MEGATHREAD Signing Tips, Tricks and Quips (along with howls of despair)

What do you all think about having to set up overhead signage at 4am on Black Friday? Now that is just ridiculous.

OH! There is 1 overhead sign that has to be hung in the cartwell (or approx in my case) on the morning of the 18th. I have it ready with hooks, but I already know it will be waiting for me when I return to work on the 20th...
 
TargetOldTimer said:
What do you all think about having to set up overhead signage at 4am on Black Friday? Now that is just ridiculous.

OH! There is 1 overhead sign that has to be hung in the cartwell (or approx in my case) on the morning of the 18th. I have it ready with hooks, but I already know it will be waiting for me when I return to work on the 20th...
Click to expand...

I believe the paperwork said to hang the 4am overheads on the 21st after the store closes.

The one overhead is for the 4 day ad. Hopefully someone can put it up for you. Since I don't work on Sundays it might go up a day late.
 
ISM Master said:
I believe the paperwork said to hang the 4am overheads on the 21st after the store closes.

The one overhead is for the 4 day ad. Hopefully someone can put it up for you. Since I don't work on Sundays it might go up a day late.
Click to expand...

We open at 9pm on the 22nd. Hang it 7 hours before the ad starts?
 
Just had to vent, but this has been the WORST signing experience ever for Christmas Seasonal.

Every thing that I have opened and worked on, has had an issue. Missing pieces, bad design, parts not glued/attached correctly, instructions are incorrect, measurements for pieces are incorrect, holes not punched out, etc. I wish I could send feedback telling them exactly what I think and all the issues we ran into for Seasonal and how much time we have had to spend improvising.

Not only that, but the workload has been insane over the last few weeks. I've ran out of room to put stuff, and getting a minimum of 4 pallets every week makes it difficult to find a place to work and store all the received items.

Is it just me or are you also having these issues?
 
dek067 said:
also, im having issues with my signing guy not being able to keep up with his orders. we do ppas, follow ups, and he prints where he orders the tipp items weekly and files them. but theres so much on backorder, and people are subbing like crazy, we just keep running out. it seems like the lead in times on tipp are no where close, or either he isn't ordering like he needs to be. any suggestions on how to keep it all straight? i know we're under scheduled so he's been having to set a LOT lately. but my team does all there own signing/displays, so he should have time for his stuff.
Click to expand...


This is the problem that I'm having as well. There's stuff that I've ordered that keeps getting canceled, and it's not special fixtures, but very common fixtures. MySupport says just resubmit the order and when the vendor has inventory, they will send.
 
It hasn't been the worst for me. Maybe the least enjoyable. I actually really like the holiday sets in general. They're usually a lot of work, but pretty impressive once you're done, and that usually gives me a pretty good sense of accomplishment - also its the one time the rest of the store might notice what you're doing. I think the holiday overhead program is to say the least - underwhelming. It's easier to hang, so that's good but it's just nothing better than any normal set. Was there a package for x-lane overheads this year? I just got FOS and Power Aisle. Also - my VA shows overheads over the Premium Wrap section but I never got any? So I see that the reduced the overhead program and expanded in the bins and such. The bins are underwhelming. Poor packing made every xmas tree box arrive exploded. So I have yet to get one in with all the parts. The boxes are so big - they barely fit out the doors of my backroom - which I have to do every night I want to work on things because my storage area is in the vicinity of the truck unload so I can't work there this week - I have to bring it all out to the floor. If I had the storage space - I could have been done building by now, but with the sets it was a lot of hurry-up and wait. I could only build one focal, plus the first wave of softlines shippers and I was out of room. Tonight is my last night this week so next week I will be building straight through the Black Friday bins if possible - someone will have to figure out storage, I don't feel like sitting on these until Thanksgiving.
 
NOP said:
This is the problem that I'm having as well. There's stuff that I've ordered that keeps getting canceled, and it's not special fixtures, but very common fixtures. MySupport says just resubmit the order and when the vendor has inventory, they will send.
Click to expand...


Not only that - they will send it all at once and at a time where you have no time to put the stuff up.
 
ISM Master said:
Haven't received the gifting trees for softlines yet for the 4th. Just when I thought that most of the building was done, my PTL shows me a picture of the trees and asks if we had them yet. Looks like next week will be finishing up the overheads, building the softline trees, and building the mini seasonal shippers. Plus all the regular plano signs and the new price match signs. Hope there's no new surprises waiting.
Click to expand...

I would like to know where they got their information, because nobody told me about the tree shippers at my store, except for the STL who told me I had 90 hours of signing to build trees. I was trying to figure out what I was going to be building since the christmas trees were already done.
 
Last edited:
commiecorvus said:
Just exactly who was the bright boy (or girl) that decided to schedule a full electronics revision in the middle of the frelling holiday set?
I'd really like to have a few unpleasant words with him/her.
Click to expand...
I agree,how many resets does electronics have to go thru this year? I managed to get up just the major intersection overheads yesterday, talked with HR and STL told them again, I was behind. I said well I lost my help 15 or the 16 hours this week due to price accuracy and you pulled me 10 hours last week for price accuracy. so how many do you need. I am thinking at least 14 that is just to catch me up thru the end of 11/4. that doesn't include the 2 day bins ok we will have flow team build those. I am very particular about who I have help. especially with the issues with the folds and all the missing parts I have had for the Christmas trees in softlines. my pallets are horrible. bruised, battered and broken all the time now!I am ad prep the next 2 days. depending on how much there is, and it looks good size will depend on how much I can help. I have only 2 people that can hang overheads and they are both at 40. next week I have 3 1/2 days of ad prep due to the additional ad. CALGON TAKE ME AWAY!!!!!!!!
when I took a 4 day vacation a month ago, i was a full week ahead, when I got back I have been two weeks behind ever since
 
NOP said:
Just had to vent, but this has been the WORST signing experience ever for Christmas Seasonal.

Every thing that I have opened and worked on, has had an issue. Missing pieces, bad design, parts not glued/attached correctly, instructions are incorrect, measurements for pieces are incorrect, holes not punched out, etc. I wish I could send feedback telling them exactly what I think and all the issues we ran into for Seasonal and how much time we have had to spend improvising.

Not only that, but the workload has been insane over the last few weeks. I've ran out of room to put stuff, and getting a minimum of 4 pallets every week makes it difficult to find a place to work and store all the received items.

Is it just me or are you also having these issues?
Click to expand...

This has got to be some of the worst packed stuff in a long time.
I've had so many boxes with edges busted and parts dripping out that I thought about making a drinking game out of 'what parts am I missing from this build', only I suspect my liver couldn't take it.
 
NOP said:
I would like to know where they got their information, because nobody told me about the tree shippers at my store, except for the STL who told me I had 90 hours of signing to build trees. I was trying to figure out what I was going to be building since the christmas trees were already done.
Click to expand...

The STL got an email about these. They told the PTL who told me.
 
Ugh..this signing this christmas...hasn't been too bad at least its not like a couple years ago! I am so glad there isn't any of the over the checklane signing!
Iv had the worst time with my signing storage area this christmas that and with all the blackfriday cluster bins :\ ..and everyone thinking its a free for all "hey! Let's cut open Every box to see if my stuffs there and NOT tape it shut" I sure do get a good suprise with that!
 
marionettex1 said:
Ugh..this signing this christmas...hasn't been too bad at least its not like a couple years ago! I am so glad there isn't any of the over the checklane signing!
Iv had the worst time with my signing storage area this christmas that and with all the blackfriday cluster bins :\ ..and everyone thinking its a free for all "hey! Let's cut open Every box to see if my stuffs there and NOT tape it shut" I sure do get a good suprise with that!
Click to expand...

That's the best. Like especially when you clean everything up, tape up any open boxes, make sure everything is nice and neat, sweep - you name it. Then you come back after the weekend and everything is open, on the floor, ripped open, thrown around. backer paper punch holes everywhere. thats the best. and then if its a monday there should be like 2 or 3 pallets then on top of that. great start!
 
NOP said:
I would like to know where they got their information, because nobody told me about the tree shippers at my store, except for the STL who told me I had 90 hours of signing to build trees. I was trying to figure out what I was going to be building since the christmas trees were already done.
Click to expand...

pull up the monthly signing workload pages on workbench. it's under pricing, then signing. it'll lay everything coming up by date.
 
dek067 said:
pull up the monthly signing workload pages on workbench. it's under pricing, then signing. it'll lay everything coming up by date.
Click to expand...

Yes! If you're not familiar with this yet, print it out and check things off as you get then done! It will save you getting any non-plano surprises and you can easily show others what you've gotten done. Also if you need any other departments to partner with you - this will have all the info you need to pre-empt them with it ahead of time.
 

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