Manager's To Do

Bill Now to Get 2023 Payments, Announce Year-End Closures and Other November To-Do Items

OCT. 29-NOV. 4

PLANNING November is when So Easy Signs (Middletown, OH) starts to prioritize and strategize growth goals for 2024, according to Joe Allen. Then they create the playbook to reach those goals.

FINANCIALS Now is the time for any billing to hope to get paid for by EOY, suggests Keith Davis, KRD Design (Chester Springs, PA).

NOV. 8-11

MARKETING Implementing more direct-to-trade advertising, especially on the installation service side, is on the list for Michael Van der Melen, The Media Works (Norwood, ON, Canada). Similarly, a “service campaign” is forthcoming for Earl Charles, Branded Sign Solutions (Helena, MT)

NOV. 12-18

CUSTOMERS Signs by Autografix (Branford, CT) closes annually between Christmas and New Years. In mid-November owner John Miller sends a letter to all active clients reminding them of the closure and to place year-end orders. “There always seems to be a jump in orders after the letter goes out,” he says.

NOV. 19-25

SOFTWARE Brett Jeltema, Fresh Coast Signs and Graphics (Spring Lake, MI), intends to get his company’s CRM working properly, while getting Sign Tracker is a priority for Jennifer Jackson, Wrico Signs (Mobile, AL).

WEB/SOCIAL Uploading completed production photos, organized by product type, to social media makes this month’s list for Jonathan Elam, Creative Sign Solutions Inc. (Statesville, NC). Meanwhile, for Carl Heinlein, Cincinnati Custom Signs (Cincinnati), it’s all about “working on my SEO.”

NOV. 26-DEC. 2

EMPLOYEES Restructure and train the inside staff on how to answer phones and prep jobs are tasks for Adam Montoya, Image 360 South Bay-Manhattan Beach (El Segundo, CA), and across the continent, Rick Ream, Media 1/Wrap This (Sanford, FL) aims to update job descriptions for every position and communicate them to all employees.

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Monthly Project

Kickin’ Ass, Takin’ Names … and Emails

Email marketing is an efficient way to ensure your businesses can reach customers, grow your base and build your reputation. Plus, it’s affordable. Here’s how to build your email database:

  1. Use opt-in forms. Place a “Subscribe for Updates” field prominently on your home-page and most popular interior pages.
  2. Use pop-up or modal windows. These can be triggered for first-time visitors or when they complete a specific action like reading a blog, exceeding a minimum browse time or accessing a particular part of the site.
  3. Use live chat or chatbot. These not only help you engage with visitors who might be having a hard time finding information, but you can ask them to input their email address before starting the chat, or create an opt-in call-to-action at the end of the
    interaction.
  4. Use exit intent. If a user has spent a significant amount of time on your site without converting, when they move to close the window, trigger a pop-up or modal asking if they’d like to sign up for exclusive content or future updates to help them find what they were looking for.
  5. Create an email splash page. An opt-in form that appears at the start of the user’s first visit to a website, this allows your users to sign up for promotional emails from the start.
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Signs of the Times Staff

Signs of the Times has been the world leader in sign information since 1906. Contact Signs of the Times' editors at editor@signsofthetimes.com.

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