What's your New Years Business Resolutions?

[john1]

Hey guys, The New Year is just around the corner and i was wondering what everyone's resolutions are as far as their sign business goes.

Mine are:

Stop extending hours for weekends to do work for people who rush jobs, More time with family is where it's at.

Join the local chamber of commerce

Connect better with my current and new customers by following up long after sales are made.


I'm excited to hear everyones!

 

[James Burke]

I vowed ten years ago to stop making New Year's resolutions...kinda funny, though. It's the only one I've been able to keep.

But on a more serious note, I'm looking to shed 40 pounds by June, learning Quickbooks, creating a life plan and fine-tuning the business plan.


JB

 

[mikey-Oh]

one drawing a day

 

[HulkSmash]

Mine are:


Never Join the chamber of commerce.
Make more money then last year.

in that order

 

[shakey0818]

#1 Charge more
#2 Work less
#3 Drink more beer
#4 Sleep with more women
#5 Repeat #1-4

Happy New Year!!!!!!

 

[weaselboogie]

I don't make resolutions, but lately I've been cleaning and organizing like a mofo.

I'm amazed at some of the crap that I kept and I've only been in my current shop for 5 years. I've thrown out a ton of junk and with a critical eye really question if I'm ever going to use a stray piece of substrate or hardware.

I've also been building storage cabinets and workbenches with storage because it just seems like everything is 'out' with no place to go. The upright storage cabinets are 6' tall, 4' wide and 2' deep. So far, I've built 2 of them ( neither finished yet ), both with fully extending 2'x4' drawers. Because you can get all the way to the back of the drawer, you can really pack these things and everything is easily accessible. I'll be able to condense an entire 20' wall of shelving into these 2 storage cabinets both with wheels. The horizontal workbenches for the woodshop will be similar.

 

[James Burke]

I've been cleaning and organizing like a mofo.

I'm amazed at some of the crap that I kept and I've only been in my current shop for 5 years. I've thrown out a ton of junk and with a critical eye really question if I'm ever going to use a stray piece of substrate or hardware.

Oh yeah, that reminds me. I've been in the "pitch and purge" mood for the last three months. All that junk is literally an energy drain for me.


JB

 

[Pat Whatley]

Starting Tuesday I become the highest priced shop in town like we used to be. A conversation and several forum threads by Dan Antonelli, combined with a little experimentation in the last month, made me realize that all of my disgust with this industry is because after I bought the shop I gradually became a full blown sign whore willing to do any piece of crap job that came in the door just for the quick cash. Starting Tuesday prices go up to allow me the time to do jobs right, and creative, and fun....instead of cheap and quick.

All of that leads to my goal of doing the kind of work that will get me in SignCraft.

Oh....and my other shop goal is to finally get the floor buffed and waxed.

 

[Mosh]

NO MORE PRINTING T-SHIRTS!!!! My brother, who was in charge of our shirt operation has gottem married and moved out of town. Since I have sold the diamond auto and two manual presses. I am still keeping the original M&R Blue Max machine I got in 1988 and the small Harco dryer....I don't know why but I can't let them go...they are like family I guess.

BTW, at the hight in 2007 we did over 30,000 printed shirts in a year. The name of that game is going out looking for the jobs, not something I want to do.

 

[weaselboogie]

Starting Tuesday I become the highest priced shop in town like we used to be. A conversation and several forum threads by Dan Antonelli, combined with a little experimentation in the last month, made me realize that all of my disgust with this industry is because after I bought the shop I gradually became a full blown sign whore willing to do any piece of crap job that came in the door just for the quick cash.

You need to elaborate on this....

 

[bob]

No fatuous resolutions, merely reinforcing and perhaps polishing my primary operating principle: Only deal with the rest of the external reality on my terms or not at all. Any accommodation, no matter how trivial, shown anything or anybody remains my choice and my choice alone, for whatever reason or no reason at all.

 

[Atomic DNA]

Get money (all) up front.

 

[visual800]

NEVER think about joining the chamber of commerce!

Gonna get 100% down on more jobs from POS customers.

I dont do rush jobs unless I have all materials IN HAND and it doesnt jack up my world, I'll continue that. RUSH JOBS ONLY CREATE PROBLEMS when you gotta go here and get that and go over here to get that....forget it!

Jobs will get bigger than last year

 

[Gene@mpls]

Raise all prices and try to figure out how to spend more time
doing the things I enjoy doing instead of the things I should do.
Take more vacations and time off.:ROFLMAO:

 

[Suz]

To be a minimalist with "stuff" I really do not need to keep. Ultimately, to never become a hoarder. Lately with all the wide format printing and rolls of media, I have visions of getting lost in it all, like diving into a pile of leaves. Any imperfect prints get recycled. Oh how I love printed things!

 

[Pat Whatley]

You need to elaborate on this....

Nothing to really elaborate. I just changed the way I sell to walk in customers. For 20 years if somebody wanted a yard sign the first thing they got shown was coro on a wire stake. Now I start with aluminum and a banjo frame. Business signs I'm starting with dimensional and working down as well. So far about 30% (top of my head guess) of the customers are going with the higher priced (higher profit) signs.

 

[SignManiac]

Like I always say, Hard to sell it if you cant show it! Build the showroom/portfolio, and they will come! I also say, you can't get it if you don't ask for it! ))

Best wishes for you Pat in the new direction! Smart move...

 

[Border]

Nothing to really elaborate. I just changed the way I sell to walk in customers. For 20 years if somebody wanted a yard sign the first thing they got shown was coro on a wire stake. Now I start with aluminum and a banjo frame. Business signs I'm starting with dimensional and working down as well. So far about 30% (top of my head guess) of the customers are going with the higher priced (higher profit) signs.

This is basically the same thing I did 2 years ago and I could not be much happier about it!

My main intention in doing so was to have fewer clients to deal with on a daily basis while focusing on higher priced projects and not even bidding on things like cheap yard signs or T-shirts anymore... This directly resulted in fewer headaches, fewer rush jobs, less inventory to keep on hand and far less paperwork (including bids, invoices, statements, email and phone conversations, etc.).
The biggest benefit to me personally was not having to deal with and waste time on quotes for all the low-ball customers who were only looking for the cheapest Sh*t.

I started with this change in January of 2010 and that was my best year ever with 2011 being even slightly better still.
I have also been trying to gradually bump up my pricing over the last year as well and for the most part have had no problems with that!

 

[SignManiac]

Congrats on the transformation Border.

 

[Border]

^Thanks, Mr. Maniac! I got a long ways to go yet before I own a business rather than owning a job (stealing someone else's words) but this has been the best change I ever made.