“Dr. Di-Noc” and the convenience store remodel

No I’m not a doctor!  Dr. Di-Noc is a nickname my 3M rep has given me since I have embraced this great line of 3M products. 

If you are not familiar with it, Di-Noc is a pressure sensitive vinyl with patterns like woodgrain, marble, and carbon fiber.  Over 500 finished are available!  It’s a great solution to remodel without using more expensive products like laminates.

The attached video of a recent remodel of a convenience store shows the dramatic changes that Di-Noc and printed graphics can make.

Zoom Raleigh-Vikuiti

We are excited to be part of the Zoom Raleigh interactive display.  This dispay offers a guided tour thourgh the history of downtown Raleigh.  It was kicked off on October 23 on the eve of Raleigh Wide Open. 

This is a project that was many months in the making.  From a technical standpoint our part was easy.  We worked with them on the Vikuiti screen with demos and produced the screen on a clear acrylic so that it can be used for other projects.  The challenging part of this project was their team who not only researched the photos used, narration but developed the interactive portion of the display. 

Gallery wrap photos on canvas

Karen Stutler, our rep in Pennsylvania worked with a local photographer and a regional hospital to print the images in the photos above.  The hospital displayed these in the hallway of their outpatient center.

These photographs represent local landmarks.  Digital output was onto canvas with our Vutek and a custom frame was made from wood.  The printed images were coated with a varnish for protection of the image.  The graphics were then stretched over the frame.  These gallery wrap images are 12 feet wide and make a huge impact in the hallway.

What is your brand?

Your brand.  It’s not only about your business image but also your personal image and reputation.

I started this blog last year so customers and especially prospects could learn about “my brand”, my way of doing business and helping them.  I wanted anyone who read this blog to be comfortable with me, my experience, even if they haven’t met me.

I was reminded of this again when I heard Brian Parsley of weskill speak at an AAF-Charlotte (American Advertising Federation) luncheon.  Brian’s topic was about building your personal brand and how it impacts your business and personal life.  You can follow Brian at: http://www.brianparsley.com/ Here’s a video clip about the topic.

Several years ago I was in a seminar.  The presenter told everyone to put their business cards on the table.  He walked from table to table looking at cards, then tearing them up saying “boring”.  It made an impact on me and I realized that something as simple as a business card is part of my brand.  I went through some trial and error experimenting with cards printed on a variety of materials. 

I listened carefully as I gave out these various cards.  Overwhelmingly the cards printed on the frosted polycarbonate always received a good response.  Is this the most important business tip?  Not at all but it did present the type of professional image I wanted and part of my brand.

Van Wraps

Vehicle graphics, especially wraps represent one of the most cost effective forms of advertising.  The photos above show how we transformed a plain black van into an attention getting advertisement.

To fully appreciate the impact of vehicle graphics consider the following statistics from a 3M and ATA study:

• Over the road trailers average 10 million visual impressions annually.
• Local delivery trucks average 14 million impressions during the day and 16 million at night when reflective material is used.
• 91% of all people surveyed noticed words/pictures displayed on trucks.
• 75% developed an impression about the company and product.
• 29% said they would make a buying decision based on the impression from the vehicle.

3M Vikuiti rear projection

We recently worked with Exhibit Resources (see link to them on my blogroll) on this trade show booth.  Our part was to provide the 3M Vikuiti screen for a projected video.  The screen is the round image on the display.  With Vikuiti vs. LCD or Plasma screens they could make this image appear to float on the clear panel.

Thank you!

I want to thank everyone who responded to my recent polls.  Your responses help me understand areas where we excel and areas where we can work hard to improve our service.  It is truly valuable information.  As always I appreciate your business.

Refinish instead of replacing

With 3M Di-Noc fim we helped this convenience store client refinish the existing store counters in this store.  The Di-Noc woodgrain vinyl selected matched the look of the counters going into their new stores.  It updates the counters to their new corporate look at a fraction of the expense of replacing the counters.

3M Di-Noc is available in over 500 finishes including woodgrains, marble, leather, solid colors.

Before Di-Noc photo

After Di-Noc photo

Direct Printing to Rigid Substrates

With our Vutek QS 3200 we can supply panels printed directly to rigid or flexible substrates.  The panels in this trade show booth were printed directly to Sintra and foamboard. 

Do you need to print white also? No problem! We can print an opaque white in the same pass as the process colors.

When using 3M vinyl substrates, we use 3M inks that qualify as part of 3M’s Matched Component System (MCS).

Art on the move!

Raleigh’s new Art On The Move bus graphics program is rolling again!  We had the honor of manufacturing and installing the graphics for the 12 buses.  This is our second year of involvement in the program.

Local artists submit their designs and they are judged and the winners have their original art displayed on local transit buses.