An article in the May edition of Signmedia titled “Aisles of innovation” is in and of itself interesting for the intended reason—to detail the innovation behind a big and comprehensive supermarket sign project. The opening of the supermarket was an opportunity for the sign company to demonstrate its range of products and services. The telling of it should interest any sign shop owner or employee.
However, with that said, hidden in plain sight in the article is a passage that underscores the importance and benefit of working to establish long-standing relationships with customers. The passage explains that the sign company landed the job to design, produce, and install all the signs for a new supermarket because of a “long-standing partnership” between the sign company and the owners of the new supermarket.
Interesting as the article may be from a sign planning and design perspective, the underlying strategic business lesson is: “Build long-standing partnerships with your customers.”