Why the different font for the phone number? Looks like a sloppy oversight.

The biggest issue is the lack of hierarchy, visually everything is similar in size. It is clean though … but awkward hierarchy and awkward negative space, IMO.

Avoid Gotham if you can. There's already a solar company in New Jersey using Gotham as 'their' font, including in their logo. This doesn't mean you can't use it, but to help yourself stand out you may want to consider an alternative.

at 3' x 5' you should be designing full scale. If it fits on the artboard, and your printer didn't tell you a scale to work in, always design at full scale.

Don't forget your bleeds.

I'd get a proof on that gradient too...but a proof would be almost as much as the banner. Don't be too surprised if you get banding. You are in the very lower limits of the color and if the CMYK values fall apart, so will the gradient, unless that is solid cyan....

If you didn't have that gradient thing it would be an easy cheap cut vinyl job too.

agree

I agree with previous comets here. The similar size fonts cause both a lack of hierarchy and trapped white space. I wouldn't know where to start reading as it all runs together.

The black is too harsh, I'd make the text grey.

Line up the text on the right with the logo on the left at the top and bottom, you can space the leading out a bit so it fits. Try centreing the phone number as well.

Thanks a lot everyone for all the advise!
I see what you mean about the hierarchy and white space. I tried to remedy that in this new version.

@Virgo Nightingale
I'm not too concerned with using the same typeface as another solar company. I think I found who you were talking about and it looks like they mainly operate out of the north jersey/ new york area. We generally work in the south jersey/ Philadelphia region.

@PrintDriver
Thanks for the tips to avoid banding. I changed the color to pure cyan and decreased the transparency a bit. The Sunburst gradient is a prominent part of the company's visual identity so I wanted to keep it.
I also changed it to full scale... then I remembered why I didn't do it in the first place. I tried to add a slight white outer glow to the logo to make it pop, then Illustrator decided it was too big and wouldn't load anything. oh well


Let me know what you folks think of the new version.

I don't think you included the new image.

yeah Fixed now

hmm, can you fit Commercial Solar Specialists on one line, maybe swap the placement with the phone number? Right now it looks like a list of three specialties that doesn't really make sense. I'd listen to PD and just make the solar rays a pale shade of blue, rather than gradients.

It's a step in the right direction.

Here are a couple things
• The phone number looks like it was an afterthought.
• The word commercial is occupying whitespace that belongs to your logo
• The contrast at the top of the sunburst is too high, it is making the text a little difficult to read and is almost blending in with part of the logo.

It's getting better. Here are my suggestions:

1. Bigger logo, smaller "Commercial..."
2. Make the phone number a little larger so it doesn't look like it was just stuck on there
3. The blue rays in the background are too close in color to the blue in the logo.

people are always under the assumption that if you work in half scale you will be working at a lower resolution. That is not the case. If you are working at half scale, you have to double your resolution to account for the output percentage. A file in half scale has to be worked on at double the output resolution. ie if the banner will be 150dpi at full scale, you have to work at 300.

Illustrator effects are scratch hogs. You should have about half your hard drive empty to use them. Having a good amount of Ram helps too.

The other thing is, your Raster Effects setting only needs to be 150dpi at full scale, not 300. Even a little 3x5 banner will only be printed at 150dpi. If you use the EFFECTS menu like your supposed to (if you are using an earlier version of Illustrator that still has the Filter menu, do not use Filters. use the Effects menu) If you use the Effects menu, you can cheat and set your Raster Effects setting to 50, get the work done, then up it to 150 for print (don't forget to do that part...).

BTW, the gradient doesn't matter. Just the density of it. You always risk banding at the lower densities. Doesn't mean it always happens. That's what proofs are for. Or ask the printer to check it.

If this banner is exposed to the sun for a long time those blues might fade to illegibility.