Monthly Archives: May 2024

Why Sign and Why SignForce

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Illuminated signs

Candice Berman shop front sign

Why Sign and Why SignForce

Many years ago this writer was taught to ask two questions of every client.

1. Why do you want a sign? And

2. What do you want your sign to achieve?

These may seem like stupid questions because everyone is supposed to know that a business without a sign is a sign of no business (well at least offline), but there are times when signs are not going to fulfil or achieve your desired outcome. This is one reason this writer has been heard telling prospective client’s he is a poor salesman, as I will tell you to NOT get signs if I do not believe they will achieve your desired outcome.

If you are looking for a sign to get feet through your door or to boost your visibility or to enhance your ego, SignForce is definitely available to assist.

Why SignForce?

SignForce has been in the signage industry for over two decades under it’s current management, with many years of marketing experience before getting into signage. What this interprets to is we at SignForce can assist you to ensure your money spent on signage is an investment that will both achieve your desired objective(s) AND where necessary, your signage will increase your turnover, and hence your bottom line profit.

This is where I also mention that SignForce is not the cheapest but we do give value for money. Unfortunately , while this is the truth, we have certainly noticed that prospective clients are more swayed by short term price than they are by the prospect of longevity or quality or the benefit of advice. It is also worth mentioning that the vast majority of SignForce’s work is for on-sellers.

So why use SignForce?

At SignForce we focus on you, our client.

We know we have the experience and expertise to make great signs, and what we don’t know, we are fortunate enough to be able to tap into our local and international resource’s to find out.

It is because of this confidence in our experience and our network that we strive to make your experience when looking for signs a painless, seamless one, where you can tick one item off your list because SignForce will project manage the signs for you, ensuring our quality exceeds your expectations and that you can take a back seat and relax knowing your signage issues are being handled in a professional manner, with constant communication and updates because we know that your signage is most likely a very low priority, even though it is a high ticket purchase.

Why not be like our existing clients and some of our competition and give SignForce a call and see how we can assist you

Call SignForce now on +27 (0)11 440 7525 or WhatsApp +27 (9)82 558 6413 or email info@signforce.co.za

Find our all about SignForce at http://www.signforce.co.za

PERSPECTIVE – or an alternate (South African) view on Competition

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Large Format print for www.artsolar.co.za

Safe installation of signs

PERSPECTIVE – or an alternate view on Competition

This was a very interesting week at SignForce

On Monday we assisted a competitor to install a sign they had manufactured. It was the first time I am aware of that we needed to use our block and tackle. The sign went up safely and our competitor and his client were all happy with the outcome.

On Wednesday we quoted a prospect. Part of the quote was to remove a number of signs from the building. A few were close to the ground, however many were more than three stories above the ground, and one was old, and from the brief inspection while on site, looks to be rusted through in more than one place. (I guess an article on the importance of maintaining signs for safety would be a good idea).

When followed up the prospect advised this writer that I must have lost my f@king mind because the amount was insane. He went on to explain that he could do the job for about 8% (1/12th) of the quoted amount. He went on to explain that he could hire some unemployed ‘casual’ labor off the street and provide them with the tools they need to remove the sign. I volunteered to provide a 51 foot ladder.

The difference between Monday’s client and Wednesday’s prospect may boil down to PERSPECTIVE.

The client on Monday appreciated SignForce’s experience, skills and understanding, and is willing to pay for the skills and experience.

The prospect on Wednesday may not have the understanding of the value of SignForce’s experience, and is certainly not prepared to pay for that experience.

That does not mean the prospect is incorrect. He may be able to get the job done safely at a much lower cost, and he will be responsible and accountable for the risk and any potential fallout that occurs.

One lesson of experience is being able to see the rust on the one sign – something which may be superficial, however, if it is not superficial – which is equally likely – the entire sign may fall apart when it is moved, which can become deadly very quickly. This writer has said multiple times, signage is an extremely simple industry, UNTIL IT IS NOT!

When a business complies and follows certain best practice norms, that compliance comes at a cost, which client’s should be prepared to pay for, as this ensures (or as close as possible) safety and successful completion of the job.

When a prospect is prepared to do the job himself and to say to hell with all safety norm, it is generally better to walk away, because if or when something goes wrong, that prospect will ,most likely be the first to throw the business under the nearest – and furthest – bus.

If you are in the market for signage – whether it is to manufacture, install, maintain or remove – SignForce is available to assist.

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 at http://www.signforce.co.za

Is there any value to Experience

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Is there any value to Experience (and if there is, how can one bill for your experience)?

Illuminated Signs

Custom, old fashioned, illuminated signs

 

Becoming a more seasoned member of the signage industry – one with slightly over 25 years personal experience – I have begun to notice that there are certain things I SEE that are not always visible to others.

This is not clairvoyance but I do believe it comes from experience.

A simple example that showed this point happened recently. SignForce were asked to assist with the installation of a later large (6 x 3 meter) sign. When we went to the site inspection we noticed that the plan that the contractor was looking at was great, but flawed. The sign needed to be carried through three doors, however the third door had restricted access, so only half the sign could go through the door, and then – nothing.

I am pleased our client was not a blind believer, so he tried his method and then called me to tell me he had tried and it had failed.

Experience – defined by Google as “1. the fact or state of having been affected by or gained knowledge through direct observation or participation. 2. a. : practical knowledge, skill, or practice derived from direct observation of or participation in events or in a particular activity. ‘ is generally gained from the university of hard knocks. The hard lessons that come with doing something more than once, and failing often.

Experience is earned and while it can be passed on – which can be called advice, and, as a friend’s father kept saying. Advice comes from experience. When you receive the advice you have two choices, take heed or roll it up and shove it wherever it fits.

The value of experience tends to come from the little things. For example. When making a sign, how does one calculate the weight of the sign and the size of the fixings – bolts, nail in anchors, whatever – that will be necessary to make the sign stay in place once it is fixed to the wall?

This writer has inspected a sign which looks phenomenal. It creates a great impression and I am sure the client will be super impressed. As long as the sign works as intended, everyone will be happy And that will be perfect in maybe 95% of cases. In the remaining 5% when something goes wrong – say in the case of a light box when all or some of the lights stop working (which will happen, but it may, and hopefully will, take some time), or if a weld breaks (which is possible but low probability if they are done properly). When the 5% happens someone is going to have to spend time or money or both to make the sign good. This is where it can get complicated.

In the case of the sign mentioned above, the face of the sign has been fixed directly t the frame of the sign. This is a great way to keep costs down, however, if the lights inside stop working, or anything else inside goes wrong, there is an extremely high probability that the face of the sign will need to be removed, which means replacing the sign face. This can be a very costly exercise. The industry standard is normally to have an internal frame to hold the face. This allows for ease of maintenance without any additional costly spend, because the [maintenance] cost has been absorbed into the initial capital expense of the sign.

The difficulty with making the sign resilient, is it adds costs to the up front build which many businesses in South Africa are reluctant to do. They would rather take their chances on spending less upfront and then pray that their spend lasts as long as the higher investment (on invisible safety and possibly redundant features) that may save them money in the future.

At SignForce we call this the cost of peace of mind – like having an insurance policy you hope to never have to use.

When you are looking for signs that work, contact SignForce. We are happy to share what we do and why we do it as we believe in creating signs that work, signs that last and lasting relationships.

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