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Exterior Commercial Painting: A Guide for Business Owners 

As a business owner, you understand the importance of making a strong first impression. What your brand says at first glance could determine a buyer’s choice, and exterior commercial painting can play a crucial role in shaping your business’ first impression. 

The exterior of your commercial property is often the first thing potential customers notice, and a well-maintained appearance can significantly impact your business’s reputation and success, showcasing professionalism and trust.

The colors you choose, the quality of the painting, and even the attention to detail can embrace your brand’s identity and help you create a cohesive and professional appearance that will strengthen your company’s trust and appeal to your customers.

In this guide, we will explore exterior commercial painting, why it is so important for your business, how it differs from other painting services, and why choosing the right partner can help your exterior commercial painting ideas become a reality. 

A Deep Dive Into Commercial Exterior Painting

A painting roller applying fresh paint on an exterior wall as part of a commercial exterior painting project.
Exterior commercial painting involves applying a fresh coat of paint to the building’s facade.

Commercial exterior painting involves applying both protective and decorative coatings to the exterior surfaces of commercial buildings. Seeking to go further than just an aesthetic approach, commercial painting requires a deeper understanding of different building materials, weather conditions, and long-term durability. 

What’s the difference between residential and commercial painting?

To begin exploring exterior commercial painting, we should probably differentiate it from residential painting. The main purpose of commercial painting is to enhance the appearance of business properties, improving their total look and appeal to customers, unlike residential painting, which only focuses on enhancing homes instead of businesses. 

This practice can be applied to buildings, office complexes, retail spaces, industrial facilities and more. It’s a higher-scale project than residential painting, with different materials and specific challenges from larger structures and public spaces. 

Other key factors that differentiate residential and commercial painting from each other:

  • Materials and equipment: Commercial painting requires specialized equipment and commercial-grade materials to be applied with special application knowledge. On the other hand, residential painting can use tools available at local home improvement stores, also applied by residential painting professionals. 
  • Job size: Commercial painting projects are typically large-scale since they can be done at retail shops, shopping malls, industrial buildings, or airports. They will also involve logistics such as square footage, employees, customers, inventory, and safety compliance. Residential projects, on the other hand, usually involve smaller spaces like houses, townhouses, condominiums, and other living spaces and involve fewer painters and materials. 
  • Experience and expertise: Commercial painters highly focus on safety. They have to scale tall buildings, access small areas and follow regulations. Plus, they have to provide deep knowledge about applying paint to various materials like wood, concrete, marble, metal and plastic—which are not all the same. For residential painters, the focus is more on having good communication and design skills to partner with homeowners on paint color, type and application style. They consider protecting furniture and floors and need to know important home information like the presence of children or pets. 
  • Number of team members: This sounds obvious, but since commercial painting projects are larger, they need larger teams employed due to the square footage of properties. Residential jobs may only require 2 or 3 painters to complete the job.

It’s important that you understand the main differences between residential and commercial painting before contacting a painting contractor. By keeping this in mind, you can ensure that your business objectives regarding brand and protection are feasible and will be more confident when taking the first step. 

Exterior commercial painting is not just what color you choose for your brick-and-mortar store. It is an important side of a business’ identity and longevity and can significantly benefit it. Let’s see:

  • Protection: By choosing the right exterior commercial paint, you can leverage its appliance—suitable for various materials such as wood, concrete or metal—to protect your building exterior. A good layer of paint can keep your outside fancy and protected for long periods and will prevent common structural problems such as aggregate expansion, corrosion from water seeping into the walls or chemical damage due to exposure to natural elements. 
  • Less maintenance: Since cleaning your surfaces can be time-consuming and expensive, choosing a quality exterior commercial paint can reduce the time and money spent on cleaning. For instance, high-gloss paint is easy to clean and keeps the building looking fresh. 
  • Better customer impressions: As your customer’s first impression, exterior paint not only improves the appearance of the building, it also reflects your brand’s identity and values. Choosing the right color and paying attention to the quality of the paint job can enhance the customer’s experience and foster a strong connection with your brand. 

Understanding the importance of exterior commercial painting is a must for your business. By doing so, you are not only ensuring a positive first impression on clients and reinforcing brand recognition but also safeguarding yourself from expensive future costs on exterior maintenance and renovation.

The time it takes to paint a commercial building depends on its size and the complexity of the paint job. The time of the year also affects the duration; slower winter months and holiday shutdowns are ideal. 

After this, it’s recommended that you paint the exterior of your business every 3-5 years to maintain a professional look. This is if you haven’t previously experienced direct sunlight or extreme weather conditions, both key factors in the longevity of your paint job. 

No matter if you own an office, a retail space, or an educational institution, commercial painting can be challenging. You need to understand the importance of proper execution with minimal disruption to business operations, have careful prep, cleaning, and surface repair, and hire painters who know how to maneuver safely around the building. 

Contact us here if you would like to find the best painting contractor for your residential or commercial painting needs.

Why You Should Choose K5 as Your Commercial Painter 

A man on a ladder painting the exterior of a commercial building, showcasing the work of a professional commercial painter.
A skilled commercial painter always ensures high-quality finishes on building exteriors.

Hiring a professional exterior commercial painter will save you time and work and boost your property and business value. However, sometimes, the process of finding a high-quality partner can be overwhelming because it requires careful planning and execution.

When planning an exterior commercial painting, you need to remember a few significant factors and make sure they align with your business goals and objectives:

  • Experience: You want to find partners with a proven track record of handling similar projects, skills for complex tasks, and compliance with OSHA standards.
  • Credentials and insurance: To avoid unexpected liabilities make sure you verify that the painters are licensed, bonded and insured for liability and workers’ compensation. 
  • Referrals and references: This is not mandatory, but you can prevent disappointment in quality or time of work by requesting a list of previous clients and checking their satisfaction. How the project went can give you an idea of how it can work out for you. 
  • Thorough research: Visit the contractor’s premises to avoid hiring unreliable partners, you can check for negative references or complaints or conduct comprehensive online research, such as their website, to ensure their credibility. 
  • Flexibility in scheduling: Exterior commercial painting has the additional aspect of interfering with your business operations. To minimize this disruption, discuss the painters’ ability to accommodate and ensure the work does not interfere with your daily activities. 
  • Attention to detail: Probably the most important aspect since we know how frustrating it can be to deal with sloppy paint jobs, bad surface reparation, or low-quality materials. These problems diminish the aesthetics of your business and lead to costly repairs and repainting sooner than expected. It’s essential that you hire painters who excel in their surface preparation process and priming techniques and use only high-quality paints and materials. 
  • Guarantees and warranties: Ask for the painters’ guarantee or warranty policy to address any defects or issues that may appear after the project is completed. 
  • Communication and project management: To ensure smooth project execution, it’s important that you achieve good communication with your contractor. Evaluate this side of the business, their project management practices and their ability to adhere to timelines and manage the project efficiently. 
  • Competitive pricing: To avoid overpaying, get detailed estimates. Compare the scope of work, materials, labor costs and project timeline and balance the price with the expected quality of the job. 

Koehn’s commercial painting division, K5, stands out as a specialized option to help your business maintain its durability and aesthetics. You can expect a professional approach and high-quality services, which is a realistic combination when choosing your exterior commercial painting partner. 

K5 staff use only the highest quality materials from top manufacturers and commit to using the latest techniques to ensure a superior finish that lasts. Whether you already have an idea of what you have or need guidance on the best options, K5 transforms your vision into reality in a personalized way. 

Furthermore, K5 has a team of experienced painters skilled in handling different exterior surfaces and conditions. Their expertise ensures a beautiful and durable outcome, a result of meticulous attention to detail and customer satisfaction. 

Exterior Commercial Painting: Conclusion

Two painters working on painting a large exterior wall, illustrating the process of commercial exterior painting.
Commercial exterior painting projects often require teamwork and precision.

Exterior commercial painting is a crucial investment for any business owner aiming to elevate their business’ appearance and value. At Koehn Painting, we understand a freshly painted exterior’s powerful impact, projecting professionalism, attracting more customers, and building trust and credibility.

Koehn Painting’s K5 Painting division’s strong specialization in commercial painting helps clients boost the aesthetic appeal of their commercial properties, thereby improving clients’ impressions and employee morale.

We’ve built a trusted name in Wichita, Kansas, by consistently exceeding customer expectations and delivering outstanding results. Our dedication to commitment, safety, and sustainability, combined with tailored solutions, makes our service indispensable for commercial painting clients looking to invest in their business’s value and trust.

At Koehn Painting and K5 Painting, we understand that choosing the right contractor involves more than just price comparison. That’s why we provide expertise, qualifications, and dedication to help you achieve the final project results you desire. Discover the Koehn Painting difference  – contact us today for a free estimate and step into a vibrant, freshly painted home!