A non-profit organization that raises money for 96 Health and Human service agencies, the United Way of Central Carolinas (www.uwcentralcarolinas.org) has been helping those in our community since 1931.  Since all funds raised by the organization are restricted for partner agencies and other non-profit causes, their marketing budget is small and can only be used for fundraising materials, not marketing and signage.  In addition, with local, state and federal funding drastically slashed, Charlotte’s health and human services agencies are more dependent than ever on United Way. Faced with record unemployment, increasing foreclosures, etc., these agencies are overwhelmed, so the urgency to get the word out about those in need has never been greater.  “We’re grateful to SouthWood for this grant, because it enables us to raise awareness about community issues and still direct more donor dollars to the agencies who serve our families, seniors and children most in need,” says Bill Norton, Marketing Director at United Way of Central Carolinas.

The award to United Way of Central Carolinas is the tenth in a series of twenty grants to be awarded by SouthWood to nonprofits in the Charlotte area. SouthWood’s Identifying Our Community Grant program will grant a total of $100,000 worth of signage and services to eligible nonprofit organizations to install new signage or upgrade existing signage to create a positive environment. Grants will be awarded in quarterly $5000 increments to a different nonprofit every quarter.

“Over the past 40 years, our community has played an important role in SouthWood’s success,” says Amy Spang, spokesperson for SouthWood Corporation. “It is with sincere pleasure that we have an opportunity through this grant initiative to identify our community as a great place for all its citizens.  We are especially delighted to name United Way of Central Carolinas a most worthy recipient at the half-way point of our grant program.”

Grants are awarded based on the eligibility criteria listed below.

Organization must be a 501 (c) (3).

Organization must be located in Mecklenburg County.

Organization must be able to show how it will significantly benefit from this grant and how it will further serve its mission.

Organizations applying to upgrade existing signage must show significant issues with existing signage.

Organizations may submit applications to SouthWood through www.southwoodcorp.com. Applicants may also call 704-588-5000 x149 to obtain an application via fax or U.S. Mail. Applicants must provide six photos of their current (or proposed) signage and its location relative to roads, buildings and driveways.  Logos, graphic standards guide or brand artwork must also accompany the application.

The application deadline for the next SouthWood Identifying Our Community Grant is April 15, 2011. The next grant recipient will be chosen at the end of month.

About SouthWood Corporation

SouthWood specializes in the creation and implementation of image-conscious custom signage and graphics. SouthWood will design, plan, build, install and manage the project from concept to completion for clients throughout the U.S., Caribbean and beyond. Founded in 1970, SouthWood has earned a reputation for helping clients figure out what they need, getting it done right and on time, and providing service and quality that generate referrals and repeat business. Call 800-727-6884 or visit www.southwoodcorp.com for more information.

In case you missed it, here are the videos!

Part 1
Part 2

Navigating the Resort Safely

by Ernest Dwight

It’s no secret that, on vacation, most people don’t want to do any work at all.  They want to relax, take it easy, and be entertained.  The last thing you want to do at your resort is to make people work to find their way around it.  That’s why appropriate signage isn’t just for decoration and branding.  The signs you post on your vacation property are visitors’ most immediate connection to your resort, your company image and the environment they inhabit.

Effective signage is signage which gives your visitors, at a glance, the following:

• Information about the facility
• Navigation information, including directions
• Hours of operation and after-hours procedures
• Rules and boundaries for behavior and personal safety
• An image of your resort as a safe, welcoming and relaxing environment.

All of these needs come together at a certain topical point:  safety.  The best way to provide your guests – and your resort – with that protection is to make sure that they know where they are and what safety risks may exist.

Plainly put, guests need to know where they are on your resort, and to what purpose.  Good identification signs name a building, facility or location.  Rather than simply giving directions – which should be sufficient both in quantity and in quality of placement – effective signage also contains facts about the location, its hours of operation, Wireless accessibility if any, event information and scheduling.

Another aspect you’ll want to address is one of proper behavior, guest safety and boundaries.  Whether they’re children, college students or retirees, people on vacation can have a tendency to take a vacation from the rules, as well.  Visitors to your resort still need boundaries, rules and regulations laid out for them.  More importantly both from a hosting and a liability standpoint, you need for your guests to understand and respect boundaries.  That will protect both guest and resort.

An excellent example of this arises from the devastating oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  Some hotels along the shore lacked adequate signage warning of potential danger, putting swimmers and beachgoers at risk of exposure to the oil.

I am in no way suggesting that every resort poses a health risk as grave as the one we currently see in the Gulf.  But all resorts can present the possibility of personal injury if certain rules and boundaries are not respected.  Good signage plays an important role in a safe, enjoyable experience for your guests.

North Carolina Outward Bound School (www.ncoutwardbound.org) is a wilderness-based, experiential education organization, which provides scholarships to youth and adults, as well as open enrollment wilderness courses and professional development workshops for the general public. “Receiving this signage grant from SouthWood will help spread awareness about our programs for students and educators in Charlotte and the opportunities provided by the North Carolina Outward Bound School to members of our community,” says Amanda Sturner, Charlotte Program Director for North Carolina Outward Bound School.

North Carolina Outward Bound has been applying the experiential education model of learning using the wilderness as a classroom for more than forty years.  This model is based on the four pillars of physical fitness, craftsmanship, self-reliance and compassion. The organization’s mission is “to inspire people to discover and develop their potential to care for themselves, others, and the world around them through challenging experiences in unfamiliar settings.” Students challenge themselves physically and emotionally through camping, backpacking, canoeing, kayaking, ropes and team initiatives, and rock climbing. In addition, they learn how to communicate effectively, lead a group of their peers, overcome fears, and practice compassion.

The award to North Carolina Outward Bound School is the seventh in a series of grants to be awarded by SouthWood to nonprofits in the Charlotte area. SouthWood’s Identifying Our Community Grant program will grant a total of $100,000 worth of signage and services to eligible nonprofit organizations to install new signage or upgrade existing signage to create a positive environment. Grants will be awarded in quarterly $5000 increments to a different nonprofit every quarter.

“Over the past 40 years, our community has played an important role in SouthWood’s success,” says Amy Spang, spokesperson for SouthWood Corporation. “It is with sincere pleasure that we have an opportunity to through this grant initiative to identify our community as a great place for all its citizens.”

Grants are awarded based on the eligibility criteria listed below.

Organization must be a 501 (c) (3).

Organization must be located in Mecklenburg County.

Organization must be able to show how it will significantly benefit from this grant and how it will further serve its mission.

Organizations applying to upgrade existing signage must show significant issues with existing signage.

Organizations may submit applications to SouthWood through www.southwoodcorp.com. Applicants may also call 704-588-5000 x149 to obtain an application via fax or U.S. Mail. Applicants must provide six photos of their current (or proposed) signage and its location relative to roads, buildings and driveways.  Logos, graphic standards guide or brand artwork must also accompany the application.

The application deadline for the next SouthWood Identifying Our Community Grant is July 15, 2010. The next grant recipient will be chosen at the end of July.

About SouthWood Corporation

SouthWood specializes in the creation and implementation of image-conscious custom signage and graphics. SouthWood will design, plan, build, install and manage the project from concept to completion for clients throughout the U.S., Caribbean and beyond. Founded in 1970, SouthWood has earned a reputation for helping clients figure out what they need, getting it done right and on time, and providing service and quality that generate referrals and repeat business. Call 800-727-6884 or visit www.southwoodcorp.com for more information.

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Media contact:

Patricia Golden, My Team of Experts, Inc., 704-516-0157

Follow us on Twitter @MyTeamofExperts for more small business news

Technology has allowed businesses to pursue many of these opportunities electronically. However, the increased use of virtual meetings has raised the question of whether face-to-face interactions are still important to international business development.

I think they are important. With image, identity and signage clients in the U.S., Caribbean and Europe, I have found that face-to-face meetings are critical to business relationships. The opportunity to travel, especially to distant locations, is of great benefit to the business development process. It allows me to more completely understand a customer’s signage needs and physically experience what their guests experience when visiting so that we can create the best signage program.

Face-to-face meetings help break down cultural differences in the business world.  This was evidenced to me when a vacation trip to Spain was expanded to include a business call to a U.S.-based client who has operations there.  Only by sitting with these prospective clients were we able to overcome our language, cultural and other differences. As a result, we have formed positive working relationships and done additional work together.  Having now met, and looked into each other’s eyes, and shaken each other’s hands, we have forged the bonds that make it easier and more likely for us to continue as partners…..both from a business level and a personal one.

The consultative nature of the signage business often requires multiple visits and I, like most people, choose to return to hotels and resorts where I’ve had a positive experience. It requires good planning and proper execution of all the details to make your resort a place guests want to visit again and again. Sign programs contribute to guests’ positive experience by making the resort unified and easier to navigate, and by giving guests clear, comprehensible information.

For assistance in determining the right signage program for your resort, please contact us at 800-727-6884 or visit www.southwoodcorp.com for more information.

It’s not always as simple as you may think. For example, wood, aluminum and stone are all highly recyclable products, but are they truly green? Let’s look at some pros and cons to these materials.

Exterior wood signs typically involve redwood or western red cedar. The wood is versatile, beautiful and lasts a long time in outdoor environments. But western red cedar and redwood are considered only moderately sustainable products sometimes harvested with clear cutting. They also often require glues and exterior paints that leach chemicals.

Aluminum signs, including letters, graphics, panels, and sign components can be cut and fabricated using a wide variety of methods.  Extremely durable, they are available in all shapes and sizes for both interior and exterior signage use.  But aluminum requires high energy production beginning with bauxite mining, grinding, and then smelting. Once the aluminum is rolled into sheets, it is sold to manufacturers who form, cut, weld and paint the material.

From small tiles to massive slabs weighing several tons, stone offers unparalleled durability and natural beauty. But stone requires quarrying. Its weight requires high energy transportation, and cut pieces have to be routed, sand-blasted, and/or painted to produce a finished product.

If this leaves you scratching your head, you’re not alone. So what is the most effective way that hotel signage can lessen environmental impact? Assess the entire sign project rather than focusing solely on materials.

Efficient signage programs produced and installed correctly the first time eliminate the need for costly changes and waste. A well thought-out program reduces the number of signs necessary. Exceptional sign design based on the property’s location and use lends itself to improved material choices, value engineering, and longevity. And of course, signs with a longer life don’t have to be replaced as frequently, thereby improving the environmental impact.

For assistance in determining the right signage program for your resort, please contact us at 800-727-6884 or visit www.southwoodcorp.com for more information.

Many pieces of the puzzle have to come together and fit properly for successful rebranding.  One of those pieces is signage that will reinforce the image associated with the new brand.

For example, Raffles Canouan (The Grenadines) Resort, an all-inclusive resort on an isolated island in the Caribbean, implemented a new sign program to help rebrand an existing resort and reposition the property.  The new sign program created a visual language for the 300-acre property that provided guests with the sense that they were vacationing on their own private island paradise. Every sign, including exterior vehicular traffic signs for the golf cart-using guests, signage for pedestrian guests on the resort property, and interior signage for guests staying in the villas and enjoying the amenities, reinforced the new branding and strengthened the new positioning.

Guests were left with absolutely no doubts about the luxurious image of the resort’s new brand.

Successfully rebranding of a resort is more than just changing its name.  It requires good planning and proper execution of all the details that go into making it a place guests want to visit again and again. Not only are signs an important tool to enhance your brand and image, sign programs contribute to guests’ positive experience by making the resort unified and easier to navigate, and by giving guests clear, comprehensible information.

For assistance in determining the right signage program for your resort, please contact us at 800-727-6884 or visit www.southwoodcorp.com for more information.

Technology has allowed businesses to pursue many of these opportunities electronically. However, the increased use of virtual meetings has raised the question of whether face-to-face interactions are still important to international business development.

Ernest Dwight thinks they are important. Dwight is president of Charlotte-based signage manufacturer SouthWood Corporation (www.southwoodcorp.com) with clients in the U.S., the Caribbean and Europe. And his emphatic belief that face-to-face meetings are critical to business relationships was honored with a Business Opportunity Grant from British Airways.

For its Business Opportunity Grant program, British Airways hand-selected the winning companies primarily based on how a year’s worth of business travel and face-to-face meetings, along with other valuable business support, would positively impact each business, its growth and ability to meet objectives for 2010.  The grant includes airfare for 10 round-trip Club World business class flights, five free global shipments with British Airways World Cargo, $1,000 toward hotel accommodations at Courtyard by Marriott, five Regus Businessworld Gold Cards offering access to its business lounges worldwide, a Canon MX860 Printer, and three face-to-face business introductions through ExeConnect.

“As it relates to the business development process when selling services like ours, the opportunity to travel, especially to distant locations, is of great benefit to us,” says Dwight. “The availability of continuity of travel and business support is important because we typically require multiple visits with clients and their properties, due to the consulting nature of our business, and need to know and understand their projects. The British Airways Opportunity Grant will make a real difference in our ability to meet our business objectives in 2010.”

About SouthWood Corporation

SouthWood specializes in the creation and implementation of image-conscious custom signage and graphics. SouthWood will design, plan, build, install and manage the project from concept to completion for clients throughout the U.S., Caribbean and beyond. Founded in 1970, SouthWood has earned a reputation for helping clients figure out what they need, getting it done right and on time, and providing service and quality that generate referrals and repeat business. Call 800-727-6884 or visit www.southwoodcorp.com for more information.