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More display posters for the shop.

Here's a couple more new display posters for the shop. The first one is a substrates display that shows most of the most popular types of substrate, gives information about each, and shows various colors and styles that are available (at least through our normal supply chain).

The second one is just a cmyk chart I did myself. It shows 1200 colors and gives the cmyk numbers for each swatch.

Anybody got any ideas as to how these could have maybe been done better? Well, at least the substrates poster anyway. There's not much to say about the color chart I guess as it's just a color chart.
 

Attachments

  • CMYK Color chart small.jpg
    CMYK Color chart small.jpg
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  • Substrates copy small.jpg
    Substrates copy small.jpg
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neato

New Member
I think those are great! Nice job on the illustrations in the substrates. I always struggle with perspective like that.
 

peavey123

New Member
I think those are great! Nice job on the illustrations in the substrates. I always struggle with perspective like that.

It's isometric projection. A 3d object made up of mostly 30 degree and 90 degree angles. There are no vanishing points like in perspective and in a proper isometric drawing all the lines are the correct length. Try it out. You can mess with it in illy or corel quickly if you create a 30 degree grid and snap to grid.
 

Z SIGNS

New Member
Nice posters.

I never found much use for them though because we don't get into discussion about materials with our clients.

No need to confuse them or educate them in that area.

Substrates have little to do with the outcome of a sign project.
They are just the medium used to make your ideas work.

It's up to you as the sign professional to choose the right material for the job not the customer.
If we are asked about the materials we just let them know we will be using the finest and most appropriate available.

We do have a color chart on the wall though.
It's an old faded one shot chart.

We learned long ago to stay away from the pms this or that thing.
 

phototec

New Member
Nice posters very well done.

Di you create the illustrations for the media poster? What software di you use?
 
Nice posters.

I never found much use for them though because we don't get into discussion about materials with our clients.

No need to confuse them or educate them in that area.

Substrates have little to do with the outcome of a sign project.
They are just the medium used to make your ideas work.

It's up to you as the sign professional to choose the right material for the job not the customer.
If we are asked about the materials we just let them know we will be using the finest and most appropriate available.

We do have a color chart on the wall though.
It's an old faded one shot chart.


We learned long ago to stay away from the pms this or that thing.

I can see your point about the substrates poster. I prefer to educate my customers at least to some degree. If it doesn't work out at least it's stuff that will look cool in our work area, out of the way from customer's view. I just like the idea of having nice graphics placed strategically around the shop. It makes for a stylish, professional looking environment.

The color chart is strictly for my own use when setting up colors for digital printed materials like business cards and flyers. This should at least give me an approximate idea of what certain colors will look like in print. I tend to feel like I'm playing a guessing game when going strictly by the appearance of the colors on the screen.
 
Nice posters very well done.

Di you create the illustrations for the media poster? What software di you use?

Yeah. I did them in Corel Draw X5. The only thing I don't particularly care for is the layers in the plywood seem skewed funny. I actually added some nodes along those lines and distorted them slightly for a more organic feel and to try to hide the fact that my lines were off, but it still looks wonky and drives me nuts. It might be partly an optical illusion though.
 

nikdoobs

New Member
Yeah. I did them in Corel Draw X5. The only thing I don't particularly care for is the layers in the plywood seem skewed funny. I actually added some nodes along those lines and distorted them slightly for a more organic feel and to try to hide the fact that my lines were off, but it still looks wonky and drives me nuts. It might be partly an optical illusion though.

These look great (especially the coro and banner). You guys don't use Alumalite?
 
These look great (especially the coro and banner). You guys don't use Alumalite?

Not really. We generally always use ACM in 1/8" or 1/4". I've never been a big fan of the Alumalite as I've never really seen any major advantages to using it other than the fact that it's lightweight.
 

thinksigns

SnowFlake
Love the substrate poster. I sorta have the same thing on our website except with photos.
 

Attachments

  • Screen shot 2014-04-09 at 10.23.30 AM.png
    Screen shot 2014-04-09 at 10.23.30 AM.png
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vid

New Member
I like the posters. However, like Z, the problem I've had with customers at the sales counter is arming them with too much information and too many choices. It tends to prolong the encounter. I've fared much better have actually samples under the counter to pull out as examples to direct the sale. Similarly, a color swatch poster is hung in the production area and only brought out to make final choices.

As an example, I needed to find a smokey green yesterday. I had to go through three fan books to find a match that the customer approved. Looking at your color chart, I don't see much for greens and and what you do have gets to darker shades of basic colors rather quick. I would think a workflow using a specific color system, like Pantone, would be a more effective display to have for both customer review and as a reference for production.


My fear with your CYMK color chart would be having the customer look at it and ask, "are those the only colors you have?" I do understand that it's for internal use and preview. But, I'm still a fan of using PMS spec colors in CYMK workflow. It keeps me from getting bogged down in the minutia of adjusting four color swatch sliders to match something, rather than choosing a color from my color guide.

Perhaps a more effective sales tool to showcase the capabilities would be a print showing the color gamut. It would show a broader range of colors. You would also be better able to discuss the capabilities of your printer and explain why what the customer sees on their computer monitor and the print will be different. That, and it looks like science. Customers are impressed with people that know science.

I waffle with the substrate poster in the customer area. It would be awesome on a website. Great illustration, great content, and it really works well as a reference for those searching for information about signs. ...and then link those images to photos of signs you've created --- über awesome!


The marketing side of me would suggest that you modify the descriptions to something your typical customer understands. Polycarbonate, for example, would read something like, "Perfect for illuminated signs and sign frame inserts" - "Exceptional Durability." Push the specifics and generic stuff --- like sizes -- to the bottom. That stuff is only important when you close the sale. Get the sale first by promoting the benefits of the product.
As is, I'd think a typical customer would lose interest quick reading .060, .118,....... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Changing that up, I would be more inclined to hang it in the customer area for reference.



And to steal a line from the movie, Glengarry, Glen Ross: ABC --- A - Always, B - Be, C - Closing. ALWAYS BE CLOSING!

...even with what you hang around the shop.
buuuuuuut, that's my .o2


 
I like the posters. However, like Z, the problem I've had with customers at the sales counter is arming them with too much information and too many choices. It tends to prolong the encounter. I've fared much better have actually samples under the counter to pull out as examples to direct the sale. Similarly, a color swatch poster is hung in the production area and only brought out to make final choices.

As an example, I needed to find a smokey green yesterday. I had to go through three fan books to find a match that the customer approved. Looking at your color chart, I don't see much for greens and and what you do have gets to darker shades of basic colors rather quick. I would think a workflow using a specific color system, like Pantone, would be a more effective display to have for both customer review and as a reference for production.


My fear with your CYMK color chart would be having the customer look at it and ask, "are those the only colors you have?" I do understand that it's for internal use and preview. But, I'm still a fan of using PMS spec colors in CYMK workflow. It keeps me from getting bogged down in the minutia of adjusting four color swatch sliders to match something, rather than choosing a color from my color guide.

Perhaps a more effective sales tool to showcase the capabilities would be a print showing the color gamut. It would show a broader range of colors. You would also be better able to discuss the capabilities of your printer and explain why what the customer sees on their computer monitor and the print will be different. That, and it looks like science. Customers are impressed with people that know science.

I waffle with the substrate poster in the customer area. It would be awesome on a website. Great illustration, great content, and it really works well as a reference for those searching for information about signs. ...and then link those images to photos of signs you've created --- über awesome!


The marketing side of me would suggest that you modify the descriptions to something your typical customer understands. Polycarbonate, for example, would read something like, "Perfect for illuminated signs and sign frame inserts" - "Exceptional Durability." Push the specifics and generic stuff --- like sizes -- to the bottom. That stuff is only important when you close the sale. Get the sale first by promoting the benefits of the product.
As is, I'd think a typical customer would lose interest quick reading .060, .118,....... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Changing that up, I would be more inclined to hang it in the customer area for reference.



And to steal a line from the movie, Glengarry, Glen Ross: ABC --- A - Always, B - Be, C - Closing. ALWAYS BE CLOSING!

...even with what you hang around the shop.
buuuuuuut, that's my .o2



Thank you for your response. You have great insight. I figure we can always try these approaches and if it becomes annoying or unnecessary we can move them out of customer's view. They just make for fun little projects on the weekends as I enjoy designing things like this in my free time.

We use the Pantone color guide for most sign projects, but I needed something economical that would give me a good visual to reference for CMYK so I decided to set up a chart. It should at least get me close to where I need a color to be.
 

Biker Scout

New Member
Why do so many rainbow color charts show more dark and muddy colors? No one will ever really pick the dark muddy color for anything. I think I'd like to work on a color chart that shows the bright vibrant color along the top with only 5 shades of darkness underneath. Kinda like a tint chart. I wish there was one already made like that.
 
Why do so many rainbow color charts show more dark and muddy colors? No one will ever really pick the dark muddy color for anything. I think I'd like to work on a color chart that shows the bright vibrant color along the top with only 5 shades of darkness underneath. Kinda like a tint chart. I wish there was one already made like that.

Finding a good cmyk chart is difficult, hence I decided to just make my own, but it appears I overlooked a few color combinations in the process.
 

Gino

Premium Subscriber
Nice charts/prints.

A lotta thought goes into them, but like mentioned, most customers aren't quite up to snuff on these things and either become confused or afraid to ask questions and might move on..... or even leave because they feel stoopid.

We have samples of flatbed prints, inkjet prints, some thermal prints, screen printed signs, some extrusion parts, neon, channel letters, sandblasted redwood, 23kt gilded signs, hand painted signs along with some pin-striping and unique signs all around the customer area. Then, if we move into the different areas of the shop, you'll see more samples of signs on many substrates hanging on walls and some while being in the process of being made. I can point to any sign, pick it up and tell them what substrate it is, how it will weather or last outside/inside all while just talking to them in pretty much layman terms.

I once walked into a competitors sign shop some years ago and thought.... this is f*ckin' neat. He had huge pictures laminated on Cor-X and gatorboard all around the front room. He had basketball players in action shots about 10' tall. He had colorful pictures and a lotta sexy looking girl pictures. The girl pictures I didn't like. I don't like that appraoch at all. Too much of a turn-off to most people, except for pervs........

Thing is though, it grabbed my attention pronto. Your pictures will do the same, but I think rather than boring information, make is whimsical or eye catching instead. You're not selling this stuff, so use anything you find on the internet, if ya like it.




Anything will work and here's a real good subject matter that makes everyone smile..........

colorful birdies.jpg
 

Biker Scout

New Member
Apparently I have one buried on my desktop that I intended to print. I think I got it from someone on here, actually.
 

Attachments

  • PantoneChart.pdf
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