Who do you contact at a head office for sign work?

[biggmann]

We are looking to expand our service area to a bigger market and would like to try and land some bigger contracts with large chains. I was wondering what the job title of the person that would look after the sign ordering. I want to call and try and set up a meeting but when I call I will get the gatekeeper so I need to know what department to start to ask for. Any suggestions on this one?

 

[All Graphics Calgary]

When I was selling signs, I would drop off an information package at the head office and find out the name of whomever did the purchasing. Then I would be able to call back and inquire if they had received the information. And always be nice to the gatekeeper or you're hooped

 

[BIG EASY DOES IT]

Purchaser for any company does the purchasing. Going in is better then calling though. Our purchasers won't even answer the phones, but catch them at the right time and they will sit down with you and talk.

 

[visual800]

we have always called, we dont pop in on anyone. Calling has been successful with the exception of Trixie the front receptionist calling the shots.

Sometimes being creative can get you past her. I usually ask for marketing . Instead of approaching her with "Can you tell me who I would talk to about possibly doing your new sign?" I would try " Morning I was talking with a lady there about the new signs for you guys and her name slipped my mind"....that gets me in everytime

 

[biggmann]

we have always called, we dont pop in on anyone. Calling has been successful with the exception of Trixie the front receptionist calling the shots.

Sometimes being creative can get you past her. I usually ask for marketing . Instead of approaching her with "Can you tell me who I would talk to about possibly doing your new sign?" I would try " Morning I was talking with a lady there about the new signs for you guys and her name slipped my mind"....that gets me in everytime

I might just have to try this technique! Pretty creative

 

[visual800]

if that fails I have also called and said "hey! this is Bruce, we are out here at the new location trying to survey for the new signs can we talk to someone about placement"........gives a sense of urgency to get past the gatekeeper lol

 

[chester215]

if that fails I have also called and said "hey! this is Bruce, we are out here at the new location trying to survey for the new signs can we talk to someone about placement"........gives a sense of urgency to get past the gatekeeper lol

But, if you get caught using this tactic it may ruin your chances with the company forever.
I hang upon people that try this for various products.

 

[visual800]

But, if you get caught using this tactic it may ruin your chances with the company forever.
I hang upon people that try this for various products.

its called being creative not theft. do you know how many jobs Ive lost because of the gatekeeper in my early years? I personally dont see anything wrong with using techniques to get past her. To each his own

 

[Marlene]

large chains are done by large sign companies who hire locals to do the work most times. the trick is to find the large sign company. with that said, be prepared to get paid at anyhwere from 60 to 120 days for the work. also be prepared to jump thru hoops and do a ton of paperwork to get paid

 

[visual800]

large chains are done by large sign companies who hire locals to do the work most times. the trick is to find the large sign company. with that said, be prepared to get paid at anyhwere from 60 to 120 days for the work. also be prepared to jump thru hoops and do a ton of paperwork to get paid[/Q


PITA i dont mess with that large stuff

 

[WildWestDesigns]

its called being creative not theft. do you know how many jobs Ive lost because of the gatekeeper in my early years? I personally dont see anything wrong with using techniques to get past her. To each his own

I wouldn't necessarily said "theft", but "deception" is something else. Creative yes, that it is. I actually give you good marks for that.

I wouldn't have taken too kindly to it, but that's me. Some would appreciate the "go get'em" attitude, however, not all would. Question becomes, how many wouldn't be bothered with it versus how many that would?

I personally can't stand cold callers. Even if I was in the market for product/services, you would be off my list right then and there. Typically it's because they inevitably call at the worst time (not that I would expect them to know the best time to call) and it distracts me from doing my job for a time. Combine that with deceiving someone that is supposed to run interference so I don't have to deal with every call, that's adding insult to injury. To me anyway. Like you said, all are different.

 

[Bigdawg]

large chains are done by large sign companies who hire locals to do the work most times. the trick is to find the large sign company. with that said, be prepared to get paid at anyhwere from 60 to 120 days for the work. also be prepared to jump thru hoops and do a ton of paperwork to get paid

Agreed. We do work for some of the larger sign companies that service various chain stores. That takes us out of all the PITA work it takes to maintain the account directly and by the time the job comes to us everything has been sorted out. We don't have to wait those long lead times for payment either. But with our larger accounts that we deal with directly - it seems that the bigger the company, the longer they take to pay. And the bigger the pain it is to actually get a job done and approved.

 

[visual800]

I wouldn't necessarily said "theft", but "deception" is something else. Creative yes, that it is. I actually give you good marks for that.

I wouldn't have taken too kindly to it, but that's me. Some would appreciate the "go get'em" attitude, however, not all would. Question becomes, how many wouldn't be bothered with it versus how many that would?

I personally can't stand cold callers.

as I got older i realized the gatekeeper would not determine my success. Once Im patched thru to the "person in charge" I then go with who i am and what I am offering and ask if they are taking bids on signage 8 times out of 10 they are and now I have a contact. I converse over emails with this person. My "deception" as you mentioned is only for the gatekeeper.

and YES I despise cold calls and refuse to just show up.

 

[WildWestDesigns]

My "deception" as you mentioned is only for the gatekeeper.

The problem becomes (at least for me), if you are caught in a "deception" in one instance (no matter the motives) and especially if I don't know who you are, I have to wonder where else will I find deception? Real or imagined.

That cold call is that first interaction between you and my company in a lot of instances, especially if you have to get around the "gate keeper".

You may not see that as wrong in any way and that's your privilege, just be aware that it may not go over as well with others.