Kurt Tyack, director at Signarama Southern Africa, writes that in his more than 20 years in the signage industry, he has visited more than 100 sign businesses across 11 countries. He has been fortunate to interact with and learn from some of the brightest minds in the game.
Watching the industry evolve over this time is one of the things I enjoy most about it. The amount of thought and planning that goes into what may look like a simple finished product is often underestimated by those outside of the industry. Installing a set of 2-metre-tall, fabricated, and illuminated letters on the side of a building, twenty floors up, is no mean feat.
Despite these and other challenges our industry faces, there are certain things that the most successful sign companies and their owners that I have visited have in common. Whether it’s a small one or two-person operation or a massive R250 million a year behemoth with more than 100 employees, there are five things that separate a good sign business from a great sign business:
Great Sign Businesses Have A Plan
The best sign business owners that I have met have a plan or vision for their business. In an industry where there are new challenges thrown up daily, sign business owners are often too busy putting out fires to sit down and do any structured planning. The best planners base their planning on the lifestyle they wish to enjoy and their financial goals, and they plan their activity and direct their energy around that.
Great Sign Businesses Focus On Sales
In all of the most successful sign businesses I have visited, there is a concerted effort to focus on sales. This may sound counterintuitive in an industry that is generally classified as manufacturing. Great sign businesses have dedicated sales teams and targets, and this avoids the cycle of working job-to-job. A targeted sales effort drives growth and generally allows the business owner to focus less on having to do all the sales themselves and more on working on other aspects of the business.
Great Sign Businesses Embrace Change
The best sign businesses out there are always on the lookout for new technologies and processes to ensure that they are early adopters and can continue to service their customers professionally and efficiently. This can be in the form of new equipment or even software to manage their business and communicate with customers. As we move deeper into a digital world, the need to embrace change will increase.
Great Sign Businesses Invest In People
The most successful sign business owners build a team comprising the best people in the business. They spend time understanding what challenges their staff and work to build solutions to those problems — they lead by example. Great sign business owners foster a culture of excellence and go the extra mile. They encourage their staff to learn and grow and are prolific readers of business books. Many sign businesses try to ‘save’ money by employing people at a low cost. The employees are then left to ‘get on with the job’ with little to no encouragement or training. This is a recipe for frustration on the employee’s and owner’s part. The most successful sign business owners I have met are also relentless networkers.
Great Sign Businesses Build Systems And Processes
The most successful sign businesses I have engaged with make use of systems and processes to ensure that there is a flow and that everyone is aware of what needs to be done next. This also helps to identify and avoid bottlenecks. Staff are educated as to what these processes are, and these systems are continuously evolving and improving. Once again, the use of business management software is a big driver in the most efficient, profitable sign businesses I have encountered.
Almost without exception, the best sign businesses adopt some, if not all, of the behaviours above. Your sign business is yours to shape and grow, and hopefully by applying some of these behaviours, you can enjoy the benefits.
SIGNARAMA
https://www.signfranchise.co.za/
