Custom Graphics Buyer's Guide

Have you considered a custom canopy? Maybe a custom tent? Are you curious about the benefits of custom pop up tents and custom graphics?

Adding custom imagery to a canopy or tent is a fantastic and multipurpose way to draw attention. Having your logo on a custom canopy tent or several custom tents can improve sales, attract support for a cause, or just stand out in a crowd!

But when you first look into custom pop up tents graphics, you may have a few questions to address, including what size should I get, what are my options, and what else is there to custom graphics? In this article, we will discuss all of that and more, giving you a better understanding of what custom graphics entail and what to expect when ordering a custom canopy.

What To Know Before You Buy

Before you get a canopy with custom graphics printed on it, there are a few things to consider. These things include the applications of a custom canopy, different sizes and types of canopy tents, and how much it may cost. Each will impact your custom canopy and its effectiveness. Below, we'll discuss the importance of these considerations.

Reasons To Get A Custom Canopy

You may already know why you want a custom canopy. Or maybe you don't. Either way, custom pop-up tents can draw positive attention. Since canopies and tents can come in a variety of colors, styles and the ability to come customized, they easily stand out. Businesses can draw customers, a charity can generate attention for their cause, or you can add a unique appearance to a personal canopy. Putting yourself in front of a crowd can be hard, but with an eye-catching canopy, it's never been easier!

Sizing Options

While one of the most popular sizes for customized canopy tents is 10 foot by 10 foot, there are a wide variety of sizes available. Customized graphics can be applied to canopies that are 5x5, 8x8, 10x10, 10x15,10x20, 20x20, and even various sizes of large frame and pole tents.

But before you can select what canopy will be the right size, you'll need to consider what purpose your canopy tent will provide. That can affect how much space you need, after all. For example, a custom graphics canopy for a backyard barbecue would need to be bigger than one used for a craft show.

So, how do you determine what is the correct size? Unfortunately, there is no definite way, but there are a few approaches to help you estimate how much space is needed.

• If you're selling or displaying items or products, you'll need to account for how much space all those items will take up without making the custom canopy too crowded.
• With chairs or lecture-like layouts, you could presume five to six square feet per chair.
• For an event with meals, estimate around 12 square feet per person when using round tables or 10 when using rectangular or square ones.
• As a general rule, you can estimate between 10-12 square feet per person when hosting a party.

With those guidelines, you should be able to determine what size customized canopy tent you need.

How Much Do Custom Graphic Canopies Cost?

A budget can play a major part in determining what graphics package you can get for your canopy. The best way to determine how much your customized canopy will cost is to get a quote from specialists.

However, you can expect to spend somewhere between $400 and $2000 for the custom graphics, not including the cost of the canopy and any accessories, which we'll speak about later. While that may seem like an extensive range, it is due to the size of the graphics and the number of colors required for each graphic. These can impact production costs just as much as the number of graphics does.

All of these things should be considered before beginning the adventure of getting a custom canopy with personalized graphics. Once you have contemplated all these factors, you are ready to get a quote from the eCanopy specialists. You can review the Step by Step Guide to Custom Graphics to review the exact process of getting your custom canopy.

Customized Canopy Options

With a customized canopy, there are a variety of options to choose from. This includes the materials, the way it is printed, and accessories that may also be customized. All of these can factor into selecting what your custom canopy needs.

Materials

The materials that make a canopy tent include both the top fabric and the structure that makes up the frame. Each is important in its own right, but we'll discuss the top material first.

There are two primary options for fabrics: polyester and vinyl. For custom-printed canopy tops, polyester is the most common material. A polyester top is often less expensive than its vinyl counterpart. However, both types are durable, water-resistant, and may be certified as flame-resistant. Vinyl, on the other hand, is easier to clean and provides better UV protection and weather resistance.

One other thing to consider when making a selection on the top for your custom canopy is the denier. Denier is the measurement of how thick material is, determined by measuring the weight of 9,000 meters of fiber in grams. For example, if 9,000 meters of a particular fiber weighs 110g, then the denier is 110. However, it is important to note that you can't always assume that a higher denier indicates superior strength if you're comparing two different materials. Every material has its own strength-to-weight ratio.

Many canopy frames are made of either steel or aluminum. Aluminum is lighter, more portable than steel, and instead of rusting, it forms aluminum oxide to prevent further corrosion. However, aluminum is also more prone to bending. Steel stands up as the sturdier option, but it does rust, though many frames come treated to avoid oxidation. Consider all of this information before choosing the structure for your custom canopy.

Different Types of Printing

What kind of printing is used for custom graphics? That may be hard information to find usually. However, when it comes to printing custom graphics on a canopy top, there are four types of printing that can be used. eCanopy only uses two of these types because the other two are becoming obsolete.

The first is digital printing. Digital printing is when the canopy top's fabric is fed through a large printer designed to handle big pieces of fabric, resulting in a graphic with many colors, gradients, or even a photo. With a flat fee for most colors, this is a cost-effective option. If you're looking to design more than one canopy, this is the best type of printing available. This is also one of the two methods that eCanopy still uses for custom graphics.

Heat fusion is the second type of printing we offer. It merges screen printing and digital patch printing that we discuss more below. With heat fusion, the image or logo is applied to a small patch, but instead of stitching it to a larger piece of fabric, it is heat pressed onto the fabric. Heat fusion has mostly replaced the need for digital patch printing and screen printing for larger jobs.

The third type of printing is screen printing. You may be familiar with screen printing since this is the type of printing used on t-shirts. While this type of printing is less expensive than a full digital print, it is also substantially more limited on colors. In fact, many screen printing houses may restrict a graphic to three or four colors maximum, making this type of printing best for simple or straightforward designs. eCanopy no longer uses this form of printing either.

The fourth are digital patches, which employ many of the same advantages of digital printing but use a much smaller swatch of fabric. The piece is sewn to the canopy top with thread matching the background color of the image and canopy. Getting digital patches dramatically cuts cost compared to other methods.

When starting out with custom graphics, it is important to use as high quality of an image as possible for the project. The higher the resolution, the better. A 300 DPI file works much better than a 125 DPI file. If you submit a poor or lower resolution picture, there may be a surcharge applied for an artist to recreate the image at a higher resolution. Because of the ease of using heat fusion and digital printing, eCanopy no longer uses this style of printing.

While there are a few different printing options when you receive a quote from the custom graphics specialists, they will indicate the best printing method for you.

Other Custom Options

Many places offer accessories that may also be customized to go with your custom graphics canopy. These typically include banners, table covers, flags and accessories for the canopy, such as sidewalls, sideskirts, and back walls. There are a variety of these accessories, each having their own categories to consider.

If you would like more information about the types of banners, table covers, flags, and accessories available from eCanopy, consider reading our Custom Graphics Options 101 guide, which gives a breakdown of what is available, plus additional information about color and its importance for your custom canopy.

Time To Get Technical

There are a few technical things to consider when ordering a customized canopy tent. While that may seem intimidating, it doesn't have to be. The most technical a customized canopy gets is dealing with the shipping, installation, and setting up a custom canopy.

Shipping

Once you have ordered a custom canopy, you might wonder how long it will take for the canopy to arrive. Unfortunately, there can be some variation in how long this takes. However, you can typically expect up to ten business days for production and then 2-5 days for shipping.

Smaller custom canopies, typically under the 10 x 10 size, and their accessories can be generally expected to ship parcel, though they may come in multiple boxes. It should be noted these boxes are more substantial, weighing 60-70 pounds. Keep that in mind when your delivery arrives; you may need more than one person to move these boxes.

You can expect bigger canopies to arrive freight. When you have a freight shipment coming in, the freight company will call to schedule a delivery to home or business. Your canopy with custom graphics will arrive on a pallet. The freight company may also require more than one person to unload the pallet.

Be sure to take time to observe and check the printed canopy for damage — this is due to some manufacturers having limited warranties.

Installing And Setting Up A Custom Canopy

Pop up canopies are a popular choice for custom graphics since they only take one or two people to set up and take down. The lack of required tools for assembly is another benefit. With one or two people, you should be able to pull the frame to expand it. If a tent is labeled as a pop-up but has a more complicated setup, it isn't a real pop up.

Other customized canopies may be more complicated or even frame tents. These will have a more complicated to set up, and you should follow the instructions included with the canopy. Adhering to these will be the best way to avoid damage to your customized canopy tent.

Long Lasting Custom Graphics

Once you've spent the time and money on getting a customized canopy tent, it is vital to make sure your canopy and graphics last as long as possible. The best ways to do so is following the manufacturer information, warranties, and following a few canopy care tips.

Manufacturer Information and Warranties

After you have received your custom canopy, carefully review the information and manual from the manufacturer. These sheets will have the best tips for taking care of both the canopy and the frame.

Do not do any care that is not recommended by the manufacturer. Many times, this voids the warranty. With warranties, also review how long your canopy is covered. Depending on the model and manufacturer, the length of coverage can vary. For example, Caravan has different ranges of coverage for various models. But if you know the duration of the warranty and follow the instructions, you'll be covered — in more than one way!

Keeping Your Graphics Great

A canopy tent correctly cared for can last up to 10 years without significant issue. Since the fabric is the most likely part to be damaged, proper handling combined with taking the canopy down before severe weather is a fantastic way to prolong the life of your customized canopy tent.

Of course, it should be stated again to follow instructions for specific ways to take care of your tent and its graphics. However, if you would like more particular tricks to prolonging the lifespan of your custom canopy, consider reading our 14 Rules For Canopy Care guide.

Custom Graphics, Canopies, and You

Now that you have all the information on custom graphic canopies, you will be able to go through the process as quickly and efficiently as possible. Stand out with your canopy and enjoy now that you have it fully customized!