5 Mistakes Retailers Make When Rebranding Their Signage

There’s nothing more refreshing – and potentially more fraught with pitfalls – than rebranding your business.

Every business goes through seasons, and that branding that you launched with ten years ago might not be keeping up with the latest trends in the market. You need something to help you thrive long into the future.

So you lauch a rebranding effort – including updating all of your signage across your locations.

But then you find that simply “replacing” your old signs with new ones isn’t all that simple. In fact, there are a few key mistakes that many retailers make when rebranding their signage. Here’s how to avoid them.

Mistake #1: You Treate Your Signage as an Afterthought

Most retailers plan their rebranding timeline around specific moments in their lifecycle: marketing launches, store updates, and staff training.

Then they try to squeeze signage into whatever time remains. This backwards approach creates rushed decisions and impossible deadlines.

When signage isn’t planned early, you face delays that can push back your rebranding launch by 6-12 weeks. This can leave you high and dry when you should be raking in new customers through your upgraded branding!

Involve your signage partner during the brand development phase, not after it’s complete. This early involvement lets you get a better feel for the structural and electrical implications of your new brand design.

You can then build realistic timelines that account for permitting and manufacturing lead times – and identify potential problems while there’s still time to solve them.

The investment in early planning pays dividends when your signage installations happen on schedule and within budget.

Mistake #2: Assuming Your Existing Infrastructure Will Work

Many retailers think, “We have signs now, so we just need new signs.”

When you assume everything will just swap out easily, you’re setting yourself up for some expensive surprises.

Your rebrand might involve different sign sizes. There may be new lighting requirements or updated mounting specifications that aren’t compatible with your older infrastructure.

Before you finalize your new brand specifications, conduct a comprehensive infrastructure audit.

Check whether your existing electrical systems can handle new LED loads. Make sure that your current mounting points can support new sign sizes.

When you understand your infrastructure limitations upfront, you can either modify your brand specs to work within existing systems or budget appropriately for necessary upgrades.

Mistake #3: Underestimating How Long This Actually Takes

That simple 2-week project per location? They have a sneaky way of stretching out to 6-8 weeks when you factor in the real world.

There’s permitting delays, manufacturing lead times, weather issues – and all of that before you start coordinating crews across multiple markets.

Timeline estimates usually focus only on installation time. But there’s a web of steps that must happen first. And those unrealistic timelines create a domino effect of problems.

Instead, work backwards from your desired completion date and add buffer time for each phase. Budget for contingencies rather than hoping everything goes perfectly.

Mistake #4: Not Researching Permit Requirements Thoroughly

You might assume signage permitting is straightforward – submit an application, pay a fee, get approval.

But the reality is often much different. Each city has wildly different requirements, and what’s approved in one market might be completely prohibited when you go right down the street.

• Permitting mistakes lead to variance applications that add 6-12 weeks to your timeline.
• Design modifications that compromise brand consistency.
• Emergency redesigns could lead to high costs at each

When you understand the most restrictive requirements across all your markets, you can design signage that works everywhere – or develop location-specific variations that maintain brand consistency while meeting local codes.

Mistake #5: Using Multiple Vendors Without Proper Coordination

To save costs or work with preferred regional partners, many retailers will hire different signage vendors in different markets.

The problem? Without central coordination, this can lead to inconsistent quality and branding, as well as project management headaches.

Managing multiple vendors creates brand inconsistencies as different companies interpret your specifications differently and handle projects in their own ways.

Partner with a national signage company that can maintain consistency across all locations while providing local market knowledge.

This gives you consistent quality through centralized manufacturing and coordinated timelines that keep your rebranding on schedule.

How Atlas Eliminates Rebranding Mistakes

At Atlas Sign Industries, we’ve worked with retail companies across the country to help them rebrand and rebuild their signage. Along the way, we’ve seen every mistake and developed systems that prevent the costly errors that derail rebranding projects.

Our Signage Rebranding Process

Early Integration

We work with your team during brand development to ensure your new identity translates effectively to physical signage across all locations. This helps prevent any discrepancies between your brand messaging and the physical representation of it.

Infrastructure Assessment

Our team conducts comprehensive site surveys to identify potential challenges before they become expensive problems. Why? Because we know that learning the infrastructure of each location is crucial to successful signage implementation.

Realistic Timeline Development

We build project schedules based on real-world experience, not optimistic assumptions. Rather than overpromise with unrealistic deadlines, we work with you to set achievable milestones and deliver on time.

Comprehensive Permit Management

Our permit specialists research requirements in every market and handle all applications to prevent delays and compliance issues. This allows us to streamline the process and ensure that your signage meets all necessary codes and regulations.

Centralized Quality Control

Our 270,000 square feet of manufacturing capacity ensures consistent quality across all your locations. This makes it easy for us to maintain brand standards and provide you with a hassle-free experience from start to finish.

Ready to Get Your Rebranding Right?

You deserve to grow when you rebrand. So don’t let these predictable mistakes compromise your rebranding investment.

Atlas Sign Industries has successfully rebranded thousands of retail locations, and we know how to avoid the pitfalls that catch other retailers off guard.

Contact us today to discuss your rebranding project. We’ll help you develop a realistic timeline, identify potential challenges, and execute a signage program that supports your brand goals – instead of undermining them.

Let’s Get Your Rebranding Right – Contact Atlas