7 Questions to Ask a Potential Wayfinding Signage Contractor
When people want to find a place at a location they’re not familiar with, or they want to visit a newly opened store in an area, they look for signs. It’s the easiest way to locate something, and for businesses, one of the easiest ways to lead customers. These signs are strategically placed on highways or streets so people can easily notice them.
If you have a business and you’re just starting out, it’s important to understand the significance of having a unique and personalized wayfinding signage. A sign is a representation of your brand. It should be able to promote your business the way you want it to be. First impressions always count, and oftentimes, your sign is the first thing your customers see, so it has to be great.
Making the decision of who to hire isn’t as easy as it sounds. With so many contractors out there, how do you end up with the best choice? Should you work with an independent firm, a freelancer, or a company? What should you look for in the graphic designers? To help you decide on who to partner with, here are seven questions you need to ask before choosing one:
What types of signage can you make?
The types of signs a company can make determines if they’re a good partner to you or not. If they’re a company that specializes in electronic sign boards and you’re aiming for something simpler, then they won’t be a good fit to you. You need to find a company that will deliver what you’re searching for. If you haven’t decided on the type you want, it’s good to find a company that offers various styles so you’ll have options.
How long will it take to finish the project?
This is an important question, especially if you’ve set an opening date for your shop, or your old sign needs a replacement as soon as possible. A good contractor should be able to meet your deadline, and should provide you with a timeline of how long the project will be completed. Make sure to put this into writing to make sure they keep up to their promise and not leave you hanging. Your contract should state the exact time estimates, as well as additional fees, in case you want it to be expedited.
Who do I coordinate with?
Communication is very important in every partnership. If this one fails, the rest of the project fails. So ask the question, “Who will I talk to?” In case you need to clarify something, regarding the design or the deadline, you need to know who the right person is to call.
Ask them who responds to queries and how they will handle unexpected events. Ask them what their approach is in ensuring customer satisfaction. A reliable contractor provides online support and has a staff who are always accessible through their hotline numbers.
Do you have a team of designers?
It’s important to hire a company that has a team of designers who can work with you and envision what you want for your business. If they have an in-house team, it would be easier for you to collaborate with them and tell them your vision and your expectations. If you have your own designer, you can ask them if they’re willing to work with your team as well.
Having a group of professional designers is beneficial to your business, not just today, but also in the future, because who knows when your sign will go out of style, or you suddenly had an epiphany and imagined a much better sign for your business?
What are your experiences?
You can ask this to the company as a whole or to their designers. Have they created a shopping mall signage design? Have they handled a VIP client? Have they designed a challenging piece? Learning about their experiences will give you an idea of how good they are as a company or how good their in-house team is.
You can ask additional questions such as their qualifications as a signage company or as graphic artists, and other general education questions.
Will you give warranty?
Your contractor should immediately say yes to that question, because a good sign contractor doesn’t only care about sales, they care about customer satisfaction too. They should be willing to help you out not just during the process of creating your signage but also after. So you want to make sure you’ll receive a warranty for their products and services in order to avoid additional costs in the future.
You might want to find out at this point if they’ll be providing maintenance services too, and what are the costs, if there are any.
Do you have references?
Similar to how companies want to know more about their applicants, you too should do a background check on your prospective signage partner. You shouldn’t simply take their word for it when they say they’ve worked with hundreds of clients and designed several boards around town. You should hear what their clients have to say about them.
Also check out samples of the works they’ve done. If they have a website, check out their gallery, or if they have a portfolio, see their latest projects. And drive around town to see for yourself.
