How to Choose the Best Print Shop for Your Needs
Why choose small print shops in Kenya?
Most large signs print shops in Nairobi Kenya prefer dealing with huge long-established clients like banks, huge hotels and players in the hospitality industry and also big hospitals and corporate offices. This is because these clients have huge branding budgets at their disposal and the sign companies can afford to inflate their prices and charge highly because they are reputable sign companies in Kenya. However, some sign companies in Kenya prefer to work with and actually have a plan specifically tailor-made for small business owners’ especially new ones.
They understand that start-ups do not have those huge budgets preferred by big sign makers in Nairobi. Although their signage and branding services are affordable, it doesn’t mean that they use substandard materials to make their signs and prints. In fact, most of these small companies get their raw materials from the same suppliers as the big signage companies in Kenya.
Small print shop to organize a visit to your site
Ideally, the process sign makers in Nairobi and the rest of Kenya should work with in branding your shop or business premises should be very easy and straight forward. You call them and they arrange with you an opportune time for one of our technicians and/or signage and branding designer to visit your site. You meet on site and discuss signage and branding options with them.
The technician or sales rep sent by the branding company should be knowledgeable enough to advise you about the signage and branding that suits your shop. This is because there are many different office signage and branding and they all suit different businesses. Once agreed on the type of branding and or signage, the technician then takes necessary notes, photos and measurements of the site and takes them back to the office for assessment by the management/manager.
If you have to keep calling the branding company to send out their rep or technician to your site, then take this as a warning signal. A serious branding company in Kenya will organize to send out a rep to meet with you within 24 hrs of your initial call.
Print shop to send you a quote with clearly stated terms and conditions
You should then receive a quote for the signage and print and brand works to be undertaken and if you are in agreement, you send them an LPO so their in-house designers start to do the designs and visuals for your approval based on your branding requirements. They should then send you the designs on email and if you approve them, you then send them a small 60% deposit cheque of the total amount so they can start the fabrication and printing works.
Again, if you have to keep calling the company, threatening and cajoling them to send you a quote or designs for the works, then this is a huge red flag. Ideally, you should receive quotes within 24 hrs of a rep visiting your site and once you approve and send LPO and deposit, receive the designs within 48 hours or thereabouts depending on the scope.
Print shops to make and give you a sample for your approval before full production
At your request, they should do you a small physical sample of the signs or prints at minimal charge so you can check out the look and feel of the physical sign before they commence with full production. If you love the sample then the company will proceed with fabrication and the printing works involved in the whole project. If in case you don’t love the samples provided maybe because of the materials used or the colors are a little off, then the signage company should rework it using different materials and/or specifications until you are satisfied.
One of the ways they should do this is to provide you with different materials and color swatches chart from their vinyl and other material suppliers so you can see for yourself what is available and decide what you should work with. This is where most big branding companies err especially when dealing with small clients and businesses like you. They assume you are not knowledgeable enough and will therefore try to convince you that the materials they are offering you are the best and the only option. They will also charge exorbitantly for all the samples they make for you and since their signs aren’t cheap, this will ruin your budget. Sometimes, you only get to know that you paid expensively for samples when faced with the final bill which has skyrocketed beyond your budget.
It is very advisable that you ask for samples to approve. Keep one for your records and let the sign makers take the other one for matching. This is because in case you don’t like the final product, or its different from the sample you approved, then you can ask for a redo of the works at the branding company’s expense. Signs and prints are expensive, you don’t want to foot the bill for a redo.
Produce and organize to fit within time
Anyway, assuming everything so far goes as planned and once fabrication and printing is done by the sign makers, the company should let you know so you can advise an opportune day and time when they can come to your site and install the branding. Once its installed and you love it, they will proceed to invoice for the works and you can pay them the remaining amount.
That’s it, a successfully completed branding project, another happy client!
But wait, mostly, you will find that there are one or two areas of your shops branding that will require additional branding, sign or just technical attention. The small branding company you choose should be able to give you additional support even after the project is completed so you can grow your brand stress free.
For assistance with your signage project, call us on 0715 095 968 to arrange for a free site visit with one of our talented sign makers in Nairobi.
