Today, we use Signworld’s franchise model in a case study of preferred business practices for modern sign shops. If you’re looking for some tips for bringing your business fully into the Information Age, this post’s for you.
Build a happy workspace.
Having a clean, organized, and well-designed shop is important for workflow and productivity, but there’s more to sign business success than the physical layout. Unhappy staff work slower, are more reluctant to recommend your business to family and friends, and turnover at much higher rates. Moreover, walk-in clients can pick up on any unresolved shop tensions, and it never has a good effect on business.
Contemporary business studies are now focused on the effects that positive workplace environments have on productivity, with Google’s office culture being a shining example of their motivating effects.
At Signworld, we treat every member of our franchise team like family. Our shops are designed to be great places to work, free of any loud noises or hazards and treated to an inspired design by our franchise start-up consultants.
Break away from cash-based business.
Electronic payments are better for the environment; more convenient for clients; easier to track and manage for bookkeeping purposes; very secure; and increasingly being expected by buyers.
Signworld’s model minimizes cash transactions to meet modern tastes and give peace of mind, and our websites’ eCommerce drive significant percentages of every franchisee’s sales.
Modernize your product line.
Though finding your niche is important, diversifying your sign shop’s product line is an easy way to add potential revenue streams for your business. Though banners and A-frame signs are always going to sell because they’re affordable and effective, neglecting more modern products like dynamic digital signs and vehicle wraps will lower your earning potential.
That isn’t to say you should scramble to keep up with every minor equipment update, nor should you try to offer every style of signage in-house at once. Blundering into new production with no idea what’s going to sell is just bad business, especially if you need to spend a fair amount on equipment and software to get started.
But it does pay to keep an eye on new developments and buyer trends. Technology is evolving rapidly, so a new money-saving wonder-tool or material could be around the corner. Moreover, if uncover a demand for something you don’t offer in-house, you could explore the option of outsourcing.
At Signworld, we give business owners all they need to stay up to date. Franchisees are equipment with the software, training, and equipment to produce up to 80% of the world’s signage styles in-house from day-one. We also share professional contact networks to make outsourced production easy and worthwhile.
Find a better work/life balance.
Striking a fair work/life balance is a counterintuitive productivity hack that defies the “grinding” mentality most business owners conditioned themselves to have. While hard work is important, and moderate amounts of stress can be even be beneficial, mismanaging the work/life balance leads to burnout that kills productivity, lowers job satisfaction, and makes sincere customer service much tougher to provide. But the opposite is also true: better work/life balance means your sign shop will have greater productivity, morale, and customer service.
A work/life balance survey conducted in 2002 by TrueCareers states that 70% of more than 1,500 respondents said they don’t have a healthy balance between their personal and work lives.
The trick to work/life balance isn’t about doing less work, but rather about eliminating unnecessary work. This is where technology can help, allowing you to automate or simplify tedious tasks.
At Signworld, our Point of Sale software, website sales automation, and cutting-edge digital printing graphics programs all cut down on busywork which gives you more time to use to grow your business and enjoy your family life. Moreover, we set our franchisee’s shops close to home, and put forth a business model that doesn’t intrude on your nights, weekends, or holidays, so you can strike the perfect work/life balance and outperform your competition.
Learn more best practices from our modern sign business at http://www.signworld.org.
