Sign Lady
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Posts posted by Sign Lady
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Good morning guys!
Have a question - I have a cabinet that is 28" deep (It's a 5' x 10' - had to make it that deep to fit the customer's existing set up) that is going in a multi tenant sign - Customer wants L.E.D. instead of flourenscent lamps - What are you guys using for double faced signs like this?? The L.E.D. lamps, or the same stuff you are using in channel?? We use those in single face all of the time, but wasn't sure how it would show in a cabinet that size.
Any input or suggestions would be greatly appreciated as always!
Thanks!
Angie
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Moving to tennessee. Thanks though. Not sure what i will do there, but might get a little rig and just do service. Might be qualified for that.
That's a good idea. Just enough for you. Wish I could go back to that sometimes!! Hahaha
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Come move to Texas! I'll put you to work!
Take him up on it, Gary!! From what I can tell from his posts on here, I think he would be a blast to work for!!
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I only get bout a 50% success rate in getting work orders filled out properly in the field... Pisses me off. Having to spend time with the crews every day. Getting them to fill out their paper work right. Not one of them is under 40 years old... They do great work. But filling in all the blanks on a piece of paper is damn near impossible. They've asked for a portable laptop. No way. Most go through a digital camera once a month. Something else for them to break...
I have the SAME problem!! I just don't get it. I don't half ass pay them, but they want to half ass complete a form or not complete it at all, so I know I have invoicing that never gets done!! I told them the other day that I was going to start paying them based on the invoicing I was able to complete based on the forms they turn in (properly)! Hell, don't even know if that would work!!
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If you want, send me whst you are trying to do. Xp is microsoft, and android is droid. Why i suggested possib using google drive.
I didn't get a chance to check out google drive last night. My daughter, son-in-law and one year old grandson have moved in with us, so I have little time at night to do anything until after he goes to sleep. Hahaha - I am going to try to get a minute to check it out today. I will print the form and send it to you to take a look at. You are the BEST!!
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You using android or a crappy ipad?
Android - and XP in the office
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we are also In need of some project management software, let me know what you find.
It has been a daunting task thus far! I have found apps that will work one way (from the tablet to the office) but haven't found anything yet to send from here to there and then back to me. I was up until 2:30 this morning looking and will probably do the same tonight.
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Been awhile since I played with this idea. When I was with that other company I told you about, I experimented with a custom pdf for surveys. Easy to do, enough free apps to fill in the pdf out in the field, etc, all sign measurements,, building measurements, etc., and then fire back to the company. doing it that way - real easy for PM or boss to verify that all info and measurements have been taken as needed. Easy to take pics and instantly send back to company also. Easy way to file pics after installation, complete with behind the wall pics, etc to verify a clean, pprofessional install. Also easy to document the wire schematics for posterity.
PDF's, fillable pdfs, can be easily made with adobe. Play around with several pdf apps for the tablet to find the one thta works easiest for your forms. I also played around with excel forms - allowing the excel to verify by formulas that the measurements make sense. Using apps, its also possible to take picture in field, and then using app, actually write measurements ON the picture so there is no confusion as to what the measurement represents. Past company wasns't keen on spending $$ for the tablets. I thought it would be money well spent ------------- now that is a weird concept?
Another concept using tablets - if you set up with a master gmail account, there is a cool program that will allow you to pull up on the computer where the tablet is on google maps, with no fees, just in the syncing of the gmail program. Quite nice ---------
Another thing to consider --- real easy to use google drive, set it up as a form for truck materials. It is LIVE - meaning when the serviceman pulls 20 widgets from stock, and puts it on the tablet - your office person can immmediately see it pulled from inventory, thus easily knowing what needs to be ordered simply by monitoring that form. it is actual REAL TIME when using this way. I had set up all ordering from outside vendors - complete with pricing, date ordered, received, expected arrival date. All the important people could easily see IF it was arrived, where it was at in the shop, and mgrs could easily acccount for all $$ owed to what vendors and why. REAL TIME, again, with no fees just using google drive.
Have fun - great idea.
I am just trying to find a better way to track jobs, materials etc. All of your ideas I think would work for what I am talking about. Didn't know Google had anything that would track live like that. You are the best!! I will keep you posted on how it goes. May have some questions - if you don't mind.
Thanks!
Angie
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Is anybody using an app or program to download service forms from the PC in the office to send to the service Truck for the tech to fill out on a tablet and send it in electronically when the job is completed?? If so, what are you using and what are your experiences with it? Don't want or need something that costs an arm and a leg. Thought I found the perfect app that said it was free, but once I got into it, it wouldn't do what I needed it to without having 10 plus service trucks and that would have been a minimum of $350 a month!!!!
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Guys if your nervous about the client and want us to run a credit report and D&B make them fill out a credit app for terms. We'll do the pull and I'll let you know if they are a risk.
My shameless plug is that if they need to we can finance the whole project and offer them terms to pay for it so you know you're getting paid.
Always here to help.
Joe@fernwoodcapital.com for any questions about running credit for you. IT'S FREE TO SIGN SHOPS
Hi Joe,
Hope you are doing well.
I give your name out a lot to customers that need signs built, but only if I think they can get approved or repay you. Don't want to send you anybody that would leave you hanging either! You surely have helped us out a lot!! I would recommend you to ANYBODY that needs to lease equipment for their shop.
Folks, just a side to this - Joe is exceptional at what he does. If you need to finance or lease equipment for your shop, he is the guy to call. If your customer needs to buy a sign and can't afford to buy it, he will finance it for them. He even does non profits and churches. The only one I have found that will finance a sign for a church and non profit. I would recommend him highly!
Thanks!
Angie
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I'm sorry - I meant to put it in my last post and got busy and forgot. The post sat there for 3 or 4 hours before I hit the post button. Got side tracked - imagine that. It is Charles Hampton's A-1 Signs. They were the 2nd company that I quoted the job for. Apparently they beat out the first company for the bid. Anybody know them or anything about them??
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Just wanted to share a recent experience after reading yours. 25 years ago when I started in this business I received a very valuable lesson. If the customer can't (or won't) give us the 50% deposit we require to begin their project, it will be a nightmare trying to collect the rest. Thankfully I've stuck to my convictions and very rarely been stuck. Recently however, I almost fell into the poor-me trap. We created a proposal for someone who was in desperate need of a sign. The proposal was a rush as they we're submitting it to their city for an enhancement grant. We told them up front that we had to have a 50% deposit, and because of their story decided to spread out their balance due to be paid over four months. This wasn't a big job, $ 4k, and they were approved for $ 1k grant from the city. The city required them to pay us the deposit and then they would be reimbursed for the $ 1k grant portion. The client ask us if we would give them an invoice stating that they had paid the $ 1k deposit, when they hadn't, to submit to the city. They in turn would give us the money when the city gave it to them, and when the sign was installed they would make the first (of now five payments they need) to us as they would have the money then. The timeframe is very tight or they loose their $ 1k grant so essentially they were asking us to build their project completely out of our pocket with the assurance that after it was done, we would receive their first payment and the grant money. (Total of which doesn't equal the 50% we require before begin to build anything.) I felt a lot of compassion for them because of their story and almost caved in, until thankfully, common sense finally set in and told them that we were sorry but we had to stick to our policies. We have bills to pay and mouths to feed and we aren't a bank. As of now, we haven't heard back from them.
Wow, sounds like you dodged a bullet too! When we started back in '89 we took any job we could with nothing down just to get our name out there and got screwed more times than I care to remember. One of those things, you live and learn. Sounds like you learned a lot faster than I did not to listen to sob stories. I am a sucker for a sob story - my heart is too soft they tell me. Had one 3 months ago, young woman wanted to open an after school day care service, had no money so my husband and I felt sorry for her (which my husband NEVER does). We were at least going to make her pay 1/2 down at my husband's insistence (which she said she could borrow from family) and then we were going to let her split the other 50% over 3 months. We padded enough in the cost of the sign so that the 50% down would at least cover the materials and some of the labor that would be involved in the manufacture of the sign. Well, long story short, we had already lettered the face because she said she could get the 1/2 down to us on Friday - 2 Fridays later, when I had the face still sitting in my shop and couldn't get her to answer the phone, I sent her an e-mail and told her that if she didn't have the 1/2 down to me that day, we were done. Never heard from her again, and she still doesn't have a sign!! Guess she thought I was going to give her a sign. Before the recession hit, getting paid in 30+ days wasn't nearly as hard as it is now. Being used as a bank for 30, 45 and 60 days is really tough now. That's why I depend on this site so much!! You guys know everybody and if you don't, you find out!!
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Angie;
The way I see it, is that if you can't get paid, it isn't real work in the first place. So don't fret not doing a job that is going to cause you nothing but problems anyway. Smart move to walk.
But if you are really feeling down about not investing your money on a bad debt, take the money you would have lost and fly to Las Vegas. Put it down on the Craps table or feed it to the slot machines. At least you'll have a chance of collecting and have a good time to boot..............
Best
That sounds like a good idea!! Hahaha Just may do that. Never been to Vegas.
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You are 100% C O R R E C T on your decision
If they can't pay the deposit, they can't pay the balance either.
Their emergency, lack of scheduling or demands is not mine. I will do what I can to make it happen. But they have to pay on my terms.
Credit Cards...Useless since they can be stopped up to 18 months after the work is completed. Yes that is right...18 months after you did the work.
My way of doing business might be harsh to some, but Im not chasing money to pay my bills
When they wouldn't even agree to them renting the man lift in lieu of paying me for the cost of the man lift rental up front, that right there told me everything I needed to know. Meant they didn't have the money to rent it themselves, so they damn sure didn't have money to pay me when I got finished. I was REALLY close to giving in just to get the job when that happened. Glad I listened to that little voice that was screaming RUN AWAY in my ear. Glad you guys agree that I did the right thing. Makes me feel much better. Like my husband said, once you have that survey to them, they don't care about whether they pay you or not, because you can't even sign a mechanics lien around here on rental equipment!! I would have just been S.O.L.
I surely was not aware of the credit card thing!!! That is SCARY!!! I don't take credit cards anymore because they were nothing but a huge hassel for us anyway. I have let a couple of customers pay with PayPal recently, but I make them pay the processing fee in addition to what they owe. Do you still take credit cards?? If so, what do you do to protect yourself from the 18 month thing??
I really love when you guys reply to things I post, because you are all a WEALTH of knowledge!! I am really glad I am a part of this site.
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What they apparently don't know, but I'm sure will find out pretty quickly, is we are pretty much the only ones around this area with equipment! Hahahaha ....... There is one guy that is apparently working for dirt cheap, doesn't have his name on the door of his one truck (probably has no insurance - mostly works on the weekends and at night - so probably doesn't have business license or permits either) - so he MAY take on the job with no money down, but he will be short lived just like some of the others that have come and gone around here.
As always, I really appreciate you guys input. That's why I LOVE this site. No holds barred truth and help any time I need it. Feel like I have made some pretty good friends on here to boot!!
Have a great hump day everybody!!!
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Thanks, Erik!
Those were my thoughts as well. Just wanted to see what everybody else was doing in these cases. I hate to lose work any time, but I feel like I dodged a bullet on this one! When they turned down the offer to let them rent the lift, then the red flags started flying all over the place for me. If I am going to lose money, I might as well stay here at the shop and play games on the computer all day or get screwed, at least be able to have a cigarette afterwords! Work entirely too hard to have someone screw me over. Used to let them do it, but not anymore. Hard lessons learned!!
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I just have to get this out or I am going to explode!
Got a call from a customer last week, whom we have never worked for before (and I didn't see their names on here anywhere at all), to reface a high rise above 130' and wanted a survey done first, etc. Because of the height we were going to have to rent a 135' man lift so I told them when we rent something, we get the cost of the rental up front so I don't keep my cash flow tied up for 30, 60, 90 or 120 days or sometimes even worse. When they thought I was going to be their bank, they issued the PO and, of course, wanted it done yesterday for the same rate I quoted to put it on the schedule and do it when we got to it like we do everybody else. Started e-mailing and calling the same afternoon they issued the PO to find out if it had been done yet, or when it was going to be done!!?? Long story short, because I was asking for money up front, they decided "to go another route" - so they canceled the survey as well as the multi thousand dollar face replacement because I dared to ask for money up front. Was I, am I wrong, for requiring folks - anybody - especially people I have never worked for before, to pay me money up front?? Am I the only one requiring this?? Why do these folks think we are supposed to be their damn banks, when we really can't afford to be in the first place. I kind of feel like if they couldn't pay me for something as simple as the cost of the rental up front, makes me wonder if I would have ever gotten paid for any of it when I was done?? I even suggested that they rent the man lift and us use it. Nope, didn't want to do that either. I guess they thought when they threatened to pull the job if I made them pay that up front, that I would just say - okay. Well, I can no longer get screwed over - don't know about the rest of you. Been there, done that, got the T-shirt!!
Just thought I would put this out there to see what everybody else's thoughts are on it.
Rant over!
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Nice looking signs!!
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I have a Church that I have been working with on a sale for a message center for TWO YEARS! Thought I had everything nailed down about 3 months ago and one of the "older members" wanted to wait a while longer. You certainly can't get a group like that on the same page.
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Well, I feel left out. Hahaha ....... NOT!
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Non profits really aren't non profits anymore! The fat cats running them drain all of the money, that's why they are non profit!!
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We have to supply the mall with insurance certs, but no permits are required by the City.
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Just to shed light on this whole mystery thread, let me add this information to the issue at hand.
Mark is correct that RMS (Retail Maintenance Service) did indeed change its name to "Ascential". It was then consumed by "Facility Source" which is now owned by Warburg-Pincus. WB being a venture capital and investment firm which would explain the intricacies and vagueness of their contract. I am quite sure after reading their Manifesto, it would be quite impossible to be paid on a timely basis.
However, the afforementioned RMS is not the same company as Retail Maintenance Specialists who are listed on the Sign Syndicate forum. I have experience with this company and can say that they, as well, are an avoid at all cost company. Apparently we were confusing the two companies but my friend Mark has experience with the RMS turned Ascential and has had a bad experience. But the two companies should not be confused.
Blink your eyes and the company you were dealing with has changed like a pair of dirty work pants and you never quite know who you are dealing with. This NSP "Acid Trip" our industry has embarked on is truly something to behold.
Anyhow, I still decline to work for Retail Maintenance Specialists and have amicably declined to accept any contracts from the said Facility Source/Ascential.
This website has been and will continue to be a wonderful source of information to me that has helped keep my aggravation index at a manageable level.
Best
"This website has been and will continue to be a wonderful source of information to me that has helped keep my aggravation index at a manageable level" ......
AMEN!!! If somebody new calls or e-mails me about doing a job for them this is the first stop I make before making a decision to sign a work order/PO to accept the work, or to even do a quote - anything. I don't waste my time until I check here first. And if there isn't anything on here already about them, I ask all of my SS buddies if they know them and all but one time that I can think of somebody on here has had an experience with them. It surely has helped me dodge some bullets!! I for another am very grateful as well for the SS!!
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I had the old lady look them up. We did a few jobs for them last year. Payed 70-90+ days. I guess that's why we don't work with them anymore. Wife's notes show we had to call them numerous times.
Mark;
Thank you so much. You helped make my decision easier.
Hopefully the corporate world will wake up an realize these Parasites are not necessary and simply dealing directly with many of the hard working contractors on this board would make life much easier and definitely more economical........
Best
Wouldn't that be wonderful?? I just wonder what it's going to take for them to realize it??
I have multiple people trying to sell me the same trucks? WTF
in General Message Board
Posted
I found the same thing when I was looking for my last truck!! I FINALLY found a guy in Texas that actually did have the truck on his lot, so I bought it from him and had it shipped here. Even with the freight, nobody else in the Country could TOUCH his price!! And it is a damn good truck to boot. If you are interested, I will get his name for you. He was a really good guy to deal with. He even helped me get the best freight cost too.