Recession Opportunities

Recession is a great opportunity to make some serious money!

What?! you say. How can you talk about making money during a recession? Easy, people still need to live and eat so they must find work, and if they can’t find work then they must create their own job.

When a person has been out of work, one of the options is to create your own job. These folks can fill the gaps in the marketplace by providing products or services that companies have eliminated within their walls, but that still need to get the work done. In other words, be the outsourced vendor to those companies.

This blog will not answer all the whys and hows, but what it will do is answer how one of these newly Minnesota unemployed persons can attract customers with effective wall or pylon signs.

Wall signs on your Coon Rapids store front

The first thing that a business must do in order to sell products is to let the public know that they are selling something. One great way is to advertise to the people most likely to buy with a wall sign on your store front. You know who they are, they drive in front of your store everyday on their way to and from work.

Lit Signs Sell Stuff

A recent business put up a wall sign in front of their retail location. This location had 3 other competing businesses of the same type on the same intersection. Because their sign is bold, clear and easily defines what they sell, this business has hit the ground running and is well on their way to profitability so much quicker than their competitors.

Road signs in Coon Rapids

A road sign just adds to your businesses traffic and opportunity to make money. Let’s face it, if your business doesn’t get noticed, it will fail. Business sell stuff. They need to attract attention. The cheapest form of advertising is a sign of lit channel letters or a sign by the road that will advertise 24hrs per day 7 days a week.

what are you waiting for?

The sign guy lives and works in Ramsey, MN. A Family Trade Since 1915

Checkers and their new wall signs

Brooklyn Center, MN has a new restaurant, Checkers

I used to go to the Checkers down in Florida, I love Checkers hamburgers. They make great hamburgers. If you were like me, you only found out about them and tried them because of their street signs and wall signs.

Checkers has a great outdoor sign image. They tag everything. Directional drive thru signs, pylon signs and wall signs. They even do border neon (now LED) on many of their locations. Checkers is a very noticeable restaurant chain.

Do your customers notice your exterior signs?

According to a survey done by a national restaurant, they found that about 40% of destination drivers buy from the competition because they saw their exterior signs. That means, people going to a particular restaurant stopped elsewhere purely because of signage. That chain immediately upgraded their exterior signs.

If a national chain recognizes the need for maximizing their exterior signs, wouldn’t it have a similar effect on your Minnesota business?

There are other places to put your name so that folks driving by will notice your business.

What are you waiting for??

The sign guy is a 4th generation sign guy living and working in Ramsey, MN

Arrow Signs

Today I would like to demonstrate how your sign is like an Arrow for your business. Whether your in a high traffic area like Minneapolis, or in a suburban area like Ham Lake, MN your wall sign or pylon sign helps clients find you faster.

When you find a location and it’s near traffic, your channel letters will become an Arrow sign directing folks into your store. You don’t literally need any arrow signs, but if the message is clearly seen, clearly understood then your potential clients will drive right in.

Ham Lake, Coon Rapids and Ramsey, Minnesota

More urgently, when you are in a suburban area such as those listed, where the retail shops tend to be set back farther from the roadway, it becomes imperative that your business sign directs folks right in. For many businesses their arrow signs suck! Why? Because they decide to invest very little in the size and quality of their sign. They then must spend many thousands of more dollars advertising in other ways. They have no arrow sign at all, but rather a brick wall.

Road signs & channel letters work best

Signs mounted to your business wall or a sign by the road is one of the least expensive forms of advertising. These signs direct your potential clients that are already driving past your store right in to buy from you.

so, what are you waiting for?

this sign guy lives and works in Ramsey, mn and is the owner of Signs by rsg. 763-753-7571

Retail space in Minnesota

This blog is about signs and your talking retail space in MN?

It actually makes sense. My primary client is looking for retail space in the twin cities and surrounding suburbs. Since I have been making signs for so many years, I have come to know many of the commercial property managers in the area.

Minnesota signs, channel letters and Landlords

When looking at property one needs to consider the sign covenants prior to making your choice. After you have found a place with Location, accessibility and parking, then you should look at the signs. Some places require very specific channel letters that may break your budget.

Channel letters are very effective signs, but if you have not planned for it in your budget, you may get some sticker shock. One thing you can do as your looking at property is to notice the type of wall sign all the other tenants have. Chances are, you will have to have the very same type of signage.

Property managers want you to be successful and have planned for the location, accessibility and parking. They have also looked at what signs will look like on their buildings. Many have chosen to have conforming signs to keep the intact the attractiveness of the building.

I work with retail property owners and work with tenants to find the most efficient and cost effective wall signs that will still conform with the landlord covenants.

Good signing

This sign guy is the owner of Signs by rsg located in Ramsey, MN 763.753.7571

Cheap channel letters

I need channel letters cheap

Yes you do, but do you need inexpensive signs or a cheap sign? I think your looking for inexpensive, not cheap. If you have been around at all your know that asking for cheap channel letters may not get you what you are asking for.

Cheap channel letters, cheap pylon signs in Minneapolis, mn

You don’t necessarily have to get a cheap quality sign just because the budget is tight. When you call a sign guy, he should be able to help you find the right wall sign or pole sign that fits your budget, but still helps your business.

A cheap expensive sign

Signs aren’t always expensive advertising. Unlike other forms of advertising that are very expensive and a flash in the pan, signs work 24hours a day, 7 days a week. Not many businesses will spend $18, 000 on a new sign, but they will spend that in a year using the yellow pages and not realize the profits as they would from their pole sign. Then, the advertising is gone, but the pole sign or channel letters will remain, and you will likely spend much less than that!

Visibility, Accessability & parking. These are the 3 important items when selecting your retail location. If you have the visibility, use it.

I have cheap channel letters, or should I say, inexpensive. Just ask

good signing

this sign guy is a 4th generation sign guy working in Ramsey, MN

Signs of a recession

I thought it would be helpful to show you some signs from the big recession.

I show you these photos because even during a depression, folks understood the need for signs. Wall signs, pole signs and mostly hand painted signs. Signs work for your business yesterday, today and well into tomorrow.

Are you feeling the economic pinch? What is our choice, get clients or close the business? I choose more clients, let my competition close.

signed -

The sign guy is a 4th generation sign manufacturer in Ramsey,  Minnesota.

Promotional products work.

How do you make promotional products work?

Many folks buy some pens or cups and hope that these corporate gifts give them an increase in sales. The idea is when you give a guy a gift with your name on it, he will keep it and then buy from you again. This does work, but is there a way to get more sales from new customers?

Yes! You can use promo products to gain new clients but, it requires you to think a bit differently about how to use them. Normally you will buy a large quantity of items like pens and cups to get a better per piece price. Then it takes you 2 years to get rid of them to your clients. Try it this way. Think of the people that are in a compatible business as your own and that come into contact with your client before you do. Then, own their desk with different useful items that you give to them throughout the year.

For example; auto glass companies will give insurance agents note pads, pens, mouse pads, cups and other items he can use on his desk. These items add up over time and when the insurance agent has a client that needs glass, then guess what? That auto glass guy gets referred. Bada bing, New business.

Just because a guy doesn’t work in an office doesn’t mean you can’t own his desk. You can find items for construction workers, car offices and many other “desks”.

now, go sell something

The sign guy is the owner of signs by rsg and is a 4th generation sign maker.

When I have more money

When your Minnesota business has more money…..

Then you’re going to buy a sign.

Am I the only one that sees trouble with this statement? If you are opening a business and are waiting to get more customers before you begin to advertise or market, then how do you expect to get more customers?

I have mentioned before and will say again. If you want to see an increase in traffic into your store, whether in Coon Rapids, Minneapolis or anywhere in the Twin cities or the world, the potential clients driving right past your door have to know you’re there. A wall sign or pylon sign is the single best and cost effective way to see an immediate return on your investment.

Entering business is a perilous event. Scary too. To limit how dangerous and to lower the fear, you need more customers. The main reason businesses fail is due to the fact that they don’t attract enough customers. This applies to the new business and the old one. As an older business, one way to see an increase in traffic is to upgrade or update your exterior signs. Perhaps add some neon to the windows. Maybe your can get a new logo and put up a new set of channel letters.

Think about this. If you have to spend thousands of dollars every month to reach your clients, try diverting that money into a unique sign package and start raking in the bucks!!

now get back to work

The sign guy is the owner of Signs by RSG located in Ramsey, Minnesota and is  a 2nd generation sign guy.

Selling or visiting?

Are you selling something, or are you an amature visitor?

So many times I meet someone in my field as a sign maker that doesn’t know what they are selling. More directly, they know what they are selling, but I don’t know how it relates to me. Why spend so much time telling me about your business, tell me how I will be richer, brighter or more beautiful.

WIIFM, or will this sign make me money?

In selling wall signs, I don’t explain what a wall sign is, I explain how much money is going to be brought in because of a well designed set of channel letters, or banner, message center, or vehicle graphics.

Sell what they want to buy!

My customers don’t ever want to buy a wall sign or pylon sign. What they want is a solution to their problem of no money.  I sell them a solution to the problem. “This electronic message center will increase your sales by 10-25% daily.”

I met a guy today who didn’t want a channel letter sign. He wanted more customers. Guess what? I can help with that.. Buy this set of channel letters, and the customers in your Minneapolis location will start pouring in.

go sell something

The sign guy is a 4th generation sign maker and sales professional. You can reach him at Signs by rsg, 763-753-7571

Marketing for profit

What is marketing? Is it the yellow pages, not really. Yellow pages are advertising, and so are wall signs, pylon signs or any type of sign or ad.

Marketing is getting the right message to the right people through the right media.

We learn marketing from the people who sell advertising. You know it is true. Their job is to find out how much you spend on advertising and then get it.

Do you want to make money with your marketing? Then you must figure out how to get the right message to the right people through the right media. Otherwise, we are not ‘marketing’. We are ‘blowing money’ on ‘hit and miss’
advertising—which is exactly what 99% of ALL small businesses do!!!

One way is through a well planned sign plan. Either wall signs or pylon signs on your property.

Proper marketing is the only part of your business that creates income for your business. No customers, no work, no money. The more that customers know about you, the more work, the more money. It is that simple.

The hard part is figuring out what method works. Yellow pages? TV? Newspapers? Signs?

All are important parts of the marketing plan. If you have a building with a road in front of it, remember, the best way to get a client to come into your store is when they are right in front of it.

If you need clients from different parts of the Twin cities, then gear your marketing to those media that will reach them.

I like to test and measure before committing large sums of money on advertising. The other thing I like to do is to market in a variety of ways. I go to networking groups, community groups, vehicle lettering, road signs as well as other print media. My thinking is if you have customers coming in from multiple sources, then you won’t have any problems if one of them stops working.

I also like the web. I am beginning to think that this internet thing is not going away.

good signing

The Sign Guy is the owner of Signs by RSG located in Ramsey, Mn. He and his brother (The sign dude) are 4th generation sign makers and can be reached at 763.753.7571