TURNAROUND TIME
Typical turnaround time can range from 5 days to 6 months based on the complexity and style of order. These times are from the time you have approved the quote, specifications and mockups in writing or via email, and deposit has been paid if applicable.
Some signage and display projects are dependent on third-party partners providing materials. These projects are subject to availability.
DEADLINES
All orders with a specific deadline must be requested in writing. Requesting a deadline does not make it effective, as scheduling often needs to be confirmed with our production manager. We try to prioritize projects to meet everyone’s deadlines, but if you have a specific event your order is for, we need to know ahead of time, and get approval in advance to provide enough turnaround time.
DEPOSIT & PAYMENT
We accept cash, checks, and credit cards. A 50% deposit must be made for order to be accepted, unless you have been granted specific terms by our accounting department. Any delay in deposit/payment may result in a delay in turnaround time. If a completed order is not paid for within 30 business days of its completion, an additional financing charge will apply. Invoices unpaid after 30 days of project completion will be subject to a 10% charge after 45 days, and an additional 5% every 30 days thereafter. Projects unpaid after 90 days are subject to legal action, even if not picked up. If a check is returned to us there will be a $35 fee.
ORDER CANCELLATION
In the event an order needs to be canceled, refunds or return of deposits will be based on the status of the order (Have the items been ordered? Have any of the items been printed? Has a Designer or Project Manager been assigned and laid out the project scope? Etc.) and may be subject to penalties and/or restocking charges, at a minimum of 15% of your order. Balance from Deposit will be applied as an in-house credit.
RECEIVING YOUR ORDER
We encourage you to check the quantities and quality of the order you receive from us immediately. The Sign Dude cannot be held accountable for defects or problems with your order unless contacted within 24 hours of delivery. Any incorrect order must be provided back to The Sign Dude prior to corrective actions being taken.
MISPRINT ALLOWANCE
Due to the nature of custom printing, we require a +/- 3% misprint allowance in size, alignment and quantity, with no penalty to us. For example a poster at 27″ x 40″ could be 26.5″ x 39″. If your project requires exact sizing make sure the sales person is made aware of this, in writing, prior to receiving a quote.
Rush Orders
Time of completion, additional misprints or quality of a project will all be affected during a project being rushed. Any issues with sizing, exact completion time or quality of a project that is rushed faster than our normal production times will be considered a consequence to rushing the project through. We make every attempt to meet your needs, and if timing is the most important factor, it is important to realize quality will likely be impacted. A rush fee will push your project through our system faster than our standard turnaround time, however they do not guarantee an exact deadline. Rush fees are not refundable for any reason.
Artwork
Artwork, designs, mock-ups and concepts are all the intellectual property of The Sign Dude. We do charge reduced design fees on all orders, and cover the major portion of the design expense internally. The fee paid by you, the client, is there to help keep skin-in-the-game and help share the costs associated with the creative services we offer. The artwork generated by our team remains the property of The Sign Dude and is not to be used or reproduced without our permission. Files may be provided at our discretion, and released for limited use upon request. Based on multiple factors there may be a price associated with releasing these files. We understand you may not put any value on this intellectual property, and subsequently may not like the price we charge for these files, and that is your prerogative. Understand though that we do value this creative and the decades of experience our team brings to designing files for you. Bottom line, the $50 you may have paid to have a package label designed by us does not give you permission or the legal right to provide this to another vendor and reproduce it just because they are cheaper, of course they are cheaper, we did all the work in the beginning.
Please understand that there is a value on this intellectual property. We pay for multiple full time graphic designers, with decades of experience to be on our team for the sole purpose of providing creative assets to our clients that we can turn around and produce in house. The design time is discounted to you, in the hopes that we are building a lasting partnership and helping with your business print needs. Bottom line, the design fees you may have paid to have our team work on a design does not give you permission or the legal right to provide to another vendor and reproduce it.
Logos and Branding
When a logo package is purchased at The Sign Dude we do agree to provide files to you and permission to use the logo at your discretion. The logo becomes your property. Any signage, packaging, vehicle wraps or large format usage of the logo should be done through The Sign Dude. If the decision is made to use another vendor for these projects within the first 90-days of completing the logo we do charge a $100 per usage fee. Once again, the $299 charged for the logo is reduced to make it an affordable option for our clients, based on the idea that we will be creating a partnership and assist with your print needs. This fee is enforceable by us observing any other use within 90 days of completing the logo and legal action will be taken if required with all legal fees paid by the purchasing business. If you are interested in using our creative services only, this must be discussed prior to your logo consultation with your representative, and will be charged at a higher rate of $599.
We do our Best
That being said, we will do our best to make sure mistakes don’t happen and that you are WOWed with your project. Day in and day out, clients leave here ecstatic about their project and how it turned out, but unfortunately mistakes can happen. We do everything we can to reduce them and ask that you spend the time to review your proofs, spelling, design content, and order specifications and ask questions before it is produced. Not having the time to review the specs prior to the sign being made does not justify you not wanting to pay for the sign after it has been produced.
Refunds
The Sign Dude does not offer refunds on misprinted, or late orders. The Sign Dude will not be held responsible for end user subjectivity with quality, design, color or finish. Refunds are reserved to the sole discretion of The Sign Dude, and we’ll be honest, they are RARE. Once we invest time in your project, chat with you about it in the lobby, and fill in our teammates on your project needs, we are invested and intend to see your project through – Design thru Delivery.
Installations
We do our best to schedule installs based on estimated times for how long they will take, however sometimes a job may be done sooner than expected, or may take longer than expected. Install times are estimated and our team may run early or late to complete a project. If a specific timeframe has to be hit, please communicate that to your representative and we will do the best we can to make sure we are there at the set time.