How to Choose a Sign Company: 7 Questions to Ask Before You Hire

The sign industry has a transparency problem. Some companies that call themselves "sign companies" design, fabricate, and install everything under one roof with their own team and equipment. Others are brokers — they take your order, send it to a factory (often out of state or overseas), and subcontract the installation to a crew they've never worked with.

Both will give you a quote. Both will show you a design mockup. But the experience, quality, and accountability are completely different. Here are 7 questions that separate a real sign manufacturer from a middleman.

1. Do You Manufacture In-House or Outsource Fabrication?

This is the single most important question. A company that fabricates signs in their own shop controls quality at every step — from bending aluminum to wiring LEDs to painting. A broker sends your order to a factory, often sight unseen, and hopes it comes back right.

What to look for: Ask to see their shop. A real manufacturer has a channel letter bending machine, a CNC router, a paint booth, and a wiring/assembly area. If they can't show you where your sign will be built, they're not building it.

At Lee's Signs, every sign is fabricated in our 5,000+ sq ft shop in Norcross, Georgia. We have an Accubend Lite channel letter machine, a Multicam 3000 CNC router, a Matthews paint booth, and a full electrical assembly area. You're welcome to visit and watch your sign being built.

2. Do You Have Your Own Installation Crew and Equipment?

Installation is where quality either holds up or falls apart. A company that installs with their own crew and equipment has direct accountability for the finished product. A company that subcontracts installation is handing your sign off to someone who didn't build it — and the subcontractor's incentive is speed, not quality.

What to look for: Ask what equipment they own. Boom trucks? Crane trucks? Do their installers work for them full-time, or are they day-laborers hired for the job?

Lee's Signs owns two 50-ft Versalift boom trucks and a Skyhook crane truck. Ray, our installation lead, has been with us for years and knows every sign we build. We install what we fabricate — period.

3. How Long Have You Been in Business?

The sign industry has low barriers to entry. Someone with a laptop and a phone can call themselves a sign company and start selling. They take orders, outsource everything, and when problems arise, they close the LLC and start a new one.

What to look for: Years in business at the same location. A physical address you can visit. A track record you can verify. Ask for references from projects completed 3–5 years ago — that tells you whether their signs held up and whether they were still around to service them.

Lee's Signs was founded in 1989 by Jong Chul Lee. We've been at our Norcross location for decades. We're not going anywhere.

4. Can You Show Me Completed Projects Similar to Mine?

A portfolio of real completed work — with photos of actual installations, not stock images or 3D renderings — tells you whether a company can deliver what they're promising. If they can't show you work they've done, they probably haven't done it.

What to look for: Project photos on their website and social media. Before-and-after shots. Night photos showing illumination quality. Photos of the actual shop and team — not generic stock photography. If every image looks like a 3D rendering, ask for real installation photos.

5. Do You Handle Permits?

Sign permitting varies by city and county. In metro Atlanta alone, there are dozens of jurisdictions with different sign ordinances, application processes, and timelines. A company that handles permits knows the local codes, has relationships with permitting offices, and can navigate the process efficiently.

Red flag: If a sign company tells you to handle your own permits, they either don't know the process or don't want to deal with it. Either way, it signals inexperience with commercial signage.

Lee's Signs handles the full permit process — from application preparation to submission to managing revisions and approval. We've pulled permits in virtually every city in the metro Atlanta area and throughout the Southeast. We know the codes, the staff, and the process.

6. What Materials and Components Do You Use?

The difference between a sign that lasts 5 years and one that lasts 15 is almost entirely about material and component quality. Cheap LED modules fail in 2–3 years. Budget paint fades in 3–5 years. Thin-gauge aluminum dents from a strong handshake.

What to ask specifically:

What brand of LED modules? (Look for SloanLED, GE Current, Samsung, Philips — not unbranded imports.)

What type of paint system? (Two-part polyurethane like Matthews or PPG is the standard for durability. Single-stage enamel is a cost-cutting red flag.)

What gauge aluminum? (.040"–.063" for returns is standard. Thinner gauges dent easily.)

What type of acrylic? (Cast acrylic with UV stabilizers lasts 7–12 years. Cheap extruded acrylic yellows in 3–5 years.)

Are the finished signs UL listed? (UL listing means the sign as an assembled unit has been built to safety standards. Most Georgia jurisdictions require it.)

7. What Happens After Installation?

Signs are durable, but they're not maintenance-free. LEDs can fail. Power supplies burn out. Paint weathers. Storms cause damage. The question is: when something goes wrong in Year 3 or Year 7, will your sign company answer the phone?

What to ask: What warranty do you provide? (Industry standard is 1–2 years on workmanship, 5 years on LED components.) Do you offer maintenance and repair services? Do you service signs you didn't build? (Companies that do are confident in their technical capabilities.)

Lee's Signs stands behind every sign we build, and we service signs we didn't build too. When something goes wrong, we're 15 minutes away in Norcross with boom trucks ready to go. One phone call.

Red Flags to Watch For

No physical shop: If they can't show you where signs are fabricated, they're a broker.

No portfolio of real work: Stock photos and 3D renderings instead of actual installation photos.

Unusually low price: If one quote is 40–50% below the others, ask what's different. Usually it's cheaper materials, outsourced fabrication, or no permit included.

No mention of permits: A company that doesn't bring up permitting either doesn't know the process or plans to skip it — leaving you exposed to code enforcement fines.

Pressure tactics: "This price is only good for 48 hours." Reputable sign companies don't do this. Material prices are stable. A good quote is good for 30–60 days.

No references: Any company with 5+ years in business should be able to provide 3–5 references from past clients. If they can't, ask why.

The Bottom Line

A sign is a 10–15 year investment in your business's visibility and brand. The company you choose to build it matters as much as the design. Ask these 7 questions, visit the shop if you can, and choose a manufacturer — not a middleman.