Industry Insights: The Power of Association

Taylor Blanchett, sales executive with Blanchett Neon in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, understands the power of association. The company, founded by her great grandfather, is member of the Alberta Sign Association, the Sign Association of Canada and ISA.

“I do a lot of our marketing here,” she said. “I put our association membership on our letterhead and on our quotes. It adds to our credibility, the fact that you’re a member of a state, national and international association.”

But it’s not just the value that comes from marketing. As a relative newcomer to the industry herself, she has found the importance of networking and learning from her peers. Despite the family business, she had majored in music in college and had no plans to enter the sign and graphics industry.

When Blanchett Neon landed a large contract to retrofit 120 bank branches over a 5,000-kilometer area with LEDs, she came on board to coordinate the project and found a career she loves—and now wants to grow in.

“It’s just such a unique industry and so many aspects to it,” she said. “I enjoyed all the things that I could do. It’s so interesting to drive around and see all the projects that you built from a piece of paper to 50-feet high.”

Despite jumping into the deep end with the massive bank project, she still feels there is a learning curve—and she’s found much of her growth comes from asking others, especially those she meets at association meetings.

“There is a lot of value in sharing the experience and the advice for someone just starting out. I think it’s a really useful and a great training tool. It helps you succeed further in the sign industry.”

She’s been willing to do the same for others as well, networking with other young professionals. “As a young sign professional, there’s not a whole lot of us. We keep in touch; it’s been helpful to chat about specific things that we’re facing.”

Though her tenure in the industry is not very long, she has plenty to offer as well. Now that she’s moved into a marketing role at Blanchett, she is seeing success. “A lot of our competitors don’t have a huge online presence. I see a real niche there, where we can fit in and saturate the online world with sign and graphics industry material.”

She’s also open to sharing what she’s learned. “I find a lot of value in sharing experiences and advice for someone just starting out. It’s always great to talk about how they’ve overcome situations or faced challenges. It’s really useful and helps you succeed further in the sign and graphics industry.”

Whether just starting out or much deeper in the career, there is a lot of value in being able to talk about things you’re facing with someone who understands. Or to share a vendor contact or advice on a specific project. Those connections are made at events like ISA International Sign Expo or at a state/regional Affiliated Association meeting. They’re honed by serving on committees together, by serving as a sounding board or a source. And they are renewed through the years.

Of course, networking is just one important function of an association. Collectively, we solve problems facing our industry. This may mean helping companies recruit and train the next generation of workers. It can mean producing research that provides more understanding of issues and opportunities in the sign and graphics industry. It means staying on top of regulations and laws at the federal, state and local level.

No one company could do this on their own. But when we all work together to pool our collective expertise and resources, we can accomplish great things.

“Associations like ISA have so many resources that can help companies,” Taylor said. “It’s just up to us to know they are there and to use them.”

If you’d like to learn more about the power of membership in ISA and Affiliated Associations, contact [email protected] or visit www.signs.org/join.