Send the best artwork you have along with the finished size, final wording, colors, and any required cut shape. Vector files are ideal for logos and lettering, but we can also review PDFs and high-resolution image files.
Send the finished width and height, units, quantity, orientation, sides, and any fit-critical hole or cut details. If the sign will be mounted, use the final dimensions and mounting information supplied by your installer. We compare the artwork with those details before making the sign.
Need help gathering installation information? Use the installer handoff guide for measurements, drawings, patterns, labels, and packaging details.
Vector paths are useful for logos, lettering, simple illustrations, and cut geometry because they are not tied to one pixel size. Include the editable source when rights and licensing allow.
Raster quality depends on pixel dimensions, enlargement, viewing distance, and the selected output process. Send the largest clean original rather than an image copied from a web page or message thread.
If these are all you have, export a PDF, PNG, or JPG reference for the quote form and keep the original available. We can review what is usable and identify any rebuilding or file help to include in your quote.
Resolution matters for photographs and other raster artwork. The useful number is effective pixels per inch at the finished size—not the resolution value saved in a small source file. Vector paths avoid pixel enlargement, but effects and placed images inside a vector file can still be raster.
The ranges below are planning references, not universal acceptance specifications. Output method, material, detail, viewing distance, and file quality can change the target.
| Viewing Distance | Planning Range | What to Review |
|---|---|---|
| Close-up | Often 200–300 PPI | Small type, fine edges, faces, and detailed photographs |
| Several feet away | Often 100–200 PPI | Posters, display panels, window graphics, and typical sign detail |
| Long viewing distance | Confirm by output and scale | Large graphics where viewing distance can reduce the required pixel density |
Example: An image set to 300 PPI at 2 inches wide contains the same pixels when enlarged to 8 inches; its effective resolution becomes 75 PPI. Always check at the intended output size or clearly documented scale.
Set up artwork at the customer- or installer-approved finished dimensions when the software and output size make that practical. If you work at a reduced scale, state the exact scale and units in the document, file name, and project notes so dimensions, stroke weights, cut geometry, and raster resolution are interpreted correctly.
Use verified final dimensions supplied by you or your installer. Photographs, renderings, and elevations are useful context, but they are not substitutes for measurements. We compare the artwork with the dimensions you send and do not remeasure the site.
Bleed is image area that continues beyond a trim or cut line. The amount and setup can vary with material, size, finishing, cutting method, and production workflow.
Keep names, logos, borders, and other critical content comfortably inside the finished edge. The appropriate margin depends on size, cutting tolerance, mounting holes, hems, pockets, hardware, and the visual design.
Screen color and produced color use different devices, inks, materials, and lighting. Keep an untouched source file with its color profile. Do not make a blind RGB-to-CMYK conversion just to satisfy a generic checklist; confirm the intended production workflow first.
If a brand uses named spot colors, provide the exact reference and any approved physical sample. A color reference helps define the target, but substrate, finish, process, and lighting still affect the result.
Color-critical work needs an agreed target, comparison method, and acceptable tolerance. A screen preview, named color, or supplied sample guides the target but cannot create an automatic exact match across different inks, paints, films, substrates, finishes, devices, and lighting.
For the final sign file, outlining display text can prevent missing-font substitutions. Keep a separate editable file with live text and identify the fonts used. The quote form does not accept font files, so retain any shareable licensed font files in case they are requested later.
Tip: Fine strokes, tight spacing, and delicate serifs can disappear or fill in on textured materials, at small sizes, or in cut-vinyl and routed-letter workflows.
When a product needs a custom cut path, keep it separate from printed artwork and confirm the naming convention before final export:
A cut path defines the shape you want produced. When that shape, a hole, or hardware placement comes from site conditions, send the verified geometry supplied by your installer.
Label front and back explicitly, show orientation, and state whether the sides are identical or different. For glass applications, explain which side receives the material and from which side the graphic should read.
For multiple names, destinations, locations, or messages, provide one approved layout plus a clean table of variable content. Give every row a stable identifier and review the complete table for final copy and arrow direction before sending it.
Show the intended cut shape and whether the piece is kiss-cut, through-cut, sheeted, or supplied another way. Include the cut offset, border, spacing, and minimum feature size selected for the material and finishing method.
Review the final copy, spelling, layout, versions, quantities, sides, orientation, color references, reproduction rights, and verified dimensions. Clearly identify the exact file you want us to use, including its finished size or scale.
We compare the selected file with the sign details in your quote. Depending on the product, that review can include document size and scale, linked assets, fonts, image quality, profiles, separations, bleed, safe areas, cut paths, sides, versions, and finishing notes. If something does not match, we will ask before making the sign.
Review the wording, business information, finished dimensions, and intended location. Send the site-fit and mounting inputs supplied by your installer when they affect the sign components. If the artwork needs rebuilding, correction, or design work, we will identify that separately in the quote.
Before submitting your artwork, verify:
The quote form accepts PDF, AI, EPS, SVG, PSD, PNG, and JPG/JPEG files. Convert other reference formats to PDF, PNG, or JPG for the initial upload and keep the originals. Include the type of sign, finished size or exact scale, quantity, final wording, color references, cut paths, finish, and any installer-supplied details that affect the pieces you want produced.
Share the logo files, approved copy, finished dimensions, and references you have. Tell us where the artwork needs help, and we will list any design, rebuilding, correction, or prepress work in your quote.
Describe the project →A useful review needs the intended output, final size, material or use, quantity, and viewing context. Ask a pre-project question if you are not ready to upload files.
Ask a question →Review common questions about sign options, quote details, dimensions, artwork, color, timing, and installation responsibility.
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