending on how old and brittle the lettering is it might break off in your hand. This process can take a long time depending on how much lettering you have on your vehicle, make sure to set aside hours to work on it before you begin, or plan that’ll you’ll remove only so much per day.
Once the lettering is removed you will have adhesive residue still remaining. At the shop we like to use a special chemical called Rapid Remover bought from RapidTac.com to remove the adhesive. Which I would suggest for any large scale projects, or multiple vehicles as it is very effective. If you’re looking to only work on your own vehicle or something more small scale then Goo Gone is also good at removing adhesive residue, which can be found in many local stores. Spray the chemical onto your vehicle, give it time to sink in, then with a hard plastic edge you can scrape the adhesive away. For a visual guide you can watch this video Rapid Remover placed up http://vimeo.com/46783839.
