Many businesses have large glass areas, obscured by blinds – don’t waste the space! Window graphics are an innovative, cost effective way to make use of advertising space and create new business opportunities. An interesting surface with almost limitless possibilities for creativity, window graphics and graphics wraps allow you to retain your building’s privacy and turn your windows into unique, eye-catching advertisements. For example, using the latest advances, the illusion of etched or frosted glass can be created at a fraction of the cost, creating a rich effect without the expensive price tag. Whether it’s for a short-term promotion or a long-lasting campaign, window graphics are a great, interesting way to get your message across. From your opening hours, to full-blown exquisite window graphics wraps, they can become apart of your unique retail presence. Designed to allow as much light and visibility as your building requires, they can also reduce the amount of heat, lowering your air-conditioning costs. If you have a big message you need to shout about, the image experts at The SignMan can help you design full color window graphics that can be installed across multi-panel window and door fronts seamlessly to maintain your professional brand image. They can be installed indoors or outdoors and paired with wall murals deliver an eye popping and traffic-stopping message to potential customers.

Surely you’ve noticed our Color Revolution building on Shirley Street – it definitely stands out in the crowd. We can help you do the same! Don’t keep your eyes shut anymore!

Google’s culture is highly popularized for its ‘nap rooms’ (I tried to suggest something similar at The SignMan) and its ‘afternoon talent shows’. They hire they say for ‘ability’ not experience and pride themselves on having employees that speak ‘dozens of languages from Turkish to Telugu.’[2]

Corporate Culture is defined as ‘a blend of the values, beliefs, taboos, symbols, rituals and myths all companies develop over time.’[3] Over time, a business starts to take on a personality of its own, it becomes the collective consciousness of its employees and it involves every facet of a business’s life from how employees interact with each other to how customers experience its service. It is easier to recruit like-minded employees when you know what you’re looking for and they work better together because they are in pursuit of a common goal.[4] It tells people how to do their work. Because a company’s culture is embedded in your customer’s experience, it is the bottom line.

One of the most important aspects of a company’s culture is that it is DISTINCT.

The SignMan has been fostering its family-oriented-team-driven-slightly-eccentric-do-whatever-it-takes-to-get-the-job-done-right attitude since we opened for business in 1990. You have to be tough, hard working, innovative, smart and a little…off the wall to fit in at The SignMan.

“New employees are not left to discover company culture on their own. Employee “indoctrination” (and I mean that only in the most positive of ways) begins at orientation and is an ongoing effort. As a result, culture is transmitted and propagates from one generation of employees to the next.”[5]

This is certainly true at The SignMan. If you have ever worked for Peter Bates, you have heard him say, you need to ‘sign on’. This is what he means -

1. We are solution-engineers, not order takers. The SignMan takes its role in the custom manufacturing business seriously – it means choosing the best possible material, size and location for every single sign product.
2. Finish it in time to do it again, whatever “it” may be, by working backwards from your due date and time to make sure that you get whatever you promised to whomever you promised it to…
3. On time. Every time. Exactly as Promised! Our word is our bond!
4. Yes we can. Whatever, whenever, however. It doesn’t really matter what the question is.
5. Do It Now! If it can be completed in the time it takes for you to explain what needs to be done, then JUST DO IT!

The SignMan is full of people with personality, with a hard-work ethic and a ‘yes we can’ attitude. There is no hiding the fact that the reason The SignMan is so successful is because of the amazing people who work here and the way we foster each other’s ingenuity and creativity by building on a great company culture.

Our image experts say that there has to be some level of consistency and dare we say – you can even go the fashion-faux pas matchy-matchy with your office’s signs. They concur that it’s professional and aesthetically pleasing to your building or office patrons, insuring that they find the correct department, person or area as efficiently as possible, this is known as wayfinding. Therefore, it is important that your architectural sign system (a unified network of wayfinding or direction signage) coordinate throughout. Signage is commonly employed to enhance wayfinding efficiency; they provide instructions about turns and decisions and adding signage has been shown to reduce wrong turns and backtracking, limiting clients’ frustration. Directories are an important component of your wayfinding system, consider them your shoes, your statement piece – they can make or break your outfit…I mean your sign system! They set the tone and act as a channel, directing traffic where it needs to be.

If you’re not quite sure how to go about putting this look together, our experts at The SignMan can help you. The SignMan has designed, manufactured and installed full architectural sign systems with stunning directories that extend all the way from your main monument sign to your office door or desk sign. Whether you need for indoor or outdoor, we can create a wayfinding system that is consistent with your existing signage so that it blends and harmonizes. Having an architectural sign system that is consistent and well thought out indicates to your clients that you are organized, efficient and professional. The SignMan can work with you to create innovative, functional and beautiful solutions to any of your directional or identification needs.

Finding the right product to ‘make a splash’ can be tricky; here are some of The SignMan’s tips:

When in doubt, make it USEFUL.

•  People are more likely to keep them the more useful they are; about ¾ of the respondents in ASI’s study showed that the primary reason they kept the gift was because it was pragmatic. Calendars, writing instruments, health and safety items and bags are most frequently kept because they’re USEFUL. According to ASI’s study, bags were revealed to yield the highest number of impressions per month, which makes it one of the most effective promotional products available.

Who’s your customer?

• Are they young? Are they elderly? Do they play sports? What is their occupation? Do you attract mostly female or male clients? Do you sell to businesses or directly to consumers? When do you need them to think of your business, when they’re at home or when they’re at work? For example, males were more likely to keep shirts and caps, while females were more likely to keep bags, pens and pencils, calendars and health and safety products in ASI’s study. Knowing these kinds of distinctions can enhance your promotional products’ marketing and make them even more cost effective. Talk to your customer service reps, get their ideas; they know your customers best.

Make them LAST!

• You want them to remember you as LONGGGGGGG as possible so give them something that’s going to last in their house or at work. Think of gifts that people will keep for a long time and see all the time – maybe a stylish water bottle (everyone drinks water), a reusable grocery bag (go green) or a floating boat key chain. 41% of respondents indicated that their impression of the advertiser had become MORE FAVOURABLE after receiving the item and 60% do business AFTER receiving the item.

Create a memorable experience.

• One of the most important things you can do for your business is make it stand out in the crowd. Make the experience of receiving the gift memorable and fun, do a grab-bag, a raffle, a wheel of fortune or trivia. Give promotional products that will make people laugh and TALK ABOUT IT. Word of mouth is still hands down the best form of advertising.

Have a look through The SignMan’s logomall – http://signman.logomall.com/. If you’re still coming up a little short with ideas, come visit us on Shirley Street and our imaging experts will help you pick a product that your customers are sure to respond to!

Reference:

ASI (2010) Global Advertising Specialties Impressions Study: A Cost Analysis of Promotional Products vs. Other Advertising Media. Accessed August 9, 2011. Available: http://www.asicentral.com/asp/open/Research/impressionsstudy/2010.aspx

How, might you ask, can you do this for your business?

Deco-advertising is the combination of interior decorating with point of purchase signage, creating an environment that is more educational, branded and effective in terms of communicating what your business offers. It can make your lobby or waiting room more memorable and inviting and has the potential to reduce perceived waiting times. It is amazing how simple decorating transformations, like rearranging your furniture, painting just one wall a fresh bold colour or changing the lighting can leave a significant impression on both your new and old customers.

Deco-advertising would simply not be complete without signage! It would be something akin to Cinderella’s tale sans glass slipper – THE HORROR!

Point of purchase (POP) sign advertising involves advertising at the point of sale, i.e., where customer, money and product come together. It can be an effective way to advertise promotions, new products or use stimulating graphics in the form of 3-D signs, digital print signs or banners, whatever you think will be most appealing to your customers. Digital signage is a relatively new and dynamic form of POP advertising. The Outdoor Advertising Association of America describes it as, “updated electronically through a variety of methods. Some are networked together, most are operated remotely and all of them can be updated quickly, sometimes with just a click of a mouse. This ability gives digital signage flexibility and nimbleness” (Dennis et al, 2010: 205).

Let’s get real. This is not only about aesthetics; there is a real business case for creating a fairytale lobby with deco-advertising.

Research has shown that in home advertising (TV, radio, print) is no longer delivering the message as efficiently and effectively as it once did. As media channels and audiences expand and diversify, there has been a growing interest in expanding advertising messages into stores (Burke, 2009:180). Point of Purchase Association International has found that more than 70 percent of purchase decisions are made in store at the point of purchase (Dennis, et al, 2010: 205). That creates a huge opportunity for you to influence your customers; a 2008 study showed that advertising at the point of sale was more likely to deliver a greater return on investment than television, radio or print (Burke, 2009: 180).

“When connected to networks, digital signage enables near real-time and low cost, distribution and installation, of digital advertising. It also supports ad customization based on viewer demographics.” (Harrison & Andrusiewicz, 2004: 164). It creates the opportunity to display much more compelling advertising as it supports dynamic multimedia presentations that are far more captivating than traditional static media (Harrison & Andrusiewicz, 2004: 165).

Digital signage speaks to shoppers while they are captive and in the mood to buy (Dennis et al, 2010: 205). One study found that digital signage creates an ambience that influences perceptions in a mall environment, giving it a more modern image, adding enjoyment to the shopping experience and providing them with useful information about their shopping choices (Dennis et al, 2010: 207). Additionally, according to the Cable Advertisers Bureau Commercial Recall Study in the United States, only 15% of respondents were able to correctly recall a commercial they had just viewed. Compare that to research done by the ComQUEST division of BBM Bureau of Measured Statistics in Toronto, where full-motion movie ads (those played before a movie) had a 74% average recall rate.

Yes, The SignMan can be your fairy godmother. In fact we specialize in these kinds of transformations. Give us a call or better yet, stop by so we can show you all of our pumpkin-to-carriage-glass-slipper-magic. Drop by and demand to be shown the centerpiece of it all, the LobbyPOP system.

References:

Burke, R. R. (2009) Behavioral Effects of Digital Signage. Journal of Advertising Research June 2009.

Dennis, C. Newman, A. Michon, R. Brakus, J. J. Wright, L. T. (2010) The mediating effect of perception and emotion: Digital signage in mall atmospherics. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services 17: 205-215. Available:

Harrison, J. V Andrusiewicz, A. (2004) A virtual marketplace for advertising narrowcase over digital signage networks. Electronic Commerce Research and Applications 3: 163-175.

Then I think how amazing it is to be ‘independent’. It means we’ve grown up as a nation, that we are shaping our own dreams. Independence means we are not subjected to anyone’s rules but our own and that we are able to govern our own affairs. It means we can sing ‘we did it our way’ like Frank Sinatra. And as I reflect on all the people around the world that have and still are struggling, fighting and dying for their freedom and independence, I cannot help but feel so proud that our independence was procured bloodlessly.

The Bahamas has made such incredible strides all on its own and we have so much to be proud of this Independence Day. We have built thriving industries, we are a premier travel and banking destination. We have evolved into a country of majority rule and political dialogue and we have produced world-class athletes, diplomats, entrepreneurs and artists. The Bahamas is a nation of all colours, shapes, sizes and cultures and yet we all hold the same things dear – boiled fish, Junkanoo, conch salad, gin and coconut water, regattas, the Fish Fry and of course, July 10.

On our nation’s 38^th birthday, we have many reasons (and ways) to celebrate, but we must not let our middle age success get the better of us. “Even as people take pride in their national independence, we know we are becoming more interdependent.” (Bill Clinton, 2000). We must not become complacent in our success; we must not forget that each and every Bahamian is responsible for the future of this country.

But it feels so good to know that our future is in our hands.

Congratulations from The SignMan on a Beautiful Independence, we can’t wait for what’s next! It feels so good to turn 38!

Three tiny (seemingly insignificant even), but extremely powerful words. They are revolutionary, one might say.

In 2008, President Obama used these words to rally people around the idea that their future belonged to them and that change was possible. His campaign became the ‘yes we can’ heard round the world. ‘Yes we can win this election,’ he said, ‘Yes we can make the change.’

Then again at the beginning of 2011 the people of Egypt under the weight of corruption and socioeconomic plight and inspired by the success in Tunisia, were able to create the change they wanted. They toppled a 30-year dictator peacefully on the premises of ‘enough’ and ‘yes we can’. And they did.

But long before Obama had throngs of people chanting ‘yes we can’ (or Egyptians took to the streets in Cairo determined for ‘yes we can’ to become ‘yes we did’, there was a somewhat quieter, more humble ‘yes we can’ revolution taking place in The Bahamas’ sign industry.

In 1994, when we moved from Mackey Street to our current place on Shirley, The SignMan was poised and ready to make a splash. Everything was changing and growing – there were constantly new products and technology, we had a new space with new faces and Cindy had just taken over the whole production management because we were doing so much. In an effort to show our new clients what we were all about, we manufactured a sign that said, ‘The SignMan Can!’ with a backdrop coining the term ‘signvertizing’.  and this is how we started to answer the phone, ‘The SignMan Can!” We had all our products out on display in our showroom and whenever a customer would ask if we did something, we would walk them over to it and say ‘yes we can’. Like any revolution in need of a catchphrase, it stuck – effortlessly.

Today, at The SignMan, it is much more than an answer to a question of whether we can or cannot (and by now, we’re sure that you already know that we can), but it is more an attitude or a promise, that no matter what it takes to get a job done, we will. We weren’t and still aren’t afraid of what we don’t know.
It is also a contract between you (the client) and us (The SignMan); we can’t make it happen without you, without your input and your vision. WE can be a team; WE can bring your initial image concept to final installation. So the answer is ‘YES WE CAN’ – the questions is ‘WHEN WILL YOU ASK US?’

Here’s six ways The SignMan can help!

Reader Boards & Monument Signs
Despite the stigma that has been attached to some reader boards, when erected and maintained professionally, they can be an extremely fast, reliable and easy way to let the community know about your upcoming events and inform them of important news. Schools with a reader board won’t have to worry about children ‘forgetting’ to give parents letters about PTA meetings, report card day, sports day or awards ceremonies. A well thought out reader board can personalize your image within the community.

Wall & Floor Graphics
Often overlooked, wall and floor graphics have a way of really defining and enriching a space. They can range from full high resolution digitally printed images spanning over an entire wall (indoor or outdoor) to something as simple as installing vinyl cut letters on your door of your mission statement, vision, inspirational quotes or favourite scripture. Floor graphics also offer an innovative-out-of-the-box way of communicating information; they can be perfect for events with lots of foot traffic. Visual graphics can enhance the tone of your place of worship or study and have the potential to make patrons or students connect with their surroundings!

Banners
Are you in search of a cost-effective way to advertise your event with stunning and elaborate graphics? Then, the search ends here! And we know you might be thinking of a traditional, run of the mill banner. At The SignMan while we revere and love traditions (we have many of our own), we also believe in making you stand out in the crowd – whether that means your banner is vertical, horizontal, hanging or flying on a pole; we can even print mesh banners, ideal for interweaving in wire fences and gates. Have that annual event, bought a banner and now you need to change the date and the venue? Yes we can.

Promotional Products
As an institution with a loyal congregation, an enthusiastic student body and proud parents, they will want to carry around items that identify them as being a part of your community. Promotional products can be perfect way to advertise an upcoming important event or signify an important day for your church or school. You can brand pens, badges, rulers, key chains, bumper stickers, T-shirts, even bibles! Why not have your Church’s name and logo printed or laser engraved on a few for the pew! If you visit our website, you can get all of these online and have them shipped directly to you! Simply click on the red icon at the top of the website that says ‘Promotional Products’!

Vehicle Graphics
Both churches and schools tend to have their own buses, sometimes even a few! What better way to identify your institution in the community than with your name and logo on a moving billboard? This makes it easy for parents of those kids on a school team to follow you to a sporting event or for your congregation to find you at the right community service venture. Whether it’s vinyl lettering or imaging with your name and logo or full -blown vehicle graphics wraps, the quality is always top-notch, guaranteed.

The SignMan is proud of the churches and schools that do so much for the Bahamian community. Let us be apart of how you present your vision and image to the country!

Give us a call, drop by or send us an email at sales@signmanbahamas.com.

We tattoo it to our chests, fly them on our ships, carry them to war, put them on the moon or on Mount Everest. Wherever and whenever we feel we have accomplished something great, we want to tell the world where we came from. They are an important marker of a person’s global identity and tell stories about who people are as a nation.

Prior to 1973, the flag of The Bahamas consisted of a field of blue with the Union Jack in the canton and The Bahamian Flag Badge on the field. It pictured a ship pursuing two pirate vessels with the country motto, ‘Expulsis piratis, restituta commercia’ (Pirates expelled, commerce restored).

Today, the Bahamian flag’s gold band represents the golden beaches surrounded by the aquamarine seas and the black represents the vitality and force of a people determined to develop the rich resources of land and sea. And there is still something that stirs in all of us when we see that black, gold and aquamarine flying in the wind.

… so Proud to be a Bahamian? Fly the black, gold and aquamarine! Proud of your logo? Fly that too!! Or your product? Fly that too! The SignMan can emblazon flags with a  logo or any image of your choosing creating a unique, dynamic advertising medium.

Let the world know where yunna frum and what yunna gat!

The SignMan,  I mean the FlagMan – can do it all!

1. Sign Refurbishment

Not all damaged signs need to be completely tossed away. In fact, refurbishing a sign can save you hundreds of dollars! Having your sign maintained and cleaned is a great way to ensure you get the longest possible life out of your sign! Especially when it comes to those signs that are just too large or too high up to reach. These out-of-reach signs can easily collect dirt! If we can install them, we can get up there to clean them or even take them down for repair, to change pertinent information, give them a fresh paint job or just a good old-fashioned scrub. Your image is important to us!

2. Digital TV-Based Signs (LobbyPOP)

Talk about renovations made easy!  LobbyPOP can transform any space into a state of the art edutainment centre!  Installing the digital TV-based sign alone allows you or your clients to have their own professional, personalized video to loop in their lobby or office. This video essentially educates and entertains waiting customers on available products and services – it’s like having a salesman in your lobby 24/7! A digital sign like this is seven times more effective than conventional print media. But even without the digital TV-based signs, our LobbyPOP makeover can transform your space from drab to fab!

3. Architectural & Monument Signs

Whether you need to refurbish or build a monument sign for an entrance or you just need to install effective way-finding signs throughout a building, we have it all. Speaking of way-finding/directional signs; you should know we’re a supplier of SignMojo products! Check out SignMojo and their ADA-compliant signs on our website – just click the SignMojo logo at the top!

4. Installation

When it’s time to move, rearrange and clear out, you will find those large and often times, bolted down signs a chore to remove and put back up. Letting The SignMan handle these tasks for you not only keeps you from fighting with a heavy object, but it ensures your safety and preserves the sign’s integrity! Leaving signs around waiting to be installed takes away from your image! Even if the sign is not in plain sight, it could be up where it would improve your image! Even if you need decorations put up or those out of reach windows cleaned, we have the tools needed to work in high places! Why wait for a contractor or handyman? Simply drop us a call and get your sign up today!

5. Promotional Products

As a Property Manager, we’re sure that you’re always on the go and constantly meeting new people. What’s the best way to leave a lasting impression? Why not browse through our website for over 300,000+ promotional products! Not only can you find a wide range of promo items, but you can also order them directly from us! It just doesn’t get easier than that! Simply visit our website and click the red button at the top that says “Promotional Products.”

6. Flags

Flags have always added a professional and patriotic look to any place that bears them on a flagpole. At the SignMan we carry over 50 different country flags in the correct, government approved colors. Not only do we carry the flags, but we have flagpoles that will last you a lifetime!  In fact, you can double the life of your flags by taking them down at night and hoisting them back up in the morning!

At The SignMan, we understand how important it is as a property manager, for you to maintain a professional corporate image and we know in these 6 ways and many more, we can help! Give us a call, visit our website or drop by. Let us make the juggling a little lighter!