Is mobile sign service a good investment?

[SignsbyBrandon]

Good afternoon everybody. Not sure what section this should belong to, but I have been cutting vinyl and printing shirts for about 6-7 years now. Up until 2019, I was cutting for personal purposes and for friends/family who needed smaller decals for their cars and what not. But this past year I decided to step it up a notch and go into business as a side hustle. On top of teaching elementary PE, I offer a wide variety of vinyl services. Vinyl lettering, vehicles signs, magnetic signs, yard signs, banners, custom printed t-shirts and hats and logo design. I have not stepped into car wraps YET, but was hoping to dive into that within the next few years. I am currently working out of my house with my 24" plotter, Epson sublimation printer and a 15x15 heat press. (Using a lower end USCutter plotter for the past 4-5 years)*It has made me excellent money this year on the side im not going to lie. Most of my jobs people will come and pick up, but I do go to my customers for the installs. And this is why I am here today....

I recently picked up a new 6x12 V-nose cargo trailer to turn into my office/signs shop. I haven't done anything to it YET, but I did pick up new vinyl flooring for it and I have been mapping out how I want my desk and tables laid out inside. But for those with experience, is offering MOBILE sign services ideal? There are many shops in town here offering everything from common vinyl signs to vehicle wraps. But nobody is advertising MOBILE and that we will come to you and cut on the spot.*

So today, I am trying to talk my self into keeping the trailer and just "going" for it and trying it out. But the other side of me has me thinking twice. And I tend to overthink way too much. But hearing other stories and experiences in the same business are extremely helpful. I planned on hauling everything in an enclosed trailer, only during installs where I can go and bring my cutter with me and also becoming a vendor at local events in town or possibly the local flea markets on the weekends. I have a pickup truck that I normally haul my ladders and signs in, but in some cases I will drive nearly two hours for a large job for another company so having a mobile office plus my cutter with me is a sign of relief.*

I work out of my house probably 90% of the time right now. This past 2019 year, I have probably went out of town 4-5 times to cut vinyl on the spot and install. But if I do continue to go down this route, I will advertise and push more of the "we come to you" service.

What do you think? Good idea? Bad idea? I have about $2500 invested in the trailer so far. Good investment or should I invest the $2500 somehow else?*

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

I dont see how being mobile is an advantage. I work from home too but I do larger signs...nothing small. If I were you I'd hit up some larger sign shops and give them your information so they have someone to refer the small stuff to.

I just dont see the advantage of mobile. If I'm ordering something I want it delivered quickly, not some guy sitting in front of my house making something in his creepy trailer. Besides, your stuff is going to fall all over and get damaged on bumps.

Get a Google listing and a good website... that will pay off more then you can imagine.

 

[Gino]

I've heard of people doing it, but no one seems to do well at it. Sure, once in a while, you'll hear of someone making a killing, but figure in the overhead, weather patterns and having to have everything in stock. .... hardly seems worth it. Going to a race track every week or some flea market is one thing, but being a traveling sign shop, doesn't sound like good business sense.

 

[kcollinsdesign]

Perhaps if you specialized in event graphics that could be produced on the spot. Some of my screen print friends have set up remote operations at events, selling t-shirts and a small range of printable merch. It is fun and exciting to watch your shirt being made on the spot, and the resulting product can be sold at a premium (experiential merchandising). Sign making might be a little rough, maybe printing posters, but it would be far cheaper to order them ahead of time. T-shirts and totes are more personal and can be worn/used right away and taken home as a souvenir. You can print a shirt in 10 seconds. Cutting vinyl would be far too time-consuming (although I know a couple guys who do this at racetracks and specialty car shows for race teams and exhibitors who need something immediately, such as last minute number changes before a race).

I've shut down my printing operation and outsource small signs, banners, etc. It is impossible (for me, at least), to beat $1 sq.ft. full-color printing on coroplast and 89¢ sq.ft. full color vinyl banners with 2-day shipping!

https://www.thesilkscreenmachine.com

 

[SignsbyBrandon]

I haven't done any events this past year because you have to sign up and become a vendor in advance. Iv been working out of the house, that is it. Now, sometimes I run Facebook ads with a time lapse video of me installing a vinyl job on a trailer, and I will get business owners reach out to me from out of county. And they want me to come and install their lettering on their trailer. So that is the original idea of why I thought would be a good idea to invest in a cargo trailer so that I can drive to these places or businesses and cut/install on the spot.... Now with my everyday teaching job, there won't be vinyl jobs that often to where I need the trailer because it will be parked most of the time here at the house. But from time to time I do get requests from people that are two hours away and I will spend 5-6 hours lettering up a whole bunch of stuff for them.

Or... spend $2500 and invest it somewhere else with the business?

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

I haven't done any events this past year because you have to sign up and become a vendor in advance. Iv been working out of the house, that is it. Now, sometimes I run Facebook ads with a time lapse video of me installing a vinyl job on a trailer, and I will get business owners reach out to me from out of county. And they want me to come and install their lettering on their trailer. So that is the original idea of why I thought would be a good idea to invest in a cargo trailer so that I can drive to these places or businesses and cut/install on the spot.... Now with my everyday teaching job, there won't be vinyl jobs that often to where I need the trailer because it will be parked most of the time here at the house. But from time to time I do get requests from people that are two hours away and I will spend 5-6 hours lettering up a whole bunch of stuff for them.

Or... spend $2500 and invest it somewhere else with the business?

Learn Google ads and spend it wisely there Don't dump all your money at once but do it over time

 

[SignsbyBrandon]

So you think I should spend the $2500 in advertising than buy a trailer? Im not disagreeing with you one bit. On Facebook, I have learned that videos work quite well when it comes to advertising. I managed to spend about $150-175 on ads (approx $15/daily budget) on one ad targeting landscapers and self employed people who may use trailers for their business... Each message though would cost me anywhere from $6-12 per message. But if I landed that job, it could lead to a potential $500 and up trailer job...

I have a problem and Im always all over the place. So I managed to save some money which Iv never been able to in my life. Had a extra few grand, thought buying a trailer would benefit me and allow me to open up and be different than any other sign shop in my area...

 

[Mascitti Bro]

I've seen a few guys try the on-site thing at flea markets, but's never more than once or twice and while I give them props for trying the concept, my observation has been that any advantage the vendor may have having a wider variety to offer seems to be lost oddly for the same reason- there ends up being TOO MUCH to offer them (and they can't decide that quickly) and the vendor ends up spending A LOT more time with the individual than he anticipated for that type of atmosphere

 

[Joel golden]

That trailer is gonna take a lot out on your equipment. I would invest in something else personally as driving 4-6 hours in a day is typically not where the money is made (it can be but if you stay busy locally that’s time doing installs making more). Target those ads closer to you. I would also reach out to other sign shops in the area and see about the small job referrals. Big shops don’t like the small stuff and would love to pass it on to someone reputable, offer a kickback to them as well. Business is always about those relationships

 

[Bobby H]

IMHO, for serious sign work the design and production has to be done under a business model different from that of a food truck.

Businesses won't take an operation working out of a mobile trailer seriously. They won't expect to get anything more than quick yet generic stuff from an operation that doesn't have a fixed address, actual offices, production facility, land line phones, etc. When I work on my own design projects I don't haul a laptop to the customer's location to do the work. Doing so would invite LOTS of problems, customer meddling and aggravation.

I've heard variations of the mobile sign shop pitched from time to time over many years. One angle is what others have mentioned, setting up at flea markets and car shows."There's lots of money to be made there!" The problem with that angle is you'll get a bunch of individuals (not business people) wanting custom graphics for a personal vehicle or whatever for no money. And they'll want to talk your ear off for hours about their personal project and want lots of free changes to the design. How are those custom graphics going to get produced right there on the spot while other people are standing in line? In the end the flea market & car show operations tend to be ones that print and cut a lot of pre-existing stock images and graphics. Some of them blatantly push their luck by outputting all kinds of trademarked logos without any authorization, because those things do sell. Certain companies, such as Harley-Davidson, won't pass up an opportunity to sue violators if they catch them. Same goes for Disney.

A more legit angle on the mobile setup: business trade shows. We have a couple annual events like that, including one called the Parade of Trade. While you'll have a better selection of potential customers at such events very little can be produced right there on the spot. I wouldn't want to move one of our large format printers to one of these shows for just a day. The moving and setup would be a total pain for all the time and risk it would involve. Once setup, the printer would only be outputting existing jobs we had already sold. Or we could just waste ink, material and money printing demo graphics. In the end the trade show is just best for sales people to make contact and show off big images of work we've already done.

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

So you think I should spend the $2500 in advertising than buy a trailer? Im not disagreeing with you one bit. On Facebook, I have learned that videos work quite well when it comes to advertising. I managed to spend about $150-175 on ads (approx $15/daily budget) on one ad targeting landscapers and self employed people who may use trailers for their business... Each message though would cost me anywhere from $6-12 per message. But if I landed that job, it could lead to a potential $500 and up trailer job...

I have a problem and Im always all over the place. So I managed to save some money which Iv never been able to in my life. Had a extra few grand, thought buying a trailer would benefit me and allow me to open up and be different than any other sign shop in my area...

Question is...where do you want to ultimately end up? It's hard to make a living on small decals. Do you want to grow into a full-fledged sign shop? Do you want to get into installation? Where are your goals?

 

[Gino]

I don't think anyone here can tell you or even firmly suggest to you what to do with your money. That decision is entirely up to you, your family, your ability and your goals as mentioned. All we can do is give you either first or second hand experiences of what we all have. Each and every person here or anywhere can only make their own decisions based upon the information we receive or witness. So far, yours sounds like it's been doing well at what you've been doing. Don't be a 'sailor on payday' and blow your whole wad, just because you can. Be smart and make business and family decisions based on knowledge you gain.

 

[ams]

I actually ran a mobile sign business from 2005 to 2007. Let me tell you, I was miserable. The main issue is you drive a half hour for a $50 job and an hour away for a $100. Between the gas and running a generator, it eats up your profits. If you could do a thousand dollar job everywhere you went, that would be different. But every Tom, Dick and Harry came out of the wood works and wanted bumper stickers and cheap crap. Think about it, you don't go to a concession trailer at a carnival for a prime rib. You go for a cheap corn dog.

 

[GAC05]

I agree with the rest, mobile service would be a hard way to make a profit unless you had some kind of circuit of events that kept you busy all the time.

If you were closer to the southern border you could ditch the sign gear, install some military-style webbed seating and make a killing moving people.

 

[Billct2]

A mobile sign business where you travel the country and hit up small towns that don't have a convenient sign shop was once viable, but now it seems every podunk place had two sign makers. Just making a home based business mobile doesn't seem to make much sense as for the reasons ams pointed out. Now screening can be a different animal if you get the right "contracts". There are mobile T shirt vendors around here that do special events. They make up a variety of transfers ahead of time and carry a selection of blank garments. But it has to be a big event with an exclusive right to the business.

 

[WildWestDesigns]

As other's have mentioned, it's going to be best to find events that you can go to, that you can make what would otherwise be variable costs into fixed costs and anything else that you can do to streamline what designs you offer and also cut down on production time.

I used to hit two circuits, if you will, back in the day. I used to do work at horse shows. If I was in one of the events at the time, I had someone else manning the booth. That was good for the summer months. There were few shows in the winter, but they were few and far between. During the holidays, I would actually have a few gigs in department stores for personalization, particularly of gift items. Now, they would have limits to begin with and it was for a set amount of hrs and had a flat rate up to X amount of customers, any customers past that, it was y per customer. If you offered something unique that you could streamline that would help.

 

[brycesteiner]

I think the trailer is a good idea but not for a mobile sign business. It can be a great place to store your outdoor equipment/ladders/signs and move then to the install location. It can still be a good place to advertise. You can completely cover it - practice your desire to wrap.
I would not think that having sensitive electronics such as a computer/printer/cutter would be good to keep in the trailer driving over pot holes. Plus what would you do with wide format signage that needs laminated? Roll the laminator outside, setup tables and hope it's not raining? Do that kind of stuff in a controlled environment, keep your equipment safe, and just use the trailer for installs and equipment storage.

 

[WildWestDesigns]

It can still be a good place to advertise. You can completely cover it - practice your desire to wrap.

Since the OP is home based, have to be careful here. Depending on the jurisdiction (city and/or county licensing caveats) and/or HOA (if the home is subject to those), it may be against doing those things and having it visible parked in front of the house etc.

That doesn't apply everywhere, but that is something that I would check on before doing.

 

[SignsbyBrandon]

Since the OP is home based, have to be careful here. Depending on the jurisdiction (city and/or county licensing caveats) and/or HOA (if the home is subject to those), it may be against doing those things and having it visible parked in front of the house etc.

That doesn't apply everywhere, but that is something that I would check on before doing.

Well I don’t live in any certain neighborhood or town that doesn’t allow you to park trailers outside. That’s in places like Saint Augustine. I’m not really worried about anything like that.

 

[The Hobbyist]

My thoughts on going mobile:

1. ANY vehicle on the road with commercial markings is a target for insurance scammers who will throw their vehicles or their bodies in front of your truck so you can hit them and then let your insurance support them for the rest of their lives. I will NOT drive a vehicle with commercial markings.

2. Mobile means you are going to City A hoping to sell signs, but missing out on business that might have been looking for you in Cities B, C, and D. There is a REASON the fuller brush man does not knock on your door anymore. When was the last time a vacuum cleaner salesman knocked on your door? Even the GIRL SCOUTS are abandoning door-to-door sales (out of safety for the girls) in lieu of tables set up at the entrances to grocery stores and big box stores. The Internet is the future of marketing and selling items.

3. Anything "custom" takes more time and it should cost more money. It is one thing to go to some flea market and sell "Eat, Pray Love" signs. it is quite another to wait for someone to ask you if you can make something special ... so you sit down at your computer to design it, and get it just right, only to discover that they were "just CURIOUS if you could do it." When you tell them the price, you get, "I'll think about it..." Everyone wants something for nothing.

4. Wear and tear on your vehicle, and fuel costs, all of this overhead comes straight out of your pocket WHETHER OR NOT you actually sell anything at an art show or craft fair.

5. FEW companies will need a sign guy to roll up to their front door. A new hotel does not hire someone to make signs for the rooms. It is all done in advance. An office building is not going to decide one day, to change ALL of the interior signage for "a new look." Even if they do, it will be planned, and contracted ... not purchased from the sign trailer parked out in front.

Now with all of that said, there ARE guys who show up in kiosk booths in malls around Christmas time. They will have some gimmick they are selling, and people line up for it. Maybe it is a candy bar in a glass bottle ("Break For Emergencies!") or whatever. Personalized items sell better.

One year, there was a man with a small hand router at a kiosk in a mall. He had STACKS of wood sign blanks, a small tub with rags and stains, and some simple bold enamel paint jars of various bright colors.. People were lined up OUT THE DOOR for his handmade signs. He used a plunge router with a V-groove bit. Someone would pick a size and shape of a blank, and say, "I want a sign to read, "Grandma's Garden" with a flower on it. He would stain the face and dry it with a heat gun. Then he would HAND route the script letters, route out a simple flower, paint in the flower with colors, and hand it to the person MAYBE three or four minutes later. Someone else was collecting the money and writing the orders on slips of paper. He was making 12 to 15 signs per hour, at $15 to $30 each. It was amazing to watch him work and produce signs so quickly.