Tag Archives: illuminated signs

Is LUCK necessary to make a Business Successful?

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What does it take for a business to be a success? (or survive?)

Gary Player, the famous golfer, is also famous for saying something like “being successful requires a measure of luck”, and “the more I practice the luckier I seem to get!”

While this comment was specifically made about Gary Player’s golf career, I was wondering if it applies to every aspect of a successful business as well.

Life has taught me that a LOT of success in business comes from doing the same repetitive, ‘boring” things over and over and over and over and over and over again. This is because it is the “boring”, “repetitive” actions that are needed to keep a business functioning. Things like accounting, marketing, selling and doing the work!

A great man named Dennis Kaplan once said that every person who is successful has to do the work (similar to what Gary Player says as this becomes practice which can lead to ‘luck’), work hard, focus and also needs an element of LUCK.

It is the LUCK part that intrigues me most. In the context of a sport, luck can easily be attributed to hours of practice and training, as this practice and training hones the muscles, hones one’s reflexes and makes one better at the action that is being repeated.

There is also a level of mental focus that is required. If one looks at the top sports people, it is often their mental attitude – and fortitude – that separates number 1 from number 100. This is one reason the field of Sports Psychology dos so well.

So how do these factors apply to business?

Is it LUCK that a particular client finds a specific supplier? If we focus on marketing efforts, then LUCK could possibly be one’s ability to get into the prospect’s line of sight, or keep one’s business front of mind. But is this really luck? If it is luck it could be interpreted that the business with the biggest budget will ALWAYS win as they have the ability to keep one front of mind. BUT is this true for all businesses?

Could it be LUCK that a specific prospect finds your business, contacts your business and then decides to go ahead with your business to do the job? This one is specifically questionable when one does not necessarily have much influence over the decision process.

For an example lets look at a business like SignForce.

We can market all we can, as we have control over this.

Once we have marketed we have no control over the prospect clicking on, calling or emailing SignForce. This step I would put down to luck.

Once the prospect DOES contact SignForce we then have some control over the next step which is seeing the client (if necessary), advising the prospective client and quoting the prospect.

The next step is once again out of SignForce’s hands, as this step depends on the client’s budget, the competitive quotes the prospect received (we always assume every prospect gets the standard three quotes which is considered good governance) and what quality the prospect is prepared to settle for, assuming that (as is standard) all three competing companies have quoted on the SAME sign(s). The last one is a little challenging as history has shown that there are MANY ways to quote on the same signs, but they all have different pro’s and con’s, many of which the prospect would have no clue about, simply because they would need to be sign specialists to know about all sign materials and their pro’s and con’s.

If the prospect does decide to work with SignForce all steps going forward ARE in the hands of SignForce so this is where practice (and hence no longer luck) comes in, as the more we do the work to the client’s approval – this involves quality, life span, delivery as per agreed deadline and many other factors – the more likely SignForce is to get additional work from the client.

Of course one issue with the signage business is that unless the client is expanding, the repeat cycle of business is between five and seven years. This means a sign business needs to continuously market in order to fill the five to seven years, and then some.

At SignForce we know we don’t know it all. We do practice a lot, and we tend to get better the more we practice, which is one reason people could explain why SignForce has been in business under the same management for over 20 years.

If you are in the market for signs – anything that makes you and your business visible – SignForce has been around assisting businesses to be visible for over 20 years, andd we will gladly assist your business as well.

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

Find out more about how SignForce can help make your business visible by visiting our website at http://www.signforce.co.za

SignForce – Solution Finders For Your Custom Signs

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Illuminated Signs

Custom, old fashioned, illuminated signs

SignForce has been around for over two decades.

We at SignForce have been told one of the reasons we have managed to survive all the ups and downs of the South African economy is our ability to morph, recreating ourselves as and when necessary.

SignForce’s ability to adapt points to the mindset of the SignForce management – a mindset of problem solving.

This problem solving is one of SignForce’s competitive edges, as any challenge is seen as that, a challenge to overcome! This is especially true when our clients need custom signs and custom designs.

An example of SignForce’s problem solving thinking is the manufacturing of the sign for Corona Beer – part of which is shown above.

The sign is ‘simple’ in that this type of sign has been around since the beginning of time – ok, not so long, but definitely since the early 1930’s. So, it should be a simple issue to make the sign which has an old style and look.

But, because the sign SHOULD be SIMPLE to make, does not mean it IS SIMPLE to make. One reason the sign is not simple to make is because when these signs were first made in the 1930’s, the globe holders were a standard product that could be secured to the face of the sign with no visible wiring, but these holders no longer exist.

Today globes and globe holders are more of a specialist product, NOT made to be secured to the front of the sign.

SignForce designed special holders that could incorporate the current technology using mostly scrap material that would normally go to land fill. The ecologically friendly solution is one example of the solution finding way SignForce staff think.

Do you have a challenge that SignForce could help solve to make your business more visible?

​If you have a signage challenge that requires a solution contact SignForce now on +27 (0)11 440 7525 or info@signforce.co.za or WhatsApp +27 (0)82 558 6413

http://www.signforce.co.za3D

Do FIRST IMPRESSIONS count?

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Cut out, illuminated reception sign

Illuminated reception sign on a corporate blue backing with halo illumination and a cut out RECEPTION sign

How many chances do you get to create a first impression

Picture these two scenario’s.

Scenario 1.

You are introduced to a person who is wearing shorts and a t-shirt and looks like a billboard for a tatoo parlor. You cannot see a single square millimeter of uninked skin. The person is introduced as a marketing genius who runs a multi million marketing organization. Before they open their mouth, what is your FIRST IMPRESSION? Is this the same impression you would have if the person looked differently?

Scenario 2.

You are introduced to a person who is dressed in formal business attire. They look well groomed. They stand proud. They are introduced the same way as the person in scenario 1 above.

From your FIRST IMPRESSION which person do you think you are more likely to listen to? Which person would you think is more likely to impress you? Which person will you JUDGE more, no matter how inaccurately or unfairly?

This may seem like a loaded question – because it is. That said, it is also a true ‘experiment’ I was a party to.

An individual who I had great respect for introduced the above two people to a group that I was a member of. They were both introduced as marketing experts. They both gave a five minute talk about FIRST IMPRESSIONS and marketing. They were then taken out the room and the audience were asked to vote on which person made the most sense.

Any guess as to who was seen as the expert? I will tell you. It was the individual dressed in formal business attire.

Once the votes were counted we were re-introduced to both parties again. This time THEY did the introductions. The tatoo’d individual was in fact a marketing expert and business person who ran a multi national business.

The second individual was in fact a homeless person who was ‘coached’ on what to say but had no clue whatsoever on how to market anything – not even themselves, as one has to assume if they could market themselves they would not necessarily have been homeless.

The difficulty changing the perceptions of the group after their FIRST IMPRESSIONS was palpable. People believed that the two individuals were lying the second time around. People has already made up THEIR MINDS and this is what they were going to BELIEVE – REGARDLESS OF THE FACTS.

Why am I mentioning all this when it comes to SIGNAGE? Can there be any relevance?

To me the common ground is glaringly obvious.

If your SIGNAGE is damaged, non-existent, dirty or simply OLD FASHIONED (and you are in a ‘modern’ business), your sign may well be creating an incorrect, inappropriate and misleading FIRST IMPRESSION.

Imagine you are a seller of LEADING EDGE TECHNOLOGY and your sign is old fashioned bulbs on an old, rusted frame (picture a long closed, old style movie house) how could your sign possibly convey the message of modern technology? And once that FIRST IMPRESSIOIN is made, what would it take to ALTER your prospective client’s first impression?

A business that understands FIRST IMPRESSIONS is BOLTGAS INDUSTRIAL MINING SUPPLIES. This well run and managed mining supply business is in the process of creating VERY IMPRESSIVE first impressions. From the moment one enters the premises you get the impression of a well run business. The modern reception area is warm and inviting with the wall signage and blue desk cover with illuminated signage making one feel at home – and this is only the reception area, where the signage and blue tinting on the windows create a feeling of warmth and professionalism.

Reception signage and window tinting by #SignForce can change any old area to an inviting, professional space that is welcoming to all that enter, especially unknowing prospective clients.

For reception signage and window tinting contact #SignForce now on +27 (0)11 440 7525 or +27(0)82 558 6413 or email us on info@signforce.co.za

For further information on SignForce visit our website at http://www.signforce.co.za

What VLAUE does your SIGN and your Signage provider ADD to your BUSINESS?

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Mambo's Chicken Individual Cut Out Sign

Internally Illuminated 3D cut out sign

What VALUE does your sign add to your business?

If your sign is a MAJOR tool in getting feet into your store (it is!) and thus placing you in the position to SELL to your prospects, what is your sign truly WORTH?

I ask this, not rhetorically, but because all too often we see businesses running on the lines of Best Value – choosing the cheapest supplier – which is great when comparing EXACTLY THE SAME PRODUCTS – but is extremely difficult and can be costly when one is comparing one SERVISE business (signage is a service business) to another.

Yes, when you, the sign buyer, are presented with an artist impression and a quote, you believe that what you are seeing from one service provider is the same as what you are seeing from the competitive service provider. Unfortunately this is SELDOM true. This is because of the nature of signage (meant in every positive way), the range of materials available, the nature (you can call it morals) of the signage company and the reality that even if all else was equal, because signage is as much – if not more – of an art than a science, and most signs are made by hand, every sign will most likely be made differently.

All this aside, even if all the sign company’s you assessed were using the same material, charging the same amount and doing the same job, what would or should YOUR chosen sign company be able to offer YOUR BUSINESS that goes beyond the sign you are looking for.

At SignForce (http://www.signforce.co.za) we have decades of experience in MARKETING and SIGNAGE.

At SignForce we believe in supporting OUR CUSTOMERS, which is one of the reasons SignForce regularly posts pictures and comments of signs we have completed. This may not seem like anything special, we assume ALL sign businesses ‘self promote’ and the self promotion entails ‘SHOWCASING’ THEIR WORK. This is true, but how many sign businesses get more than 80,000 views of a single client’s sign.

If one considers that traditional media base their fees on the number of views one’s insert (advert, post) will receive, how does one measure the added value SignForce is offering our client’s?

If you are looking for signs that WORK, that get feet into your premises, that look good and are value for money, together with the added value of being promoted on the SignForce website, contact SignForce now on +27 (0)11 440 7525 or email info@signforce.co.za

You can find out more about SignForce by visiting http://www.signforce.co.za

Why SignForce!

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SignForce Pylon

Any Size pylon or billboard to suite YOUR needs

Why SignForce!

This ambiguous phrase could be a question just as well as an answer – as such, we will both ask and answer the question.

What makes SignForce unique?’

Obviously the people. No two people are alike, so the people make SignForce unique. However, that same argument is applicable to EVERY business. Not only businesses that design, manufacture and install signs.

SignForce’s USP – Unique Selling Proposition – is the experience we at SignForce strive to (and mostly achieve) create for our clients, as well as the fact that SignForce is a SOLUTIONS based SIGANGE business, meaning we seek solutions – whatever they may be – to your visual communication concerns, issues and questions.

SignForce has a fairly unique skill set in that we CAN and DO offer MARKETING advice, and we are fortunate hat said advice, while being largely logical, is also based on and backed by formal qualifications in the marketing and financial fields. It is for this reason that we firmly believe that ANY money spent on signs should be an INVESTMENT. If your sign does not bring in feet or catch people’s attention or achieve whatever it’s desired purpose is, then in our opinion, the expenditure on your sign is a failure.

Yes, we may offer some top left field  idea’s – but these tend to work. Talking to people much more experienced in international marketing than ourselves, it seems the more uncomfortable you feel when you see the proposed idea, the higher the probability that the sign will be noticed – and achieve it’s objective.

Part of SignForce striving to create a positive EXPERIENCE when dealing with us is to provide FAIRLY priced, intelligently made, value for money signs.

Part of creating value for money means that we need to stay ahead of our competitors when it comes to being informed about new materials on the market, and figuring out if and how the new products – or sometimes old products – can be repurposed to give our clients the best possible value.

Call SignForce today to see how we can help you get your name and message out there – our all time favorite activity, as when our client’s expand, it helps SignForce expand. We are definitely long term thinkers, in it for the long game.

Call SignForce today on +27 (0)11 440 7525 or email us on info@signforce.co.za

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

Anyone Can Make a Sign!

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Illuminated Signs

Internally Illuminated Sign

Like us, I am sure many of our competitors have heard client’s make the comment that ANYONE CAN MAKE A SIGN. In fact SignForce have seen it more than once where what we would view as prospective clients call us in t get technical details so they can make their own signs.

While, at some level, it is true that almost anyone – literally anyone – can make a sign – yes, even the drawing your two year old draws using wax crayons can be considered a sign – in order to make a TECHNICAL signs that WORK – with work being defined as a sign that achieves it’s objective or objectives – may take a little more practice, experience and expertise.

As with all spectator sports, it always looks very easy to get it 100% right 100% of the time. That is the beauty of being a spectator. When, for example,  one faces the likes of Ivan Lendl on a tennis court – yes been there at Flushing Meadows – I can assure you the reality is WAY MORE SCARY!

Because things are not always as they seem in real life – and we certainly don’t know what we don’t know – if you are looking for a sign that makes your business STAND OUT, that will WORK and that is COMPETITIVELY PRICED, SignForce is the team to talk to.

With MANY years experience in SIGNAGE and general MARKETING, SignForce can offer you unique input on what sign should work best for your business and your environment, a skill and benefit to you that differentiates SignForce from many of our competitors.

Contact SignForce not on +27 (0)11 440 7525 or info@signforce.co.za.

You can also get more information on SignForce by visiting http://www.signforce.co.za

1 Classie Africa – 3D fabricated sign on backing board

Image

1 Classie Africa

Like many businesses affected by Covid and the subsequent lock down in South Africa, 1 Classie Africa has to have been severely affected, especially their solon’s.

The name 1 Classie Africa is very appropriate. Not only because their locations are spectacular, homely and welcoming, but also because of how welcome the staff – many on training – make all who enter feel. This businesses is impressive!

1 Classie Africa impressed me both for the way they operate AND their business model. Paying them a visit will give you so much more information than any story I can will.

If you are in Braamfontien or Joburg city center and want to get a hair do, nails sorted or simply pop in to see what I am referring to, 1 Classie Africa (http://www.1ca.co.za) is worth the stop.

In case you are wondering, this promotion is unsolicited. The only potential benefit to #SignForce is if 1 Classie Africa decide to allow SignForce to manufacture and install more signs for them.

The sign in the accompanying photo was manufactured and installed by #SignForce.

For classy signs that help promote your business and get feet through your door, contact SignForce on info@signforce.co.za or +27 (0)11 440 7525

SignForce – supporting SMALL BUSINESS and COMMUNITY!

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As SignForce is a small business, run along family nd community principles, while believing in community and in profits.

SignForce  need to make profits in order to support small businesses (we are fairly priced, but are not a charity), especially businesses in and around our community. The support SignForce can offer is especially relevant in theses tough, turbulent and uncertain times.

How we at SignForce support our community businesses is by offering small and start up (new)  businesses professional signs with exceptional advice and payment options that can assist them with their cashflow – generally by allowing the business to pay a deposit and then allowing the signs to be paid off, generally over a couple of months.

If you are a new or small or struggling business who believes that SIGNAGE will help improve your business, but you are concerned about the cost, you SHOULD be contacting SignForce NOW!!!

Contact SignForce now on +27(0)11 440 7525 or email arnold@signforce.co.za and mention SMALL BUSINESS SUPPORT in your subject line.

 

Can SignForce illuminated signs aid area security?

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SignForce illuminated signs and possible area security

Having just watched an episode of #ReturningTheFavor on FaceBook I was reminded of how crime often feels like a universal issue. In the town of Engelwood in the USA more than 2,000 shootings were reported in 2018.

Now SignForce South Africa is far from Engelwood, (in fact our main office is in Johannesburg, South Africa), many of thousands of kilometers away. That said, there are similar issues occurring in pockets around South Africa, some being so bad, especially around Cape Town, that the army has been called in to maintain some semblance of security.

The issue of crime and some of it’s causes (amongst them being political nonsense, lack of jobs and the lack of well illuminated area’s) got me thinking about how #signs, and specifically signs manufactured by SignForce, assist more than the business that has paid for the sign, but also the surrounding community by illuminating often very dark area’s.

At SignForce we generally follow the rule that MORE IS BETTER, so more light is better!, as it lights up the sign, making the message BRIGHT, LOUD and CLEAR, while at the same time providing ambient light (and it’s accompanying security) to the immediate area.

If you are interested in attracting more attention to your business, and at the same time helping you community by bringing some light to any dark area’s, we at SignForce are here to assist, so feel free to contact us on +27 (0)11 440 7525 or email us at info@signforce.co.za

Are all Sign Manufacturers the same?

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Are all #sign #manufacturers the same or is there a difference between one sign manufacturer and another?

As with all businesses, every sign business needs to maximize profits in order to survive.

Unlike many businesses, and because signs are custom made, and because materials differ, it sometimes happens that ‘cheaper’ short cuts are available. Short cuts can include using different – read as cheaper – (materials which generally have a shorter life span), or manufacturing techniques that are time saving, (but often at the trade off of longevity of the sign).

An example is a sign we recently inspected where the returns (the sides or part of the sign or letter that creates depth) of the letters had ‘popped’ so that the curves (around the O and a) had returned to their natural state and became straight. This means that over time the face of the 3D letter will fall off, which is what is happening with this sign.

Generally the returns of fabricated, #3D letters are heated and bent. They are then ‘chemically welded’ so that they retain the new shape. Saving time by not heating the returns can save money and get the job done faster. Using less chemicals may also result in some, almost insignificant, cost savings. Both will almost certainly also substantially reduce the life expectancy of the #3D sign.

While making the cheap initial purchase could possibly still be a worthwhile purchase, the adage ‘let the buyer beware’ is certainly worth remembering as in the long run (over five to ten years) the cost to replace broken or lost letters tends to be significantly higher than the cost to have it done properly up front. And that cost excludes the potential for negative press if, for example, an element of a sign breaks and hits someone or something.

For a quote on quality #3D signs by an experienced sign company that guarantee our work, contact SignForce at info@signforce.co.za or +(27) (0)11 440-7524 or  +(27) (0)11 440-7525