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what is this business coming to

B

blueben

New Member
So.
I pull up to a job this morning and there is a guy putting up a door sign. He has a extension cord running up to him and on a little table next to him is a cricut.
A fricken cricut! What the hell is this business coming to! Seriously.
I asked him if the shop he was doing was his and it wasnt. He said he was the new sign company in town and he was glad to meet the competition he was going to put out of business. It took every fiber in my body to make me not laugh at him. :ROFLMAO:
 
OldPaint

OldPaint

New Member
now you know how us old brush sign painters...............saw people like you!!!!hehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehe
 
royster13

royster13

New Member
If you want a chuckle you can read the Cricut forum and see all kinds of folks that think they are going to set the world on fire with their 200.00 start your own business kits.....
 
Craig Sjoquist

Craig Sjoquist

New Member
Agrees with OP gees when 1985 hit and for the next several years would here how sign Painters was the worst thing in the world etc.

Cricut has screen printer also next the printer

But already print shops have slit the own throats with printing as low as $2 a sq

Funny thing the experienced business people are dropping print signage and going back to simple signage and hand painted quaility
 
J

Just Another Sign Guy

New Member
this is the tip of the iceburg. I have commented before about the products I hav seen in various R&D depts. Targeted to the end user. And The amazing next generations of various sign making equip. In my prediction the sign industry is in for some of the biggest changes we ve ever seen.

those who will prosper imo are those who have focused on the business end of their businesses. It is going to b a very hard environment for a majority of ppl in this trade who traditionally are afraid to invest in technology that will alow them to compete..it will be near impossible with antiquated equipment..when it takes you the better part of a work day to complete a sign your competitor can complete in less than an hour. Many have seen the writing on the wall & are either reinventing their business, investing to take advantage of certain area right now that are highly profitable because many haven't fully comprehended the advantages currently available to them over their competition which can allow them to dominate a market...and a tremendous amount are making escape plans. You can bury your head in the sand or you can start planning...either way big changes are coming..and many are going to discover that it is going to b harder than ever to not only compete but to profit and prosper.
 
James Burke

James Burke

Being a grandpa is more fun than working
Go to Wal Mart and look how he's getting raped on supplies for that "toy"...

When the cheap vinyl falls off his customer's window, drop off a business card and show them how it's really done.
 
G

GypsyGraphics

New Member
A month or so ago, Cricut was doing one of those Roadshow Demos at Costco. Maybe this guy walked in for a 50 gallon drum of mayo and walked out with a new business.
 
yukon

yukon

New Member
I had to google Cricut to find out what it was... Is this machine supposed to replace the tens of thousands I have invested in plotters and printers?

What A JOKE

Yukon
 
P

petrosgraphics

New Member
old paint,
been in this bussiness for 35 years, still use the brushes.... someone still

has to letter the carved signs we produce..... some people still want hand painted signs..

change is good, in any bussiness, you must always be able to adapt......

there are still plenty of hamburger joints around even after all the McDs, Burger Kings,

Etc. Etc......... 1 small example........
 
Deaton Design

Deaton Design

New Member
Ive had several people make that same bold statement. That they were going to put me out of business, cause they had just bought a vinyl cutter and software and could now do anything I do. That attitude in itself is what defeats them. Signmaking doesnt come in a box. There has to be some skill in there somewhere that will make your or break you.
People have made alot of money selling those gymdog plotters for 200 bucks, but in alot of cases, its like giving an airplane to a monkey. Theres no way it will fly...
 
1

1leonchen

New Member
DanStriker said:
this is the tip of the iceburg. I have commented before about the products I hav seen in various R&D depts. Targeted to the end user. And The amazing next generations of various sign making equip. In my prediction the sign industry is in for some of the biggest changes we ve ever seen.

those who will prosper imo are those who have focused on the business end of their businesses. It is going to b a very hard environment for a majority of ppl in this trade who traditionally are afraid to invest in technology that will alow them to compete..it will be near impossible with antiquated equipment..when it takes you the better part of a work day to complete a sign your competitor can complete in less than an hour. Many have seen the writing on the wall & are either reinventing their business, investing to take advantage of certain area right now that are highly profitable because many haven't fully comprehended the advantages currently available to them over their competition which can allow them to dominate a market...and a tremendous amount are making escape plans. You can bury your head in the sand or you can start planning...either way big changes are coming..and many are going to discover that it is going to b harder than ever to not only compete but to profit and prosper.
Click to expand...

excellent comment diversity is good. if u can keep your customers at one shop then u can have a successful business.for example t shirts i always ordered them from some one i know. he went on vacation and i need a rush order for three weeks time he was going to be away for two and a half weeks so he told me what equipment to buy and i tried it i screw up a few and still do but now i can do basic one and two color shirts i leave the cmyk and any thing over 75 to him. listen to your customer requests. and if i were u i would sell him vynil at 5 dollars a square foot and even cut it down with a exacto.
 
Dan Antonelli

Dan Antonelli

New Member
Dan has great advice above.

Smartest thing is to concern yourself on your own game plan, and execute it accordingly. Stop worrying so much what these others are doing unless you plan to play the same game.

In my opinion, the reasons for failure, or failing of most sign shops (and, to a degree every small business) can be summed up with the following observations:

1. Their own ego: Why does ego play a role? Because they refuse to acknowledge their own shortcomings, and proactively look to fix them (I can do everything myself, and no one knows better how to run my business and do things better than I do, cause I'm the boss)

2. Failure to plan accordingly: The writing's been on the wall for years; however a good economy left shops feeling invincible. It's easy to stay afloat in a great economy. The truly successful ones prosper in both. Complacency breeds failure.

3. Failure to market themselves properly, and distinguish themselves from 'competitors'.

4. Failure to reinvest in education, for themselves or staff.

5. Failure to invest back into the business with sound marketing strategies. One of the most ironic things to me is that most sign companies believe spending $5k on a properly designed, and well optimized web site is ridiculous; but think spending $40k on printing equipment is prudent. The irony is that you need to spend money to bring in the work to actually run those machines.

6. The Blame Game: It's everyone else's fault why my business is failing (cricut,
lowballers, etc) and it couldn't possibly be anything to do with me. (see #1).

No one wants to hear this, because it forces you to really think about how you are running your business. But I can guarantee you that one of your competitors are. That's the guy that's going to kick your butt, while you stand around wondering how it all happened. The only question is - what do you plan to do about it?
 
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