Monthly Archives: July 2023

Where is the VALUE in your SIGNAGE?

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Illuminated Signs

Custom, old fashioned, illuminated signs

Where is the VALUE in your SIGNAGE?

Ever stopped to contemplate where the VALUE in your SIGN is?

What about your sign makes it an INVESTMENT versus an EXPERNSE?

I was recently reminded that as people we tend to focus on (1) NOW, and (2) diminish ourselves. Stated differently, when we focus on NOW we tend to focus on where we are CURRENLY in a specific place, we project that we will ALWAYS be in the same place – literally – even if we know we will physically be in a different place tomorrow. A different way of stating we DIMINISH OURSELVES is that we tend to elevate others and put ourselves down. A simple example of this is forgetting the skills we have – to change a light bulb, fix a car, post on the internet – whatever – because we believe that if I CAN DO IT, ANYONE CAN DON IT. This is not true. Every one of us has at least ONE specific skill that very few other people will have. Also, too often we BELIEVE the AMRKETING that is presented to us – so we BELIEVE that everyone else has a better life, something we don’t – so we don’t see how we can add value to anyone else.

You may be wondering WHAT all this has to do with SIGNAGE – so let me explain.

When you purchase a sign, you may believe you are ONLY getting the physical sign that gets delivered and or installed, because that is what you SEE. However, in reality the delivered END PRODUCT is exactly that – the END PRODUCT. The END product is what comes after EVERYTHING before the end product – all the design, the planning, the manufacturing without which the end product would either not exist or not be as it is.

Why should this interest you, and more to the point, why should you be be concerned about the process as much as the end product?

Have you ever heard about a Friday Alpha Romeo, or a Monday Alpha, or a Mercedes, or a Rolls Royce? Why do all of these names ring a bell? They all ring a bell because people see them, because they have PERCEIVED value and because of the PERCEIVED STATUS attached to each of the named products.

What about DeLorean, Bahia, Badedas, South African Airways and South African Railways. If you have not heard of these businesses it may be that you are not in South Africa, or it could be because they are all BUST, BROKE and going out of business, many due to lack of qualified management, but some because the products they sold were not up to scratch or they were not competitive in a world where competition is everywhere.

The latter list tended to focus only on the END RESULT, but did not give sufficient attention to the PROCESS, the list of little steps that are needed for the end product to exist.

For signage one of the PROCESS elements is the sales person, the person who makes the suggestions as to what type of signage you require to MEET YOUR SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS. If the business sign you order and receive is almost free but does NOT achieve your objective – whatever your objective is, it does not matter what the sign cost, it can be considered an EXPENSE as it cost you money but is not generating the money you hoped it would generate – in which case the sign or signs would qualify as an INVESTMENT.

At SignForce we have over two decades of experience in signage, keeping abreast of the local and international trends as well as what materials are available, not only in our primary market in South Africa, but also internationally.

Another benefit of working with SignForce is the years of MARKETING experience that we have acquired over the years in the signage business. But that is not all. The main sales people at SignForce also have years of marketing experience that comes from studying marketing and practical psychology, AND putting those studies into practice.

When you come to SignForce for SIGNAGE you are privy to our years of experience in making and psychology which is why we can design and produce signs that WORK and can thus be considered INVESTMENTS.

Now one concern we do have at SignForce is that we are often perceived as being expensive. This may be because a competitor may be able to produce a sign at a lower cost than we can. The issue is the INFORMATION CAPITAL that comes with the signs that SignForce design and manufacture, because, while signage is a simple industry, it is only simple for simple signs, and when it is not simple it is very quick to become overwhelmingly complicated.

At SignForce we strive to keep the system SIMPLE for YOU, our client.

If you are looking for signage that works, SignForce is the signage business to work with.

Contact SignForce now on info@signforce.co.za or call +27 (0)11 440 7525 or WhatsApp +27 (0)82 558 6413

Find out more about SignForce by visiting http://www.signforce.co.za

What are you ‘buying’ when you choose a sign company?

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What are you ‘buying into’ when you choose a sign company?

SignForce 'invisible' sign

Partially Invisible Sign  – do you notice how the top left seems unattached?

It seems the standard method used to purchase a sign (and many other high ticket items) is to decide what you want, or at least have a rough idea of what you want or are looking for, or what you want to achieve. This applies to signs as much as it does to purchasing appliances, cars or televisions, all considered high ticket purchases.

Well that is only partly true. While cars and the other listed purchases (especially in South Africa) are definitely almost always seen as high ticket items – even for entry level models, signs and SIGNAGE are very often seen as a cheap after thought – that is, until quotes are received.

But I am digressing so back to the standard method of purchase.

  1. Have an idea of what you are looking for

  2. Hopefully have an idea of what you want your purchase to achieve (I know this sounds obvious, as you purchase a fridge to keep your food fresher for longer, DUH, but not everyone knows or understands WHY they purchase a sign.)

  3. Look on Google for a possible keyword – lets use signage or pylons or cut out letter signs.

  4. Wait – generally less than 1 second – for Google to give you a list of suppliers you can contact. ** This is where the fun begins and will require it’s own paragraph

  5. Call, WhatsApp or email the suppliers listed on Google to give them an idea of what you are looking for and ask for a price.

  6. Copy and paste the same message to all the possible suppliers listed on the first page *** of Google. Not sure where to mention this but are you aware that the top and bottom (of every page) few sites listed or ‘recommended’ by Google are paid sites – what Google refers to as sponsored – also known as paid adverts. This is only a FYI comment but is worth noting as there are possible additional benefits and costs linked to businesses that do and do not use sponsored adverts.

  7. Wait for feedback from the potential suppliers you emailed or called, or follow up the email with a call to make the potential sign supplier aware that there is an incoming email.

  8. Get quotes from the potential suppliers who respond to your request for a quote

  9. Assess the cost from each supplier making the assumption that ALL quotes are for the same ‘thing’ ****, especially as you sent the same request to all potential suppliers.

  10. Choose a supplier based on cost and possibly on a picture they have provided. *****

  11. Delete all correspondence from the alternative suppliers

** When you get the list of possible, potential suppliers, you are doing a wide range, generic search. Your search has no specifics and doesn’t necessarily tell you much about the businesses you are approaching. A cursory search of the proposed supplier’s website should give you a little more information, but please always remember that we live in a world of INFORMATION, and not all information is necessarily true, so a general rule is to do a little more digging (formally known as due diligence), make a call and see what response and ‘feel’ you get.

*** How often do you search beyond page 1 of any Google search? How often do you look at the number of responses Google provides – and the time it took to get the list. For example, a simple search of cut out letters took 0.6 seconds – well under 1 second – to provide a list of 2,120,000,000 web sites that MAY provide a good match for the simple search. This is an overwhelming number and is why almost every business strives and pushes to be on page 1 of the world’s largest business directory – Google!

The challenge comes in that for this specific search only 2 of the listings on the front page MAY fulfil my requirements. As such I tweek the search to CUT OUT LETTER SIGNS. This search took 0.4 seconds and provided a list of 925,000,000 possible sites. A great reduction of over 1 billion sites, The refined search has made it simpler to find what I am looking for and thus made it very simple to find at least one supplier on page 1 that should meet my requirements, so why go to page 2? The reason is due to the limited retail territoryavailable on page 1. Only a limited number of potential suppliers can be listed on page 1 (or every page) so there is a high likelihood that good suppliers may also be found on pages that are past page 1.

**** “making the assumption that ALL quotes are for the same ‘thing’”

When you contact multiple potential suppliers you will most likely assume that because they are listed on Google that they are capable of doing the job. What you have no idea of is if there is any additional service or benefit you can get from any of the suppliers. In order to find out if the suppliers can provide any additional ‘services’, a number of questions need to be asked. History shows asking these questions while TALKING to a person tends to give great benefit.

***** If you are making the decision of which supplier to use based purely on PRICE (and a possible picture) you may be doing yourself a great disservice, as you may be expecting to get the same quality and same sign from all the potential suppliers, but you would be shocked to learn how many different possible interpretations there can be for the same sign brief, and as such you may not be getting the full benefit of any or all the suppliers.

A case in point is a recent request by one of SignForce’s longest standing and largest clients. The request seemed a little strange at the outset, but made sense later on when all the elements fell together. The request was for photo’s of premises, information about staff, a list of machines on the premises and a few other VERY PERTINENT questions. It turns out our client’s client was requesting the information, possibly as a means of doing part of a due diligence. The other points that may be lost when only looking at cost is quality and cost of material to be used, expected lifespan of the signage, type and quality of paint and if the sign that you have requested is in fact the BEST sign to achieve your intended outcome. At SignForce we have the benefit of a number of years of experience (as well as the formal qualifications) to provide input regarding your marketing strategy and what signs would best suite your needs. This information is not charged for, although our signs may sometimes ‘cost’ more than a competitor, but the added value is definitely there to be taken advantage of.

Which brings us back to the question of what you are buying when you choose a sign company.

It goes without saying you expect the company to produce a sign. You may expect them to design and install the sign as well. It is possible that you know exactly what you need and how it should be made in order to get the most beneficial results from your signage, but it is highly unlikely that you would know as much about signs, their benefits and cots and the best placement to maximize your investment, as the sign producer, especially one who has years of experience, and possibly some formal qualifications in the field.

Trusting your signage manufacturer means you believe they have some knowledge you don’t have. In addition you are not only looking for a sign, but if the signage business is a decent one, they will make sure that your purchase is an investment so that your sign helps to generate more income than it costs. In order for this to happen it means that you also value the experience of your supplier, you value the expertise of your supplier and you are quite right to expect a level of after sales service. The question from the sign suppliers perspective is what is the commercial value of these additional – add on – benefits, and what, if anything, Is my client prepared to pay for these benefits.

At SignForce the senior management have a depth of knowledge and experience in signage – as can be expected after more than 20 years in signage – but also have a depth of knowledge in marketing, visibility, design and project management, which means that when you use SignForce you are investing in a team that will gladly take on and supervise your signage project with the intention of making you look good, ensuring you signs work and your deadlines are met.

Contact SignForce now on info@sgnforce.co.za or call 27 (0)11 440 7525 or WhatsApp +27 (0)82 558 6413 for all your signage requirements as well as for advice on signage and what signage will work best for your unique business.

Find out more about SignForce by visiting http://www.signforce.co.za

What is the value of CONSISTENCY in Branding?

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Consistency makes a sign successful

What is the value of consistent branding?

In reality I, as the author, am not in the pay grade to give a number that will answer this question, but I can make a number of observations

Generally speaking brand consistency refers to the practice of maintaining a cohesive (solid) and unified brand identity across all touchpoints and communication channels.

Brand consistency involves presenting a consistent brand message, visual identity (such as signage and packaging), tone of voice, and overall brand experience to your target audience. The value of brand consistency can be significant (think Coke, Amex, Pepsi, Epstein, Cosby and Weinstein) and can impact various, if not all, aspects of a business.

Here are some key benefits of brand consistency:

1. Brand Recognition: Consistent branding helps customers recognize and remember your brand more easily. When your brand elements, such as logo, colors, typography, and messaging, are consistently applied across different platforms and marketing materials, such as signage, vehicle branding, packaging and letter heads, the consistency of the visual identity creates a strong brand identity that stands out in the minds of consumers. This brand consistency facilitates brand recall and can lead to increased brand recognition and awareness. Coke is an excellent example of brand identity using color and font. Think of coke’s visual marketing (signage) and you can see that they consistently use a SPECIFIC red and a specific FONT making the coke red and coke font (universally?) recognizable.

2. Building Trust and Credibility: Consistency builds trust among consumers. When your brand consistently delivers on its promises, maintains a consistent quality of product or services, and communicates a unified message, your brand consistency establishes credibility and reliability. Customers are more likely to trust and engage with a brand that appears professional, dependable, and authentic. An example of how branding can affect perceptions is an observation of an American Express (AMEX) sign in Cape Town a number of years ago. Watching prospective customers they would approach the bank, look at the signage, look at the rates and move on. VERY FEW prospects cam e back to do business. It is possible that the rates were excessive, but on further investigation it appeared that the branding had accidently been reversed so the sign looked like the store may be a ‘fake’ knock-off of AMEX, and thus people tended to not trust the signage.

3. Differentiation: In a crowded marketplace, having a consistent brand helps your brand stand out from competitors. By maintaining a unique and consistent brand identity, you create a distinct image and position in the minds of consumers. Consistency allows you to communicate your brand’s unique value proposition and differentiate yourself from others, making it easier for customers to choose your trusted brand over competitors. It is for this reason that large companies trade mark certain colors, shapes and slogan’s. In this respect think of ADIDAS, NIKE and Dolce & Gabana. In South Africa a recent example is WE BUY CARS who have named their business as such and as a result are able to take legal action against any other motor dealer who states WE BUY CARS – even if that is what their business does. I suppose this could also be seen as an example of KNOW THE RULES OF THE GAME – which we buy cars did and played well, even if morally and ethically frowned upon.

4. Customer Loyalty: Consistent branding helps create and maintain customer loyalty and advocacy – what in known s RAVING FANS in social media terms. When customers have positive experiences with your brand and consistently encounter your brand identity, they develop a sense of familiarity and emotional connection. The emotional connection can lead to increased customer loyalty, repeat purchases, and positive word-of-mouth recommendations, the ultimate aim of all marketers. Customer loyalty can be seen among many of the worlds top brands such as APPLE, TOYOTA, MERCEDES, COKE, PEPSI to name very few.

5. Efficiency and Cost Savings: Brand consistency simplifies marketing efforts and can possibly reduces costs in the long run. By establishing brand guidelines and templates, you create a framework that streamlines the creation of marketing materials, both online and offline. Consistency eliminates the need to reinvent your brand’s visual and messaging elements for every campaign or platform, saving time and resources. In signage brand consistency comes from the corporate hand book that every business should have. While a very detailed hand book can lead to less innovation, it certainly makes the life of the signage manufacturer simpler by specifying what materials should be used, how they should be used, where the materials should be used and what the outcome should be. It is possible that such specifications can add to increased cost, but the cost is certainly worthwhile when one considers what the alternative can be when people look at multiple signs from different manufacturers and they are all visibly different.

6. Employee Alignment: One often overlooked advantage of brand consistency is how consistent branding benefits internal stakeholders, such as employees. When your brand has clear guidelines and a consistent identity, it becomes easier for employees to understand and represent the brand effectively. Consistency aligns employees with the brand’s values, mission, and vision, creating a sense of unity and shared purpose. In the modern business world it is also know that if certain levels of employees do not SEE their employers branding they feel they are not working for a business that has MADE IT, or can even make it, so they prefer to go to the recognized market leaders.

Possible disadvantages of brand consistency can be in rigidity and cost. This is especially true in signage if you want to produce all your signage in one factory and then have to pay shipping costs to get the signs delivered to various locations, whether nationally or internationally. That said, the cost of centralized production also has the advantage of generating some (even if very little) economies of scale – something that is vary rare in the custom sign industry.


Brand consistency can thus be seen to play a crucial role in shaping how consumers perceive and interact with your brand. Brand consistency helps build recognition, trust, differentiation, loyalty, and efficiency. By investing in brand consistency, businesses can establish a strong and memorable brand that resonates with their target audience and drives long-term success.

If you are looking to partner with a signage company that takes brand consistency seriously, SignForce is the signage company for you.

Contact SignForce now on info@signforce.co.za or call +27 (0)11 440 7525 or WhatsApp +27 (0)82 558 6413

Find out more about SignForce by visiting http://www.signforce.co.za