Is your carwash missing in action along your street? Is it passed, unnoticed, by thousands of motorists each day because of an inadequate, antiquated or missing sign? Without adequate signage your business is hemorrhaging profit dollars.

Here are 10 reasons you need to re-evaluate your wash's signage.

There is a direct correlation between visibility and cash flow. The battle cry and price-setting feature of commercial real estate is "location! location! location!"

Most prime commercial property is sold by the front linear foot. In other words, it takes a lot of money to be up front and visible.

Not all washes can afford a location that is the most visible to passing drivers. However, an effective sign can place you up front visibly, even if your business is hidden from view.

You never get a second chance to make a first impression. Your sign is representative of your business; it lets customers see all your features and benefits. An effective sign can make your wash stand head and shoulders above every other competing wash in town.

A properly designed sign can create "top-of-the-mind awareness" with the consumer. In other words, when consumers think of getting a carwash, they think of your wash first. The repetitiveness of passing an effective sign creates an instant visual association between the consumer's need and your business.

According to census data, the average yearly turnover of smalltown America is 25 percent of the current population base. So while you may like to say, "Every body knows I am here," at best this may be only 75 percent true.

Consider McDonald's - why do you think they put golden arches in front of the smallest volume store in the smallest town in which they do business? The answer is obvious, you don't get to be the best without constantly reminding every consumer, every time they pass by, that you are "open for business.

Many carwash operators believe word-of-mouth advertising is the best available. According to Signs of the Times magazine, your sign is the best advertising medium you have. A survey conducted by business owners of their new clients said 54 percent of customers entering their business for the first time entered because of the business sign, while 29 percent of new customers came in because of word-of-mouth.

Even if your town has no turnover in population, a sign will remind your existing client base to return more often. If you don't add a single new customer from your community next year, and just bring existing clients back two more times than they otherwise would have, it would represent a significant increase in sales.

How many teenagers in your community will get their driver's licenses today? You always have a new and expanding market. This natural expansion, courtesy of the department of motor vehicles, is one more reason to tell your story everyday.

Have you ever been riding down the road, seen a sign, remembered a need that can be met at this establishment, turned in to the business and made a purchase? Signs create impulse traffic into your carwash.

Tell the public that your business can give them a clean car and you can do it now. Many operators will tell you that the impulse buyer will spend more money than a customer who comes in for a specific reason.

Think of your sign as a non-commissioned silent salesperson. How many salary or commission dollars would you have to spend to get your message in the minds of as many people as your sign will reach in a single day?

The sign never calls in sick, never files a claim with the employment commission, does not require paid vacation time, health benefits, counseling, workers' compensation or a Christmas bonus. A properly maintained sign is a vital employee, at a fraction of the cost of traditional labor.

Traditional advertising can be expensive and results are not guaranteed. Most advertising methods are consumable. In other words, you use it today and it is gone. Even the yellow pages must be paid continually or you won't have an ad next year.

The sign is the only advertising form that is not consumed and won't have to be replaced. It is paid for once, will stay on the job for years and is a permanent fixture and an asset of the business.

According to the US Small Business Administration, the cost per 1,000 adults reached is as little as six cents, compared to $2.40 per 1,000 for radio advertising.

The true bottom line is the return on investment. In considering the cost of a sign, if you consider the profits it will generate the bottom line becomes, "How much money will it make me?"

You are in business to maximize bottom-line profits. So remember that the net cost of the sign is the price minus profits, tax deductions, community goodwill, and many new and happy customers.

A short cut you take in the purchase of the sign may reduce the price, but it may also reduce the sign's effectiveness and increase the true bottom-line cost.

For more information, please go to www.carwash.com, click on the "archives" icon and use the following keyword in an article search: signs.