At a recent sign convention, a customer told me that we are not marketing our truck properly. Ordinarily, I’d take offense—being the marketing guy, and all—but Steve Adrian at FASTSIGNS in Forest, VA, has earned my ear. He’s one of those guys who is as entertaining in how he says something as he is informative in what he says.
An Installation Center with a Lift on Top
/by Jim TroeAt a recent sign convention, a customer told me that we are not marketing our truck properly. Ordinarily, I’d take offense—being the marketing guy, and all—but Steve Adrian at FASTSIGNS in Forest, VA, has earned my ear. He’s one of those guys who is as entertaining in how he says something as he is informative in what he says.
Having Everything You Need in the Truck
/by Jim Troe“One thing about the WWII veterans,” said Howard while standing next to his truck— “if they didn’t know how to do something, they figured it out.” Howard credits his father’s amazing ingenuity for fueling his own desire to maximize efficiencies in every facet of his life.
When to Buy a Bucket Truck for Sign Installations
/by Jim TroeAmbro Alvarado owns an Image 360 franchise in Bloomington, MN and Apple Valley, MN. At the time of this interview, Ambro had owned his Van Ladder Bucket Truck for just over one year. Ambro had far more wisdom than I could possibly pack into a three-minute testimonial video.
A Hybrid Bucket Truck?
/by Jim TroeHybrid defined – A thing made by combining two or more distinct elements.
So let’s amend the old adage to necessity is the mother of hybrid. Why? Who has time to invent stuff with Mother Necessity nipping at their heels? Isn’t it more efficient to combine two things to form a new thing?
Recruiting Sign Installers
/by Jim TroeIf you’re trying to hire an installer, remember: Tools themselves have the power to attract people to a profession. How do I know? Because I wrote my eighth-grade career paper on dentistry. Dentistry!—for no other reason than I loved the little tools my dentist used.
The Quiet Revolution
/by Jim TroeAs a kid, I remember my mom requiring me to raise my legs so she could vacuum up the fallen crumbs from the floor alongside the couch (Let me clarify that this was before I was properly trained to operate equipment). J Although lifting my legs was a bit inconvenient, it wasn’t nearly as frustrating as trying to read Greg and Marsha’s lips on the television while the vacuum roared in my ears.
As Advertised
/by Jim TroeAs I walked in my neighborhood this morning, I watched a garbage truck collect everyone’s recycling. The truck had one of those giant claws that reach out and grab your garbage bin before swallowing it into its cavernous body. The driver watched the action from his rear view mirror.
Dividing and Conquering
/by Jim TroeThe Van Ladder is a one-person aerial workshop, but that’s not to say you shouldn’t send two people on installs. We’ve talked with plenty of sign companies that utilize two-person teams, regardless of the size of the job, with excellent reasons for doing so.
Becoming Better Than Ever
/by Jim TroeEnvisioning the new normal can be intimidating because it involves a great deal of guesswork. Each of us moves in many different directions, making it nearly impossible to weigh the ramifications of global disruption on every aspect of our complicated lives.
Service and Installation
/by Jim TroeThe slash between service and installation sometimes confuses people. Not long ago, we dropped off a new Van Ladder with a potential customer. They wanted to try it out and see how it worked.