Digital signs in a hotel lobby are used to promote special menus and other items in the restaurant and lounge.

Looking at BLR Sign Systems today, with its 10 employees and 10% growth in 2008, you would never guess that this successful sign shop started in a garage with an engraving machine pumping out customized key caps for a very limited market. That was three generations ago, 1978 to be exact, and each wave of new blood brought fresh ideas about ways to expand and offer different applications for engraving and signage, finally moving out of the garage about 20 years ago and focusing on becoming a full-service sign shop.

 

Located in Milpitas, on the edge of California’s Silicon Valley, the potential market is vast and technological advancement is happening constantly and in close proximity. With large cities like San Jose next door and San Francisco within 60 miles, the competition for new sign business is also fierce, especially within the last two years.

 

Since Kevin Griffin bought the company five years ago, he has kept the momentum going toward new technology, stepping into the dynamic digital market with careful forethought and planning, and making it work with great success for both his company and his clients. He now sees the business as a full-service visual communications company that excels at helping businesses put their message where they need it.

 

BLR also creates and installs digitally printed themed window displays to attract people off the street.

Though they still sell a small amount of the original key caps every year, they also have the equipment to offer all forms of interior and exterior signage, wide-format printing and custom engraving. But over the past two years, much of Kevin’s attention has been focused on learning about and establishing the connections necessary to offer dynamic digital signage to fill their clients’ changing needs.

 

Stepping out of the groove

His interest began when a friend that works for Cisco Systems mentioned that they were investing in a new communications medium—digital signage—and that he should consider it as an opportunity for BLR. He attended a few trade shows and saw the potential for this new technology to extend into new areas of signage and communications. 

 

He knew he needed to do a lot of research and talk to many people before developing a plan to get into the market, but it appeared that the return on his investment could be very worthwhile. The process was fascinating and rewarding, but very challenging. The learning curve has taken twice as long as expected, and the financial investment was double what they anticipated, but they are beginning to see the fruits of their labors with the fulfillment of several significant advertising and signage campaigns, and there is no end in sight. It’s been about two years since he went to that first trade show, followed by at least six months of research before BLR Sign Systems began marketing their end-to-end digital signage solution at the beginning of 2009. They deployed their first customer order in June with more coming through toward the end of 2009.

 

A digital signage solution is an excellent option for conference centers where events and trade shows are held and multiple messages need to be constantly displayed and constantly changed.  In such scenarios, BLR Sign Systems combines a digital signage solution along with large-format graphics and other printed material, thus creating an integrated environment and a very effective visual communication.

Riding the wave

They faced several challenges in adding digital signage. One was recognizing that it is a brand new medium both in its form and how it’s delivered. Creating the image is similar, but there is a big difference between printing a digital image on vinyl and displaying it on a flat screen. Even once you understand the process, everything in the digital world is changing rapidly, so it is crucial to keep up with the latest technology. 

 

It is a continuing challenge to devote the time necessary to keep researching and learning while running a busy traditional sign company. He made the decision to hire a new employee at the beginning of 2009 to keep up the research, find the right partners to work with, and set up the hardware and software solutions. Her experience was in creative services, marketing and graphic arts with a little bit of sign experience. Most of his employees remained focused on the existing sign business, coordinating projects when necessary, but with very little crossover into actual production. The new employee is now certified as a digital signage professional through Ingram Micro, and Kevin is also a member of that firms digital signage advisory board.

 

Priming the pump

BLR started promoting their new services with some direct e-mail and snail mail, and received a good response from their existing client base. They also participate in a variety of networking events as an integral part of their marketing strategy. They are simultaneously working on updating their website to flesh out the description of what they offer. Their long-term campaign is heavily web-based, and should be online soon. Check them out at www.blrsignsystems.com or on Facebook. The final part of the plan may involve advertising in trade publications or with links to websites where they think their potential customers go to find their information.

 

They have a pretty diverse customer base, from Fortune 100 companies to small business. Starting with existing customers, they identified vertical markets within their advertising campaigns. Some of the benefits of digital signage that might make it attractive in the right situation is that it has proven to boost sales of new products by 30 percent to 300 percent, gets 10 times more eye contact than static signs and posters, and allows for frequent remote (web-based solution) updating of advertising content without expensive printing or production costs. BLR helps their customers determine whether digital signage is feasible, and work with them to create the content and manage the technology. Just putting a cool screen on the wall isn’t going to make it effective unless the content is up to par. 

 

Digital signage is a big market, but it pays to be patient and do your due diligence before jumping in.

Filling the screen

Some potential customers think they just want a plug and play system to throw their graphics up on, but BLR Sign Systems offers their expertise to develop an effective image and branding program. Content really is king, and that is what differentiates BLR’s approach to the new medium. It’s similar to the difference between putting an ad in the paper versus a sign on the building, and the situation is a lot like when the first digital printers and plotters came out and inexperienced entrepreneurs started buying equipment and making signs without a clear understanding of the rules of effective sign design. 

 

BLR helps their clients put their message wherever they need it, from the front of their building to t-shirts, trade show graphics, and either existing or newly installed television screens. They will outsource business cards, brochures, and other collateral, and they are working on developing relationships with web designers. They find that most businesses understand the importance of keeping consistency of brand and message across their signage, printed material and web presence. They often find themselves working with their clients’ existing partners as one part of a broader advertising campaign. 

 

In addition, developers, large contractors, and property managers value working with one company that can do multiple things for them. Consulting and commercial development firms have made them part of their preferred provider network, and bring them in to bid on their projects. They are developing a program that would provide partnership opportunities specifically for sign companies to offer their clients the benefit of their experience and expertise without the extended investment. 

 

Lessons Learned

The best approach to a new high-tech product is to spend enough time up front determining whether dynamic digital signage is a good fit with the market and existing business. At the trade show, it was obvious that this is a big market with great potential, which made it difficult to be patient doing due diligence before jumping in. It took discipline to step back and get a feel for how it would be to get into the market.

 

Once the commitment has been made, it takes persistence to work through the setbacks. It is helpful to hire new people to focus on the new aspects of the business, if possible. Or just realize that it might have to be set aside for a little while and returned to later. Treat it like a new enterprise, with a business plan and goals to follow, but remember to be flexible. It might even be beneficial to treat it as a completely separate business, with its own books and employees.

 

Manufacturers of digital software and screens have a huge interest in signing up more resellers. They’re interested in selling something, so it is up to the wary entrepreneur to weed through the hype and get the necessary answers. It’s easy to recognize the big players and trust their equipment and customer service, but there are lots of smaller players that may offer an enticing deal. Before signing up with any partner, it is important to build trust with them, both on the business level and on the dependability of their equipment and tech support.

 

Screen projections

The most profitable segment of BLR Sign Systems business to date is interior signage and wide-format printing, and they produce the greatest volume of interior signage and event-based signage. Though dynamic digital signage represents only about 10% of their business currently, they are projecting 20% growth in 2010. The digital signage market helped them finish well in 2009, and they believe it will continue to grow going forward at potentially an even faster rate than their core business.

 

Because he took the time to explore the potential of offering dynamic digital signage to their customers, Kevin Griffin and BLR Sign Systems has risen out of the engraving groove to offer their clients the full range of visual communications, both static and dynamic.