Who keeps stealing my signs???

[Advantage Roof Cleaning]

A successful marketing strategy includes multiple types of advertisement. This could include a website, third party internet classifieds, mailers, door hangers, signage etc. I utilize a few of them one of which is posting signs. Just like the real estate developers I occasionally post signs at street intersections on the weekends. I do get calls from HOs that see the signs and it leads to jobs. However many of the signs disappear before I can pick them up early Monday am. The last couple of times nearly all my signs were stolen! They were on a major street not in front of any homes. So I doubt if it is grumpy HOs taking them. Perhaps they are being taken by insecure roofing contractors that are threatened by the signs. Does anyone else experience this and what do you do about it?

[Advantage Roof Cleaning]

"Greese and food die on the top back of the sign."...LOL I was thinking more along the line of sticking a bunch of straight pins through them.

[Advantage Roof Cleaning]

Speaking of wire stakes, here is a cost savings tip for tightwads such as me. Buy a masonry reinforcement ladder from any home improvement center and chop it up with wire cutters. I can get 7 wire stakes out of a 10" x 10' ladder. My cost is roughly $0.40 per stake versus $0.80 from a sign store. And that doesn't include the cost of shipping.

[Advantage Roof Cleaning]

A masonry ladder looks like a metal sign stake but 10' tall. You can chop it into several 16" sign stakes.

[Apple Roof Cleaning (813) 655-8777]

Food die works every time. Think about it. A guy jumps out of his nice car, grabs your sign and POW he gets greesed. Then he has to get back in his nice car. Guaranteed he will never takes your sign again.

ROTFLMAO !!! Too bad we couldn't electrify them! My signs get stolen all the time, by some  competitors, not all of them.

You would think they would have more respect for the people that taught them how to clean roofs, and most do. But we have a few Egomaniacs here who steal our signs anyway. 

[Apple Roof Cleaning (813) 655-8777]

Here is where we get our Yard signs http://www.phoenix4signs.com/signs.html

They aint cheap, but they are big, and get attention (results)! 

 

Click on the sign, for a larger pic.

 

[FullBlast]

Love the grease idea!!

I checked our local masonry store to get yard sign stakes but they don't have the H anymore but sell Z shaped!!

[Maverick Contracting]

LOL I love the pin idea! better yet, rub some posion ivy on them, It'll make for an annoying week!

[Advantage Roof Cleaning]

Love the grease idea!!

I checked our local masonry store to get yard sign stakes but they don't have the H anymore but sell Z shaped!!

Jay, Go to your local Menards. They carry the masonry ladders.

 

BTW two more signs were just stolen. This time I painted the stakes red. Placed them Friday night and Saturday am they were already gone. I'll have to try the grease and dye next.

[Advantage Roof Cleaning]

I just got a couple more calls from HOs that saw my signs. They do work!

[RoofRescue+Repair]

If you really want to find out who is taking your signs, you could always pick up a $30 Game Camera from Wally World. You should get a nice picture of the perp in action. Then you could put up giant wanted signs around town with his picture on it, and he can steal those signs too. Just kidding.

I have been in the hail storm roof restoration business and we have been using these same type of signs for advertising for years. My guess is that the real culprit Is not a competitor and they probably couldn't care less about roof cleaning. Those little metal stakes are $0.80-$1.00 each and everyone else in your town that uses yard signs knows that. When times are tough, it is cheaper for some of them to drive around and steal other companies signs to salvage the metal stakes, so they can then use them on their own signs.

I have a few tips that I will pass along that should increase the time your signs stay out.

1. Put your signs in areas away from intersections. If you have to park and walk a ways to put up your sign, so will the person that wants to steal it. I usually find high traffic roads and put them between intersections.

2. Put signs on the right hand side of the road. If the person who is picking them up has to park his car and then walk around it to get to your sign, it is more difficult and a greater chance they will be seen. If it is on the left hand side of the road then all it takes is opening the door and the sign is right there.

3. If your signs are being picked up so that the stakes can be used, you can start putting a line of bright yellow spray paint on the stakes. Then when you see the local yard maintenance companies signs strt appearing with stakes with yellow stripes, you will knwo who to call to get your signs back.

4. Offer your customers a $25-$50 discount if they let you leave your sign in their yard for X number of days after you finish their roof cleaning. Signs in customers yards are rarely disturbed.

5. (Note: I have not tried this yet) I have noticed that many of the neighborhoods in my area have enterance signs with their name on it. Many of those signs have algae/mold/mildew growing on them. I was thinking about approaching the HOA's and offering to clean them for free/heavily discounted rate in exchange for letting me put a sign up to take credit for the job. If you get permission from the HOA, get it in writing and tape it to the back of the sign.

Anyways, I hope this helps and I look forward to chatting with many of you on this forum. I just joined and am going to be entering the exciting world of professional roof cleaning. I am sure I will end up getting sucked into becoming a "Premium Member" here before too long, but I figure that I will enjoy reading all of the free content in the mean time. (Don't worry Chris, I already have my premium membership fees budgeted into my busness plan and can already tell this is going to be "ongoing expense")

[Advantage Roof Cleaning]

Good advise RoofRescue. Another thing I find that works is to place three signs spaced apart by 25 yards on a grass median. No one will steal the signs. The moving traffic can also read them especially with them spaced apart. Just make sure the grass has been cut recently otherwise the landscaping crew might mow your sign down...LOL.

[Apple Roof Cleaning (813) 655-8777]

If you really want to find out who is taking your signs, you could always pick up a $30 Game Camera from Wally World. You should get a nice picture of the perp in action. Then you could put up giant wanted signs around town with his picture on it, and he can steal those signs too. Just kidding.

I have been in the hail storm roof restoration business and we have been using these same type of signs for advertising for years. My guess is that the real culprit Is not a competitor and they probably couldn't care less about roof cleaning. Those little metal stakes are $0.80-$1.00 each and everyone else in your town that uses yard signs knows that. When times are tough, it is cheaper for some of them to drive around and steal other companies signs to salvage the metal stakes, so they can then use them on their own signs.

I have a few tips that I will pass along that should increase the time your signs stay out.

1. Put your signs in areas away from intersections. If you have to park and walk a ways to put up your sign, so will the person that wants to steal it. I usually find high traffic roads and put them between intersections.

2. Put signs on the right hand side of the road. If the person who is picking them up has to park his car and then walk around it to get to your sign, it is more difficult and a greater chance they will be seen. If it is on the left hand side of the road then all it takes is opening the door and the sign is right there.

3. If your signs are being picked up so that the stakes can be used, you can start putting a line of bright yellow spray paint on the stakes. Then when you see the local yard maintenance companies signs strt appearing with stakes with yellow stripes, you will knwo who to call to get your signs back.

4. Offer your customers a $25-$50 discount if they let you leave your sign in their yard for X number of days after you finish their roof cleaning. Signs in customers yards are rarely disturbed.

5. (Note: I have not tried this yet) I have noticed that many of the neighborhoods in my area have enterance signs with their name on it. Many of those signs have algae/mold/mildew growing on them. I was thinking about approaching the HOA's and offering to clean them for free/heavily discounted rate in exchange for letting me put a sign up to take credit for the job. If you get permission from the HOA, get it in writing and tape it to the back of the sign.

Anyways, I hope this helps and I look forward to chatting with many of you on this forum. I just joined and am going to be entering the exciting world of professional roof cleaning. I am sure I will end up getting sucked into becoming a "Premium Member" here before too long, but I figure that I will enjoy reading all of the free content in the mean time. (Don't worry Chris, I already have my premium membership fees budgeted into my busness plan and can already tell this is going to be "ongoing expense")

This is a great plan you suggested, to keep the roof cleaning signs from being stolen.

[Roof Cleaning Contractors]

A successful marketing strategy includes multiple types of advertisement. This could include a website, third party internet classifieds, mailers, door hangers, signage etc. I utilize a few of them one of which is posting signs. Just like the real estate developers I occasionally post signs at street intersections on the weekends. I do get calls from HOs that see the signs and it leads to jobs. However many of the signs disappear before I can pick them up early Monday am. The last couple of times nearly all my signs were stolen! They were on a major street not in front of any homes. So I doubt if it is grumpy HOs taking them. Perhaps they are being taken by insecure roofing contractors that are threatened by the signs. Does anyone else experience this and what do you do about it?

 

 

Odds are pretty good it's the government....here, the township employees drive around and pull yard signs. It was just discussed at a trustee meeting last tuesday. The good thing (here) is they save them...you can go pick them up at the township garage.

[Advantage Roof Cleaning]

Odds are pretty good it's the government....here, the township employees drive around and pull yard signs. It was just discussed at a trustee meeting last tuesday. The good thing (here) is they save them...you can go pick them up at the township garage.

The "beautification police" do pluck signs. I've even been called a couple of times to take my signs down. But what looks worse, a sign along the road or a subdivision full of butt ugly roofs?

[Apple Roof Cleaning (813) 655-8777]

The "beautification police" do pluck signs. I've even been called a couple of times to take my signs down. But what looks worse, a sign along the road or a subdivision full of butt ugly roofs?

Here in the Tampa area, we are "at war" with none of our local competitors. But we did have one local competitor who was seen swiping our signs, and the signs of other local Tampa Roof Cleaners.

I will help any local competitor with any roof cleaning questions they may have, and this is well known here.

Everyone knows they can always ask Chris from Apple for any roof cleaning questions help they need.

 

The sign Cops here will take a sign down, but the grass cutters are the worst.