Many of your customers may think that banners are cheap, temporary or throwaway solutions. 

Still others may think of them as long-term signage for places where it is hard to erect a more

Permanent type of sing. Can you identify with this? Which opinion is correct? To a point, both

Types of customers are right. But how likely is it that you will be able to satisfy both types of

Customers with one product?

PRE-FINISHED BLANKS

Most shops will, at times, need to crank out banners quickly. Pre-finished banners rolls are affordable

Enough that every shop can keep a couple of different roll sizes in stock. Typical roll widths are 22-inch

34-inch and 46 –inch usually measuring 75 feet in length, suitable for many applications and last-minute rush jobs.
 

CUSTOM ONE OFFS

Many banner manufacturers and sign supply distributors offer a “custom banners” program for more

Specialized applications. Typically, these can be ordered in varying weights and colors, in all sizes, with

Grommeting and other options such as ropes or corners wedding reinforcement done at the time of

Order. Of course, this means that a slightly longer timeline may be involved as the banner needs to be

Produced and then shipped to your shop for graphics application.
 

PRINT-READY ROLL STOCK

Many shops these days have added a digital printer to their list of equipment for producing graphics

For their customers. Unfortunately, you cannot put hemmed and grommeted banner material

Through your solvent printer.

The banner material segment for digital printers has literally exploded over the last three tears, with

Materials arriving in Canada from all corners of the world.
 

FIRE-RATED

Why the big deal about fire rating on banners? You have always told tour customers to keep open

Flame and heat sources away from banners, right? It’s not so simple. Anywhere a banner is strung.

Up indoors in a public area, for example, the regional fire code or local fire marshal may require

The use of a fire-rated product. In most cases, banners are made up of a scrim (mesh) that has a liquid PVC compound cast onto it. The mesh is there to initially hold the PCV in place until it cures, and then to provide additional Strength when put to use. Some mesh products used in banner products are easily set ablaze due To their chemical composition. Then when you add the fact that PCV gives off deadly vinyl chloride Gas when burning, a banner on fire can cause great danger to anyone in the vicinity. Exposure to The chloride gas can cause severe lung damage and severe irritation to the membrane of the eye. The fire Marshall will also be concerned about what happens to the product as it burns. Have you Ever dropped hot candle wax on your skin? Kind of hot, isn’t it? Similarly, burning PCV can drip off

A hung banner onto passersby, presenting the possibility of severe burns to those unlucky

Enough to get in the way.
 

Many of the off-shore banner products that we have seen and evaluated are not fire-rated. You

Can test your own banner products by placing aflame to them for 12 seconds then put the flame 

Away and see what happens. If the banner continues to burn and does not self-extinguish within

Six seconds, it is not fire-rated. If the banner is in use at a public event and the fire marshal is in

Attendance, a request may be made that the non-approved graphic be removed. As with most premium products, you will have to pay a higher price for quality. Don’t be afraid to Ask for more money from your customer for using a premium banner product. Share with your Customer why you recommend that they use a fire-rated product if the banner is going up in a Public place. Educate them as to what can happen. Two scenarios could happen at an event; There can be either a big fire with injured people if a non-approved graphic is used or the fire. Marshall will remove the non fire-rated banner before the show or event. Show your concern for your Customer’s success by recommending to them a true fire-rated product that may cost more but will Provide maximum benefit.

HOLEY BANNERS

No, not church banners, but banners full of holes-or, rather, banner mesh. This product has taken off

Tremendously in the last year or so for many reasons, the first being bangs for the buck. Banner mesh

Looks like a specialized product, but in many cases may cost less than the current banner product you

Are using. Because there is no PCV film cast onto the mesh, the mesh used is typically much stronger than what You find inside your banners. The banner mesh must stand up in to nicks, cuts, and only has itself to Rely on for strength. Banner mesh will not always take the place of a banner. You must take into consideration where and How the graphic is going to be used. If it is to be strung up in an area where a lot of light may pour Through from the back, banner mesh may not be suitable. Banner mesh is frequently used in curtaining off construction scaffolds, as well as at outdoor rock Concerts as speaker covers.

DON’T FORGET ABOUT COLD CRACK

We live in a cold climate here in Canada. Many banners on today’s market are simply not made to

Perform in our less-than-room-temperature climate. Cold crack will be greatly affected by

Installation methods. You want to ensure that your banner is installed taut but not tight. While we

Don’t want the banner to sag, a little bit of give is a good thing.” I hear two main complains from

Customers,” says STEVE BROWN OF BANNERS NOW, an industry supplier. “ Plasticizer  migration

Sounds fancy, but it’s really quite simple and understandable.” The manufacturing process used

To produce vinyl requires the use of plasticizers- chemicals keep the vinyl flexible. Over time, these

plasticizers can actually move to the vinyl substrate’s printing surface and cause potentially serious

ink-adhesion problems. plasticizer migration occurs when printing on vinyl and it affects the production

workflow and hinders the quality of the printed image.  The best way to avoid plasticizer migration is to

store vinyl media properly and pay attention to its shelf life. “Secondly, many do not understand banners cracking in our cold climate and are unable to explain to Their customer what happened. Higher-quality, higher-priced, made-in-North-America materials are Manufactured with our climate and  its inherent weather highs and lows in mind.” Quite simply, your customer’s the  message will not get out there if the banner falls.

SELLING BANNERS

Banners are everywhere in today’s sign world, and there are many overused and tired examples out

There. Too many GRAND OPENING or SALE banners are up long after they have lost their effectiveness

A banners should be a temporary signage solution, not a permanent fixture.

Dog-eared, cracked, dirty, falling-apart banners are far too commonplace. Continuing to use a banner

that is falling apart tells me that the owner of a business does not really care about his image or what

potential customers many think of his company . It is also a missed opportunity by someone who sells

banner  - what a perfect  opportunity to sell someone a banner!

Take the time to educate your customer about  the hows  and whys of banners use.