Before you sign a sign quote: the questions that show who will actually deliver

Eight questions that sort sign companies quickly

Before you hire a sign company, ask who designs the sign, who builds it, who installs it, who handles the landlord approval and the city permit, who makes the electrical connection, what the quote includes, who your one point of contact is, and what happens if something fails after installation. Then ask to see a proof of the sign on a photo of your own building. Clear, specific answers to those questions matter more than the lowest number.

We run the FASTSIGNS center on North Jim Miller Road near Fair Park, and we would rather a customer ask us all of this up front than find a gap halfway through a project. Here is what each question uncovers and what a good answer sounds like.

• Who designs the sign, and will I see it on my building before production?
• Are fabrication and installation done by your own team, or sent out to a subcontractor?
• Who prepares the landlord package and pulls the city permit?
• Who makes the electrical connection, and are they licensed?
• What exactly does the quote include and exclude?
• Who is my single contact from quote to installation?
• What happens if the sign fails or is damaged after it goes up?

Who designs it, and will you see it on your own building?

A sign can look perfect on a white screen and wrong on a brick facade next to a neighbor's red letters. Ask whether the company will produce a rendering of the proposed sign on a straight-on photo of your storefront, at the correct scale. That one image answers questions about size, color and placement that a sketch cannot, and it is usually what a landlord wants to see anyway.

Ask what they need from you to start. A good answer includes a vector logo file, your brand colors, facade photos, measurements and the landlord sign criteria. A company that never asks for the sign criteria is a company that may design something the landlord will reject. Also ask how many rounds of changes are included before a revision becomes a charge, so a small font change does not become a surprise later.

Who builds it, and who climbs the ladder

Some sign companies are really brokers. They sell the sign, send fabrication to one shop and installation to another crew, and coordinate by phone. That model can work, but when something goes wrong, three parties can point at each other. Ask plainly which parts of the job are done by the company's own people.

At our center, graphic design, production, project management and installation are all services we provide, so the people who designed the sign are the people who answer for how it goes up. Our installation team handles site signs, large banners, building directories, window and floor graphics, vehicle graphics, ADA signs, exterior and monument signs, including jobs that need lifts, ladders and specialized tools. Whoever you hire, find out who will actually be on site and whether they carry insurance for working at height on someone else's building.

Who handles the permit, and who does the wiring?

In Dallas, the city's Building Inspection page says a contractor must be registered before any sign permit can be issued, and that electrical sign installation requires a registered electrical or sign electrical contractor. Permits are required for signs over 20 square feet of effective area, signs over eight feet tall, and any illuminated sign. Ask the sign company whether it prepares the drawings and files the permit, or whether that is left to you. Our team makes sure signage meets local codes and can obtain permits when a project needs them.

For a lit sign, ask who makes the final electrical connection. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation licenses sign electricians, and its description of the master sign electrician license covers installing, connecting and reconnecting the wiring and equipment used with signs. FASTSIGNS centers do not perform electrical sign work themselves, so on illuminated projects that connection is made by a licensed electrical contractor. The right answer to this question names who that is, not a vague we will take care of it.

What the quote covers, line by line

Ask for a quote that separates design, fabrication, permit work, removal of any old sign, installation and electrical coordination. A single lump sum hides which of those is missing. When you compare two companies, the cheaper quote often leaves out the permit, the old sign removal or the lift, and those costs come back later.

Our guide to what drives the price of a business sign in Dallas explains each of those cost lines, so you can tell whether a quote is low because it is efficient or low because it is incomplete.

• Design and the number of revision rounds
• Fabrication materials, lighting and finish
• Landlord drawings, permit drawings and permit fees
• Removal of the old sign and patching the fascia
• Installation, lift rental and any traffic control
• Electrical connection by a licensed contractor

Ask for a schedule and a contact, not a promise

A sign project has waiting periods: landlord review, city review, fabrication, and an install date that depends on weather and the electrician. Silence during those weeks is what makes customers anxious, and vague dates are what make openings slip. Ask the company to lay out the timeline in stages: design and proof, landlord review, permit, fabrication, installation. A company that gives you one number for the whole job without mentioning review time is either guessing or planning to skip a step. The City of Dallas says sign permits typically take around two business days to approve when all required items are submitted, but the landlord review and any redesign it triggers sit in front of that, and fabrication of a lit sign comes after.

Then ask what they need from you to hold that schedule. Most delays we see come from waiting on a logo file, a signed proof or a landlord contact. Knowing that in advance lets you keep your side moving.

Finally, ask who your contact is during those waiting periods, how often you will hear from them, and how they will tell you if a date slips. Communication is the thing our own customers mention most. Reviewers on our Google listing describe being kept in the loop at every step, and one describes two large banners and two truck magnets, artwork included, being ready in two days for a parade. Read reviews of any company you are considering with that lens: not only whether the work looked good, but whether people knew what was happening while they waited.

What happens after installation day

The last question on the list is the one people forget. Ask what is covered after the sign goes up and for how long, and get it in writing rather than as a verbal assurance. Ask who you call if a section of letters goes dark, if a storm damages a face, or if the sign needs to be removed when you move.

Ask, too, whether the company keeps your artwork and production files. When you need a replacement face, a second location or matching vehicle graphics two years later, a shop that still has the files can produce them without starting over. A good sign company expects to hear from you again and plans for it.

Reviews, past work and certifications

Read the most recent reviews, not just the star rating, and look for details that match your project: storefront signs, vehicle graphics, event banners. Ask to see photos of installations the local shop itself completed. Franchise and national brand websites often show brand-level gallery images, which tell you what the system can do but not what this particular team has built.

If your organization buys under a supplier diversity program, ask about certifications early, because they can decide whether a vendor is eligible at all. Our center holds a Small Business Enterprise certification from the DFW Minority Supplier Development Council and a Texas Historically Underutilized Business certificate. A procurement office will want to verify any certification directly, so ask for the certificate details.

Red flags worth slowing down for

None of these automatically disqualifies a company, but each one deserves a follow-up question before you pay a deposit.

• No request for your landlord sign criteria before quoting a storefront sign
• A suggestion to skip the permit because the sign is small or the city will not notice
• No clear answer about who makes the electrical connection
• A quote with no breakdown and no mention of installation or removal
• Production starting before you have approved a final proof in writing
• A promised install date that ignores landlord and city review time

How we answer these questions for you

Quotes from our center are free, and we are happy to walk through every question on this list during the first call, Monday through Friday from 8:30 to 5:00. Send photos, measurements, your logo and the landlord criteria if you have them, and we will come back with a recommendation, a rendering and a quote that shows what is included.

If you are opening a new space, our guide to getting the storefront sign, permit and landlord approval right covers the full sequence. If you are weighing whether to put up some of it yourself, read what you can install yourself and what you should not first. Either way, you should finish the first conversation knowing who does what, and that is the standard we hold ourselves to across the Dallas area.

Questions people ask me