Trade Show Banners - The simple solution.

Do you have plans to represent your company at a #tradeshowexhibit this winter?  If so, do you have your display in order?  If not, you have several low cost solutions available that can be extremely effective in gaining increased exposure, the most popular of which is a #backdropbanner.

The most important aspect of a trade show booth is getting your business noticed.  many trade show booths have a good start at this.  We all have seen them, big, colorful, lots of cool graphics, lights, and even 3D props.  These can all be effective, but they must be used properly otherwise the most important message is lost - your company name. 

Too often trade show marketing company's fail to keep the focus on the business, rather the focus on the frills.  Keeping a company's name as the main focal point is first on our agenda.  You can have all the bells and whistle you want in your booth, but all promotional attempts are lost if the customer can't easily identify your company and what you do. Stay focused on you!

So, here is what we do - provide clarity on your company name first.  This is often done with some sort of backdrop banner, raised flag banner,  or show headers.  Sometimes it is really simple, like the #banner shown here, other times it can be pretty elaborate, it is all dependent on needs and budget. 

Once we have your company's identity taken care of, we provide simply clarity on the who, what, where. This part usual is a combination of a tag line, bullet points and product samples and props.  The key here is making sure there is balance between name recognition and your visual props and samples.

Banners and signs are only one portion of many options for your next trade show exhibit.  They do however provide a great way to have your company name displayed boldly for all to see.  Click here for more info on banners from Big Idea.

Picture of the week

Moon over Miller

copyright - ©Big Idea, Davin Brandt

Product Photography at Big Idea

One of the more creative things we provide here at Big Idea coincides with most of our product development projects - product photography.  The subject matter we have photographed is really diverse.  We have shot everything from chemotherapy treatment devices to fishing lures, all of which is photographed by Big Idea employees.

Pictured here is one of several image in a series of merchandise items for local brewery, Bank Brewing Co.  To help keep the tone of the product and the brand it represents, we decided our "set" needed to be afield.

This particular shoot was produced entirely on location on the prairie country of South Dakota, tricky stuff if you are familiar with SD weather.  Though the image portrays a nice warm hunting feel as planned, the temperature was a crisp 20f with bone chilling 25mph winds.  Our tough-guy model was quick to put the gloves and fleece beanie on after this series. The up side is he was able to shoot at plenty of Roosters!

Photo of the week

Up on the Roof
©Big Idea - Davin Brandt

An evening in Rice Park

copyright ©BigIdea

Customer feedback

Here is some nice feedback we received today from one of our clients - Vertin Youth & Family Services.  You can find more customer feedback at our website or by clicking here.

"I worked with Davin at Big Idea Signs. I am a first-year business and was in need of an outdoor and smaller indoor sign. Davin was kind enough to consider my position as a business in its first year, and the fact that I had no experience in selecting or purchasing signs. Davin met me at my office to assess my needs. He was personable and kind, and always gave me his full attention during our exchanges. He sent me a few options from which to choose, and offered his guidance every step of the way as to what might look best and which sign was the best choice from an advertising perspective. Once I decided and received the estimate, he installed my signs immediately. They look amazing! I am very pleased.

It is always a relief to receive a solid, beautiful product, but it means even more when the money is paid to someone that you feel cares about you and your business. That was my experience with Davin. I would highly recommend Davin and Big Idea Signs to anyone looking for signage. I know I will utilize Big Idea Signs again for any of my future advertising needs."

Event Signage

Pictured here is a display sign we recently produced for the SMIRLS Uncorked Fundraiser.

The display signs of today not only shine over there predecessors, they usually are less expensive too.

The sign pictured here is 22" x 28".  15 years ago this sign would have had to have been produced by screen-printing or utilizing cut vinyl films with multiple overlays.  The cost, back then, would have run easily in the $100.00 range. 

Today, we have technology that not only can produce the vibrant colors and fine graphic, it is also much less expensive.  With our direct printing process we are able to offer unlimited colors at no extra charge too - pretty sweet deal.

Davin with Kent Hrbek Outdoors

With fall fishing on the minds of many of us here, we thought we would post this link we found of our owner, Davin Brandt.  He was the special guest guide on KHO a couple years ago as they fished steelhead on the North Shore of Minnesota's Lake Superior.

If  Davin is not in the shop or working on location with clients he is usually on a river or lake somewhere. This time of year you may also have to look to the fields of South Dakota.  Hey, has anyone seen him yet today? Oh, wait, his truck is still here, but then again it is only Thursday.

The link below should take you to one of the videos.  If you look hard enough (YouTube) you may also see his appearance on Cook What you Catch with Randy Meier.
http://minnesotasteelheader.blogspot.com/2011/08/videosfinally-online.html

Interior signs

OK, so this picture from a phone is not the greatest, but you get the idea, don't you?

This project has been a sort of work in progress that we have been working on with our friends at Webknowledgy.  These 2' x 4' signs are proudly displayed at Calvary Lutheran Church and are a great exhibit of the professional fine-art quality of our printing.

Each picture involves our direct print digital print process.  You can't tell in the image here, but the red and white identical signs are directly printed on our 1/4" thick white sign grade plastic.  The other 3 signs were done last year and produced on a removable, adhesive backed window film.  They are applied to clear 1/4" acrylic panels.  Stay tuned we will have close up images so you can see the incredible detail we are able to reproduce.

Picture of the week

"Saturday Stroll"

© big idea - all rights reserved

Coroplast Yard Signs

Pictured here is a project we just finished up this morning - ready for delivery.What you see is a stack of digitally printed coroplast (corrugated plastic) signs.  The picture does not quite do the detail justice but the individual recycle items pictured printed superbly!

Note that when you get signs like this digitally printed, not all printers print with the same quality.  This is a prime example of you get what you pay for.  What you will often find is that some outfits will reduce the print quality in order to speed up the production line.  We don't.  If you want cheap and fast, expect a less quality graphic, and you have plenty of sources online to order direct.  We stick with printing that will maximize your image or message brilliantly.

Oh, and this project was not crazy in price either.  In fact it came in less than our close competition...  sure you can get them cheaper on line - buyer beware.

Photo of the Week

Photo of the Week

"High Falls"

Taken in Northern Minnesota

© Big idea

Backdrop Event Banners

Here are a couple shots from the Jack Brewer Foundation blue carpet event held last month.  The project involved creating two separate backdrop step and repeat banners, one for the blue carpet runway, the other for the MC stage.

This particular banner was produced on a special fabric banner material ideal for this exact application.  The size of this was a whopping 8' x 10' fit specifically to a portable backdrop display frame system.

Backdrop step and repeat banners are a great way to expand branding opportunities and highlight sponsors/contributors, especially for events that have any media coverage.  There are several types of banner materials used for these backdrop banners.  The key: understanding the displays function, installation method, and project budget.  A grasp of the prior gets us focused on the best material for each specific project. 

Dimensional wall logos

Pictured here is a 3 dimensional wall logo project we recently completed.  What is unique about this particular project is that we did not install this, our client did!

What you see here is our 1/2" thick PVC plastic.  The face has a 1/16" brushed aluminum laminated to the surface giving this project a really sharp look. Once the Aluminum is laminated to the PVC, we router out the image, clean up the edges, and prepare for installation. For this particular project we needed to prep the image for a simple as possible installation as this project was getting shipped 1800 miles to its final destination - Hollywood, Florida.

Thursday we received this picture and a note from the business owner saying, "it looks AMAZING".  Our client installed this project himself.  With some common sense, a bit of patience, and the aid of our installation template, he had this wall logo up well under an hour.  Having never installed anything like this before he said it actually went up rather easily. On top of that, he saved over $200.00 not having to hire a local installer to do the work for him!

We have produced many dimensional wall logos over the years.  They are a great way to enhance company branding as well as dress up an interior wall, conference room or reception area. The options are endless, from simple black our white plastics to a patina finished solid brass, and a boat load of options in between. 

Check out our website for more sample and material options.