Sign Installer Do’s and Don’ts

ABOVE PHOTO: An installer from Atchley Graphics (Columbus, OH) smoothing out part of a wall graphic.

THE MOST PROFITABLE sale of the month. The coolest design from the past six months. The toughest sign to fabricate all year, one for which, as James Cota, JC Signs & Graphics in Clear Lake, MN, says, “[you] keep in mind how the sign will be installed and easily accessed for service while [you] are fabricating.” Ultimately, these and all signs are entrusted to installers to finish the job.

Our Brain Squad has some pretty strong feelings about what sign installers should do and shouldn’t do when carrying out that responsibility. “Know your installers and their capabilities,” says Cindy Gillihan from Gilly’s Super Signs in Placerville, CA. Good advice to get us started.

Stein Sign Display (Watertown, SD) installers using a bucket truck to reach atop a pole sign.

DO: On-time pickup, clear and concise communication.
DON’T: Fail to take responsibility for mistakes. — Zach Gehring, Grasshopper Wholesale Signs, Farmington Hills, MI

DO: Check in with customer upon arrival. Survey the scene for the best route of access and hold a brief safety/planning meeting with all crew members to lay out the roadmap of the installation to ensure all parties are on the same page.
DON’T: Badmouth anything about the signage or others. Don’t use vulgar language, wear inappropriate attire or use unsafe practices — no “look what I can do.” And if there are any issues with the sign that the client mentions, direct them to the sales rep. — Shaun Ensign, Legacy Sign Group, Westville, IN

DO: Ask questions, treat the client with respect, act professional and take pride in your work.
DON’T: Argue with the client or leave a mess behind. — Jamie Potvin, Metro Sign & Awning, Tewksbury, MA

No standing around while out on installs. Be productive while on the client’s premises at all times. — Dennis Schaub, FastTrack Signs (Bellefontaine, OH).

Training & Maintenance

All our installers are staff positions. They are also all trained and industry certified in their specific areas of focus to better serve the needs of our clients. We definitely believe in professionalism and a great attitude for starters. Skill and knowledge only go so far. The client has to trust the installer and get the feeling that they are professionals and the client’s brand will be treated as such.

Maintaining our service vehicles and all equipment are also definite “do’s.” Some of our “don’ts” are the obvious ones, including not wearing shabby clothing or anything that doesn’t best exemplify our company brand and professionalism. We also don’t want our installers to show up unprepared for any given install and, as such, we ask that all projects for install are additionally QC’d by the installers. — Derek Atchley, Atchley Graphics, Columbus, OH

DO: Communicate; don’t just assume. Do send completion photos immediately; don’t wait until you send the invoice. Do send the invoice immediately; don’t sit on it until month’s end. Do call out anything that doesn’t match what was discussed; don’t just assume everything we say is right. — Jonathon Yasko, North American Signs, South Bend, IN

DO: Treat this job like it is yours, your sign, your money paying for it. Fasten everything securely in the event of inclement weather.
DON’T: Do a half-ass job in securing the sign. — Yvette Bryars, Sign Designs Now, Kingwood, TX

DO: Be very careful about not damaging or scratching signs. Make sure it is done right the first time so we don’t have to go back.
DON’T: Be in a hurry. — Cody McElroy, Commercial Signs, Houma, LA

DO: Read the order before leaving the shop and do a site survey of their own before the scheduled install.
DON’T: Assume anything! — Chad Lawson, Sign Pro of Skagit Valley, Mt. Vernon, WA

DO: Take notes and get photos if nothing else.
DON’T: Steal my client. — Bobby Jordan, Fastsigns of White Marsh-Joppa, Joppa, MD

DO: Walk through the completion with the customers and thank them for their business. — Rick Ferraro, Spectrum Sign Systems, Blaine, MN

DON’T: Use a level to install a wall sign.
DO: Use measurements off the building. — Bill Ryan, Ryan-Markland Signs Inc., Inverness, FL

DO: Have clean hands. Level and then eyeball. — Jeremy Vanderkraats, Signs by Van, Salinas, CA

DO: Leave the location clean and keep a professional posture. — Marco Milliotti, Image360 South Orlando, Orlando, FL

DON’T: Force me to go fix issues the client calls concerned about. I don’t want to spend a lot of time fixing issues the installers should not have left. — Michael Crowder, Crowder Signs, Gainesville, GA

A team talk before installation gets underway for this crew from Legacy Sign Group (Westville, IN).

Know Your Safety Features

One of our most seasoned journeymen was out of town with an apprentice in our newly purchased Altec LS63 doing an LED retrofit at a mall about two hours away from our shop. Where they had to set up the truck, one of the outriggers had to be placed in a landscaped area that had recently had new beauty bark placed. As they boomed out to reach the sign, the bark compacted and a safety feature caused the controls to lock out, making them unable to retract back down.

The closest people from our company were two hours away, so we called the mall security from the office and they went out to try and assist. Unfortunately, being with a brand-new truck our guys were unable to explain how to override the controls from up in the basket. They ended up having to call the fire department to bring out a fire truck with a ladder to get them down. It took our crew just a few minutes to identify the problem and correct it, but the memes from co-workers had already started pouring in. The safety features in new trucks are good, but being rescued by the fire department in front of a mall was quite the embarrassment for our guys. — Jim Sutterfield, Signs Plus Inc., Bellingham, WA

DO: Be honest about scheduling. — Raychel O’Donoghue, Lexington Signs & Graphics, Burlington, MA
DO: Quality work with the installation. — Donnie Mullinix, Mullinix Signs, Delta, AL

DON’T: Make on-site decisions without talking to others. — Steven Carpenter, Archetype, Bloomington, MN

DO: Safety. — Diane Ahern, Adams Ahern Sign Solu-tions, West Hartford, CT

DO: Be courteous to the client and anyone else who approaches. Referrals are key. Installers are sales people in many instances. — Lynne Holton, oDesign, Green Bay, WI

Do be organized with install schedules, as I am. — Kelly Bookheimer, The Mad Signtist (Myrtle Beach, SC).

Preparations, Instructions & Communication

• Have a plan A, B and C with all the tools and hardware in the truck. — Carl Heinlein, Cincinnati Custom Signs, Cincinnati
• Make a list and check it twice! Forgetting hardware, tools and install pieces is a huge waste of time and is frustrating for everyone. — Kelley Campbell, Specialty Graphic Solutions, Vancouver, WA
• Be certain there’s a safety perimeter around the install area. — Jeffrey Chudoff, Fastsigns of Maple Shade, Maple Shade, NJ
• Make sure they know exactly how to and where to install. — John Little, LittlesLogos, Winston-Salem, NC
• Follow specific instructions. If there is a question on anything, call the shop to clarify. — John Miller, Signs by Autografix, Branford, CT
• Show up when you tell me that you will. Keep me informed on your progress. Tell me bad news quicker than you tell me good news. — Ted Neelands, DBM Signage & Branding, Chattanooga, TN
• Communicate with the customer while on site. — Rick Ream, Media 1 Wrap This, Sanford, FL
• If there is a problem with the final product and the customer has questions, direct them to the office and do not “wing it” on site. — Geoff Orlick, Quality deSigns Ltd, Campbell River, BC, Canada

L-R: Don’t. Don’t. Don’t. Do. — Carl Heinlein, Cincinnati Custom Signs (Cincinnati).

Site Survey Importance

As a national sign company, we rely heavily on our skilled network of installers. Those who truly stand out to our project management team are the ones who go the extra mile, providing exceptional site-survey photos and accurate measurements. This attention to detail ensures that when it’s time to install the sign, the process runs smoothly without any issues. The site survey phase is a crucial step for all parties involved, helping to guarantee a successful installation. — Torey Rouillon, National Branding, Troy, MI

Night work performed by an installer for Fastsigns Toledo and Maumee (Toledo, OH).

Interacting with Clients & Others

• Maintain a professional appearance and manner. Leave install sites cleaner than you found them. If there is a McDonalds bag in the bushes, pick it up. The client may assume the install crew left it there or they may see the installer picking it up and be really impressed. — Thomas Nance, Signarama Downtown, Louisville, KY
• A great relationship with the site super will eliminate return trips and advantage smooth permit closes. — Greg Gimbert, Southeastern Lighting Solutions, Daytona Beach, FL
• Greet the client (when applicable). Clean signs/area to make them picture perfect. Confirm the client is happy with the job. — Karrie Brock, Fastsigns of Toledo, Toledo, OH
• Respect the property and customer’s investment. — Myke Baugh, Roughrider Signs & Designs, Jamestown, ND
• Friendliness is key! Installers are the face of your business. If they are not approachable and friendly, the relationship will not last. — Melvin La Pan, Fastsigns of Augusta, Augusta, GA
• Keep a positive attitude towards the company and the product. “It’s our reputation.” — Earl Charles, Branded Sign Solutions, Helena, MT
• Have fun! You get to be part of a special memory when a first-time business owner gets to see their sign installed for the first time. — Stuart Stein, Stein Sign Display, Watertown, SD

Photographic Record

We always have our guys walk in and introduce themselves first thing. We make sure to send them out with a color rendering showing the customer the work we are installing, as well as give them a very brief overview of what we plan to accomplish. If power might be disrupted during the install, we take special precautions to let the customer know before any work begins on that portion of the install.

One last thing I always have our installers do is photograph the site before they do anything, then take another set of photos after they have installed and are about to roll back towards the shop. A good stream of photo evidence goes a long way towards any issues that might arise. We also use the completed photos for our customer database that includes everything about the sign we installed from power serial numbers to paint colors, etc. — Todd Sallas, Coastal Signs & Graphics, Slocomb, AL

PHOTO GALLERY (23 IMAGES)