Frequently Asked Questions

Approved signage vendor lists work great until you hit 20–25 locations. Then they break down because:

• You're managing multiple exterior signage vendor relationships instead of one partnership
• Quality varies by vendor (some are great, some ghost you)
• No centralized visibility into what's happening across projects
• Franchisees don't know which vendor to choose
• Nobody owns the full timeline from design to installation

An approved vendor list gives you options. A true signage partner gives you a system.

Silicon Signs is a national signage vendor working across 49 states plus Puerto Rico with a certified installer network ready to go. But here's where we're different:

1. Speed: We're built for franchise speed (25–100+ locations/year). Most national vendors move at corporate pace, not your pace.
2. Franchisee Experience: We treat franchisees like your most important customers (because they are). National vendors treat them like order numbers.
3. Accountability: When something goes wrong, we own it.

We're not trying to be the biggest. We're trying to be the best at one specific thing: helping fast-growing franchise brands scale without signage chaos.

We make and install everything your brand needs. This includes channel letters, pylon signs, monument signs, and dimensional letters. We also offer LED retrofits, HDU (High-Density Urethane), and custom solutions for special sites. We also handle complex needs like historic district permits, landlord approvals, and ADA compliance with local laws.

What matters more than the list is this: we create systems for brands with unique needs—multi-building campuses with 8-10 different sign types, custom color matching for brand-specific Pantones, and special materials that others often avoid.

If your brand has unique requirements, that's good. It means we're building something distinctive. Our Custom Brand Book process explains how to apply requirements at all locations so you're never starting over at each site.

Good. Every franchise brand should have unique requirements—that's what makes your brand distinctive. Here's what we've handled:

• Complex multi-building campuses with 8–10 different sign types
• Specialized materials (HDU, dimensional letters, LED retrofits)
• Historic districts with restrictive permitting
• Landlords with non-standard approval processes
• Custom color matching for brand-specific Pantones
• ADA compliance across varying municipal codes

Our Custom Brand Book process specifically captures your unique requirements so they're executed consistently everywhere—not reinvented at every location.

We are currently handling 50 to over 100 projects at the same time for our franchise brand partners. Here's how we scale:

• Dedicated Account Team: You're not competing for attention with 100 other clients. You have a dedicated team that knows your brand, your franchisees, and your timelines.
• Regional Fabrication Network: We don't have a single bottleneck facility. We have fabrication capacity across regions to handle volume surges without delays.
• Certified Installer Network: 49 states covered. We're not scrambling to find installers for new markets—we already have them vetted, trained, and ready.

We work both ways:

Here's what we've learned: once franchisees experience our process, they prefer it. They tell other franchisees “just use corporate's vendor—they make it easy.”

Here's the honest answer: our per-sign pricing is competitive with quality national signage vendors. Sometimes we're higher than local sign shops. Sometimes we're lower.

But here's what changes the math. What you're not paying for anymore:

• Internal overhead managing vendor relationships
• Redesigns and rework from quality issues
• Delayed opening costs (lost revenue while waiting for signage)
• Emergency fixes when installation goes wrong
• Franchisee frustration that damages long-term relationships

Most franchise brands know they were paying for premium service through hidden costs. They just weren't getting the results they expected. We'd rather show you the total cost comparison than debate per-sign pricing.

That's why we start with a pilot. We begin with 2–5 real locations without the long-term commitment. You see exactly how we work before deciding if this is the right partnership.

If it's not the right fit, no hard feelings—you've learned something valuable with minimal risk.

Things probably will go wrong. Permits get delayed. Landlords change requirements. Weather delays installation.

Here's what matters: How do we handle it?

During the pilot, you'll see our problem-solving process in real-time:

• Do we flag issues proactively or wait for you to discover them?
• Do we own the problem or point fingers at others?
• Do we communicate clearly or go dark when things get complicated?
• Do we find solutions or make excuses?

If we handle problems well during the pilot, you can trust we'll handle them well at scale.

In our experience, these are the four phases that eliminate the chaos:

No starting over. No reinventing the wheel. Just a proven system that scales with you.

From first conversation to pilot kickoff: typically 2–4 weeks. Here's the breakdown:

• Discovery call: 1 hour
• Design Standards Session: 2–3 hours (we build your Brand Book together in real-time)
• Pilot project selection: You choose 2–5 upcoming locations
• First project kickoff: Within days of finalizing your Brand Book

Unlike traditional vendors where you're starting from scratch every time, our upfront Design Standards Session creates a reusable playbook. That initial time investment saves you weeks (or months) on every future location.

Through our proprietary customer portal—think of it like tracking a package, but for your entire signage rollout.

One login gives you:

• Real-time status for every location across stage (design, permitting, installation)
• All your documents in one place (Brand Book, quotes, completion photos, install specs)
• Automatic daily updates sent directly to you (no more chasing project managers)
• Transparent pricing for every location (see exactly what you're paying, no surprises)

Your franchisees get the same experience—easy ordering, clear timelines, proactive updates. They stop calling corporate asking “where's my sign?”

Absolutely. Franchisees and franchisors can see their specific locations and can:

• Submit new project requests
• Track their project status in real-time
• Access their approved designs and quotes
• Receive automatic updates without bothering corporate

This is huge for the corporate team too. Instead of fielding “where's my sign?” calls, franchisees self-serve through the portal.