Why Social Media Alone Isn’t Enough to Obtain Contractor Leads

• Posted by Chris Marentis on July 22, 2010
• 1 comments

Integrated Internet Marketing Platform Creates a Winning Strategy

We all know the growing popularity of social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. and the power they have to attract new customers and generate quality leads for your business. While getting involved in social media is a great first step, it is simply not enough involvement and participation to establish the Internet marketing platform necessary to take your business to the next level. Your businesses ability to achieve online marketing success requires you to stay competitive in your local market.

The key is to create your own lead generation platform that provides a continual source of high quality contractor leads. The goal of marketing your business online is to establish trust, build relationships and bring prospective customers into your marketing funnel. The leads you acquire through your online marketing strategy can never compete to those you purchase through a lead service company.

By creating a thorough online lead generation strategy for your business you are developing a solid lead source that will continue to grow with time. With the right integrated Internet marketing platform you can have local, paying customers who are in need of the services you provide.

Because social media is so easily accessible and fairly straightforward, many businesses are jumping on the bandwagon in hopes of keeping their business up to date. While this is a good effort to stay on top, many businesses join the online market, but have no idea what they are doing. Without a cohesive, planned and well-executed strategy, social media can be a waste of time. In order to make the social media community work for your business it must be apart of every businesses Internet marketing formula to dominate the local search. This formula includes:

1. Social Media—Distributed content in social networks with the right keywords throughout the pieces, whether they are articles, blogs, Tweets or videos.

2. Web 2.0—Google Adsense, RSS feeds, social bookmarking and other ways to promote a detailed framework of your businesses online participation.

3. SEO- Search engine optimization must be woven throughout each and every piece of communication from the business, into the online community. The SEO process begins with a properly structured and keyword-optimized website, and continuing throughout all distributed content.

Once these essential pieces are in place, you are well on you way to dominating your businesses local online market. Stay tuned to find out the tricks and strategies to implementing this formula in order to achieve the kind of results you need to grow your business.

Chris Marentis is the Founder and CEO of GenNext Media LLC—a revolutionary interactive media and marketing services company. He is a former CEO of Clearspring Technologies and SVP of America Online. Marentis is also the publisher of the contractor marketing site www.bestcontractorleads.com. He recently published Surefire Social for Contractors, which guides home services contractors to increase profitable lead generation by leveraging next generation distributed web platform technologies and applications like social media to dominate niche markets. To learn out more about Surefire Social for Contractors—the program Chris utilizes to create legacy lead generation assets for contractors—call 703.896.7688 or visit www.surefiresocial.com/contractor-leads.

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Construction Practices: Codes Gone Wild

• Posted by Glenn Mathewson on June 30, 2010
• 3 comments

No, we’re not talking late-night television adds with impressionable college girls, but about a young building code, the International Residential Code, that seems to be just as impressionable.  The “gone wild” of the IRC is that it’s forgetting its standards…as the “minimum standard”.  If you’ve delved into the 2009 IRC you may have noticed what I am talking about.  Beyond just the new and controversial fire sprinkler requirement, there are many other requirements new and old that are a bit over the top.  For the record, 8 am to 6 pm, Mon-Fri, I stand by the standards developed and accepted in our country as…well…the standards of construction.  To build any less is to build illegally, period.  However, I am writing this Blog on the weekend, so I am just an average Joe homeowner like the rest of us today, and I can safely say…”The International Residential Code (IRC) is losing sight of common sense, consistency and its function as the minimum acceptable standard of residential construction”.

There you have it, truth told from the mouth of a former building inspector and a building-safety geek.  That’s right, I smile at the phrase “building safety”, and I make small talk with my wife over dinner about the lack of exit signs, and that’s while at home!!  Obsessed as I am about building codes, I fear contractors and citizens may begin to loose faith in the codes if the current path of development continues.  Here’s a bit of trivia for you:  The 2000 IRC was 578 pages, the 2009 is 868…50% growth.  This magnitude of growth of any building code was unheard of before the 21 century, and I hope it will end very soon.

Starting with this blog, and for the next few, I am going to highlight some code provisions, new and old, which you may not have heard of before or may have purposefully avoided.  I think for contractor and inspector alike, these provisions fall under the “ignorance is bliss” heading.  Too bad I am going to take that bliss away from you, but misery loves company.

Viral Marketing: Silly Bandz, iPads, and Remodeling?

• Posted by Joaquin Erazo, Jr. on June 25, 2010
• 0 comments

Today, teens across the country have their wrists filled with thin colorful bands with different shapes. They display them proudly, trade them, and for some reason –they can’t get enough of them. Stores sell out of them in minutes. It seems like Silly Bandz are the early summer rage for 2010. Ask any teen about Silly Bandz and they will take them off and begin showing you the cool shapes.

In the adult world there’s another interesting phenomenon going on. As usual, Apple has reinvented itself by creating a new product category that fits between a smart phone and a laptop (a category nobody really asked for). The crazy thing about the iPad is that I know I don’t need one, but secretly I really want one –just because. Why you ask? I think like Silly Bandz, simply ask someone to show you their iPad and they will proudly touch away at the screen and give you an incredible demo on all the cool things it can do and their apps with enthusiasm. You’ll want one too.

What do these two things have in common? Excellent viral marketing. So here I am in the residential remodeling world secretly jealous of the hype and strong viral following of these two recent product launches. How do I engage our clients to do the same? Our marketing plans tout how wonderful our companies are; substantiated by claims of great people, design, services, communication, warranties, etc. Yet many homeowners still see remodeling as a commodity product and shop us on price. Does anyone question the $899 cost of the top-of-the-line iPad?

As marketers we need to go beyond traditional messaging and tap into the homeowner’s right brain to help them market for us. Think about your best clients. I bet they are true fans of your company and are viral contributors to your brand. They probably want to help you continue succeeding. Have you given them a platform so they can scream about you from the mountaintops? A simple first step is through social media. There are many platforms such as FaceBook, Twitter, and hundreds of online review sites. Many communities have their own blog sites. Some of our clients have even blogged throughout construction using WordPress. All you need to do is help them connect the dots. Remember that consumers today want to buy and not be sold so they value the opinion of others. Today your reputation/brand can be accelerated (or destroyed) by a mouse click.

As remodelers we may not be SillyBandz or Apple with global reach. It doesn’t mean we can’t do the same as they do -one neighborhood at a time. The good news is that’s all the viral marketing we need.

Joaquin Erazo, Jr., is vice president of Marketing and Public Relations for Case Design, Bethesda, MD, one of the largest home improvement firms in the nation. He combines extensive knowledge of both marketing practices and the remodeling industry to bring a fresh perspective to the challenge of marketing remodeling services. 

Architecture & Design: Delivering Value Through Details

• Posted by Ryan Taylor on May 11, 2010
• 1 comments

Earlier this week, I attended a lecture by a popular local architect.  As he rolled through the slides of his beautiful work, the crowd ooh’d and aah’d at the site planning, the exterior details, the interior details and the craftsmanship that made them all spring to life. Unfortunately, our enthusiasm only lasted until someone in the crowd asked the typical square foot price for the projects and got the response, “Somewhere between $200 at the low end and $800 at the top end.”   I spent some time thinking about the comments made during and after the presentation on my way home. Though many of us don’t work on projects with an $800 per square foot average cost, we can still achieve great details.

With so many people beginning to rediscover the idea of quality over quantity, we’re building smaller, more carefully crafted projects that can enjoy a higher level of detail than we’ve built in quite a long time.  This comes with the challenge of delivering details appropriate to the project location, style of the house and scale of the construction. One example that comes to mind is mouldings.  Some of the installed trim packages I’ve seen leave me with little wonder that we can’t even agree on “mouldings” or “moldings” as the appropriate spelling.

Isn’t it time we take the guesswork out of our trim packages?  I chose this example because it really is a double-edge sword. Trim package details that aren’t appropriate just call attention to the fact that someone invested a lot of time and money in something that shouldn’t be there.  You can use the best wood and achieve beautiful joints yet the work looks terrible because it’s out of scale, the wrong style, etc.  Work that’s so exacting and expensive demands some design time up-front to be sure you’re adding value to the project rather than just throwing up some ornament that’s purely subjective.

One of the many things I like about architecture is the relationships that develop. Mouldings aren’t just ornament; they’re a response to the other elements and function of a space. Studying books like “Theory of Mouldings” by Walker (originally published 1926) and the Dover Press reprints of Asher Benjamin books from the early 1800’s reveals notes on form, scale and proportion that are often overlooked or unknown today. Even if you don’t take every lunch hour to study these details, looking for the relationship between the parts and the historic influences can really open your eyes.

I’ve developed a renewed appreciation for the craftsmen of two generations ago (before the “International Style”).  I don’t shop at big box hardware stores because they don’t offer the selection of proper shapes available from millwork shops. It’s these shops that collect institutional knowledge by serving as a hub for so many craftsmen and making knives to match so many old profiles. Even if you can’t get excited about mouldings, you can add tremendous value to your projects by taking the time to know why we do what we do. 

Ryan Taylor, AIA is a registered architect and founder of taylor28design LLC, an Atlanta-based architecture firm providing services exclusively for single-family residential projects: renovations, additions and new construction.  Ryan's comments have been published by various media such as Southern Living, Atlanta Home Improvement Magazine and the Nightline television program by ABC News.   

Business: Frustrated With Your Employees’ Performance?

• Posted by Shawn McCadden on March 9, 2010
• 0 comments

Maybe they are just doing what they have been conditioned to do…

Recently I have spoken to many remodeling business owners who have expressed their frustration and disappointment in their employees.  These remodelers share that they should be able to expect more from their employees during these difficult economic times.  I don’t disagree.  However, maybe it’s not your employee’s fault that they can’t or are unable to do more.

During the boom before this recession, most remodelers ran their businesses with lots of overhead.  As the business grew, many remodelers, rather than train carpenters to become lead carpenters, hired a production manager to oversee field employees.  As a result, field employees were fed work, materials and work instructions on a daily basis, and for some several times a day.  Carpenters expected and became dependant on someone else to make sure they had something to do every hour of the day along with the tools and equipment needed to do those things.  Carpenters were not expected or required to do any planning or make on the job decisions.  Instead of passing management directly to the field, these remodelers had created a layer of middle management who simply replaced some of the activities the owner had been doing.  As the work slowed down they needed to cut overhead costs and often took back the reigns from middle management employees, for this example; production managers.  

Although already strapped to keep up with things like sales, marketing, estimating and so on; remodelers ended up adding back previously delegated responsibilities onto their plate.  

Essentially, by adding a production manager, instead of creating lead carpenters first, these business owners were not creating sustainable business models.  After the managers were gone, the business still needed the supervision, skills and knowledge those people brought to the business.  Had remodelers first trained lead carpenters and developed a true lead carpenter production system, these same owners would not need to take back the production manager roles and responsibilities.  Their business models could have been sustainable if they had only instilled the supervision, skills and knowledge into their businesses in a different way.

Business owners think and act like business owners because they have real life business management experiences under their belts.  Without these experiences, employees will never have the ability to think and make decisions the same way the business owner would.  Follow this link for more insight about getting employees to think like owners.

Shawn McCadden founded, operated, and sold a successful design/build company. A co-founder of the Residential Design/Build Institute and former director of educaton for a national K&B remodeling franchise, Shawn writes a monthly column for Remodeling magazine, speaks at industry events, and consults with remodeling companies. Email him at shawnm@charter.net.

Click here to see all of Shawn's Remodeling columns: http://www.remodeling.hw.net/expert-opinion/columnists/columnists/shawn-mccadden.aspx

Jobsite Operations: Knot that You Care

• Posted by Mark Clement on February 16, 2010
• 0 comments

Bowlines and Trucker’s Hitches - Simple solutions to jobsite problems

I spend time preparing my show presentations. The Bath Showcase demos are 90 minutes and I should have something to say…just sayin’. Turns out something I can do in my sleep got the most attention (that’ll teach me to prepare!)
 
I’m talking about tying a few simple knots I learned back in my marine construction days. As a small part of my Bath Showcase and a larger part of my Carpenter’s Survival Course, I discussed how and where I use four knots:

• Bowline -- http://www.apparent-wind.com/knots/bowline/

• Trucker’s Hitch -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNWELuXo_bY

• ½ hitch (35-second mark to end of video) -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UImVeFRANgw

• Slip Knot (which I guess people who know more than I call two half-hitches) -- http://www.realknots.com/knots/hitches.htm#twohalfh

I asked the guys to raise their hands if they had bungee cords in their trucks. Most did.
 
I asked how many lost bungees on the road or had them snap back in their faces. More hands.
 
How many spent 50 bucks or so on nylon straps with metal buckles? Hands galore.
 
I don’t own those things because I use the knots and inexpensive 1/8 inch nylon line to tie down massive loads, secure materials, lash down tarps and more. There’s a shot of me using a trucker’s hitch, for example, in Professional Deck Builder to bend a sapling out of the way to build a fence. It only takes a little know-how. Teach a man to fish they say…
 
After the Bath demo and the Survival Course several guys wanted to leave the show knowing exactly how to tie those knots. I could see in their eyes they were having machine-gun fire ah-ha moments.  We even shot a video for JLCTV. If you see it, let me know.  Knot that I care.
 
Mark Clement is a member of the JLCLive!, DeckExpo, and Remodeling Show demonstration team, author of The Carpenter’s Notebook, and co-host of MyFixitUpLife.

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Architecture and Design: Residential Fire Sprinklers

• Posted by Ryan Taylor on February 4, 2010
• 0 comments

Why Wait to Protect the Lives and Property of Your Owners?

Please forgive the pun: Over the past two years, the discussion about residential fire sprinklers has become much more heated.  At issue is a fire sprinkler requirement added to the IRC (International Residential Code) last year.  It’s scheduled to become effective January 1, 2011 in states that adopt the latest version of the code.  My home state of Georgia is not planning to adopt the 2009 IRC so it will be some time before this requirement goes into effect for us unless a state amendment to our current governing 2006 IRC is adopted. You may be in a similar situation.

I have a commercial background so I’m used to working with fire protection and other consulting engineers to develop life safety systems and assemblies.  I’ve wondered why the NAHB (National Association of Home Builders) seems to be the only group in opposition to additional fire protection in new homes.  During this year’s ICC (International Code Council) annual Fall conference, the NAHB filed petitions requesting the repeal of the IRC fire sprinkler requirement.  The petitions layout the NAHB’s argument far beyond the party line that I’ve heard from local and state members.  The problems with the NAHB petitions are two-fold:

1. The NFPA (National Association of Fire Protection) has published an item-by-item response to refute NAHB information.
   
   
2. The Residential Building Code Committee rejected the NAHB request with a majority vote and then the general members voted to uphold the RBCC vote.

I was given the chance to speak at the 2008 Remodeling Show in Baltimore, MD.  As is my practice, I visited a few notable houses, including the newly restored Nemours Mansion of Alfred I. duPont outside Wilmington, DE.  Through the course of my practice, I’ve watched best practices from commercial work and other industries find their way into our residential markets.  The Nemours Mansion has an innovative, yet barely noticeable fire sprinkler system installed. I’ve been waiting for fire sprinkler systems to make their way into our homes, so I pulled one of the guides aside and quizzed them about the system: it’s a sprinkler system first used on boats. It creates a mist to choke the fire rather than trying to drown it as we often do today. Once again, our industry is responding to consumer demand with new technologies that address concerns created by older systems.  How are you responding?  Are you providing leadership by offering new solutions or are you waiting for a client to demand them?

The requirement for residential fire sprinklers is coming: 48 states use the IRC to govern residential construction.  You need to know both sides of the discussion so you can answer questions and offer timely advice to your clients.  My humble home is one level with attic and crawl space access.  It would be relatively easy to add a fire sprinkler system during an energy retrofit or other remodeling project.  I hope you’ll consider adding fire sprinkler systems to your offerings now (even if you’re just adding a subcontractor to your project team) so you’re set apart from your competitors.  I want you to be a leader in this discussion and capture market share before your competitors are spurred into action by the mandatory requirements.

Marketing: The Cold Call Club

• Posted by Adrienne Zoble on January 26, 2010
• 2 comments

Last week I made some follow-up calls to people who had purchased our products within the past few months.  One of the men I reached told me he was working on his Marketing Plan for 2010, and there were some interesting things going on in his company.

When I requested that he tell me more, he replied, “we’ve been working with a sales trainer for several years; and he’s started a Cold Call Club.”

I asked what the Cold Call Club was all about.  “Our sales trainer thought this up.  Our people are hesitant to make cold calls, so once a week we all gather together, with our cell phones, to make cold calls in one room.”

“How is it working?”  “It’s too early to tell,” was his response.

“Look,” I said, I don’t know you very well, and I certainly appreciate your buying our Schmoozing Calendar and Market Planning workbook; but I’m going to go out on a limb and say I don’t think that’s a great idea.”

“Why not?”  “Because,” I countered, “your sales trainer is encouraging your people to work hard instead of smart.  Because the success rate for cold calls since the late 90s has not been better than 4 appointments out of every 100 calls placed.  Because the first question is going to be about price, and because your appointments will be the first ones cancelled.  You’ll be very low on peoples’ radar.”

He listened, and being no more than twenty miles away, asked to set an appointment.  He also attended a seminar I presented locally for 75 people a few days ago on Market Planning.  Boy, was he taking notes!

People complain to me about “this economy,” but the fact remains that there are people whose businesses are doing very well.  They know that marketing is emotional; and they need to instill confidence, comfort level and trust in their prospects.  They generate most of their revenue through referrals and additional business from existing clients, because they market consistently by getting out and schmoozing.  

Cold calling as a marketing strategy is a dinosaur.  Don’t waste your and your salespeople's time.  Instead, encourage them to stay in touch with clients for whom you’ve already done great work, who know and appreciate how terrific your work is.

Then you’ll realize a 2010 worth waiting for.

Adrienne Zoble is the President of Adrienne Zoble Associates, Inc. in Fort Collins, CO. Visit www.azobleassoc.com to learn about Adrienne's new Schmoozing Calendar and Market Planning workbook. You may reach her at azoble@azobleassoc.com.   

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Business: Organize Your Financials for the Right Reasons

• Posted by Shawn McCadden on January 19, 2010
• 0 comments

The following is a question I receive quite often from remodeling contractors.  In this case, the remodeler is a sole proprietor who shares the business profits with his brother, who is a field employee without any legal responsibilities in the business. Partial credit for the answer below should be given to Melanie Hodgdon of Business Systems Management. 

Managing your numbers in a way that makes sense for the business is often times compromised by a lack of accounting expertise on the part of the business owner.  However, remodelers also seem to organize their financial system based on their personal perspective, often driven by emotions.  As a business owner, you can organize your finances any way you choose, so long as the information can be recast appropriately for the purposes of filing tax returns.   Business owners should also keep in mind the way they organize their financial system can either improve or compromise their ability to manage their business and make important financial decisions based on reports.  Every situation can be different and it would be wise to work with an accountant who can help you decide how and why to organize your numbers.  One big consideration that can affect your bottom line is tax liabilities.  During the time I owned my remodeling business, my accountant saved or made me far more money than I paid out to him.  If your current accountant is only acting as a historian, history will likely repeat itself.  If he or she is a historian, it’s not their fault they are still working for you.

The Question:
“Based on profitability, I pay a bonus and make a SEP IRA deposit for each employee.  In my mind this comes out of the profit so I don't think this should show up in the COGS under labor.  I realize there are two schools of thought on this - plan for it and include it in COGS if you intend to pay it every year or put it below the line and consider it either an 0verhead item so it doesn't show up in gross margin or below overhead (other expense) so it doesn't count against earned net profit. I'd like your perspectives on this.”

The Answer:
I suggest it be a COGS labor cost if you pay this out to production staff.  A few reasons I suggest this:

If a par gross profit margin (GPM) is established as the goal for your production employees, and it includes these costs, the employees will have that margin as their goal.  If they achieve the goal of par GPM as well as total Gross Profit (GP) in dollars by achieving the planned volume of work, they know they will have earned the money. Conversely, if they or the business comes up short on par margin and total GP, they will know they will not get the bonus and or it will be a reduced amount.

If you give it to them without them seeing or knowing how it is earned, they might just assume it is their right to get it and just expect it. They might even have already physically or mentally spent the money because they assumed it would be coming.
If you have a bad year and can’t pay it out to them, they will perhaps feel cheated and might end up short on their own cash flow needs.
 
I suggest your current view on this may have a lot to do with your being a sole proprietor where all profit is considered W-2 income. Also remember that as a sole proprietor, you not only have to pay income tax on your profit, but you also have to pay Self-Employment Taxes (the equivalent of the company's contribution to Social Security and Medicare) on this money. If you were paying yourself through a corporation, you would pay these taxes only on the money you receive via payroll. The rest would be considered distribution and subject only to income tax.
 
You should seriously consider changing your legal status to protect yourself, your business, your investments and your family.  If you change the legal status of your business entity you will need to file your taxes in a certain way.  This will likely dictate where the expense should be on your chart of accounts. If it is a bonus or SEP contribution, it is an expense placed above the line for field employees, below the line if for overhead staff.  If it is profit sharing, it would come out of profits.
 
You will probably also need to consider how you include your brother in the new entity as well.  If he is a part legal owner of the business, the method by which he gets the money might affect his tax liability on it.  You should speak with a qualified accountant who is experienced regarding how monies come out of various legal entities. For example, in a traditional partnership, each partner (regardless of how much each invests in the company via funds or labor) may be required to withdraw identical compensation. A partnership may not be a practical (or equitable) solution for you and your brother.  I suggest you also consider how much profit you will share with him considering the fact that he currently has no liability if the business loses money.
 
If he is not an owner and he is paid through payroll the money will be taxed as income on a W-2.  If he has ownership, the bonus money would be a distribution of profits and the tax liability could be much lower for him too, depending on the legal entity you ultimately choose for the business.

Shawn McCadden founded, operated, and sold a successful design/build company. A co-founder of the Residential Design/Build Institute and former director of educaton for a national K&B remodeling franchise, Shawn writes a monthly column for Remodeling magazine, speaks at industry events, and consults with remodeling companies. Email him at shawnm@charter.net.

Marketing: Client Education

• Posted by Adrienne Zoble on January 5, 2010
• 0 comments

Do your clients know everything you do?

This is a question that I pose in virtually every seminar and workshop I present.  I ask attendees to raise their hands only if they would accord themselves at least a 7, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest, in answer to the above question.  Amazingly only about 25 people per year raise their hands!  No, I’m not advocating that you present a laundry list of what you do when you introduce yourself and your company for the first time.  People will just shut down.  It’s good marketing, however, to stay in touch with clients and educate them over a period of time about the diversity of your products and services.

Last week I asked this question, when speaking to a local business group.  Since these people meet regularly, they felt pretty good about communicating the scope of their work.  One man sitting next to me, however, upon introducing himself, said something like this:

“Thanks, Adrienne.  Something you said really got to me; you know, the part about whether or not your customers     know everything you do.  I’m not totally confident everyone here realizes how diverse we are, since our company name is pretty specific; so I’m going to change my usual introduction to include our
various goods and services.”

When he finished I gave him a thumbs-up.  Across the room one of his fellow members called out, “I’ve just been on the cell with a friend who’s looking for someone who does such-and-such.  I didn’t know you did that.  Now I’ll call him back and refer you.”

“I didn’t know you did that.”  How often have you been at the receiving end of that disappointing comment, upon learning you just missed out on a project from a raving fan client or an important advocate?

Hearing that is a direct result of not educating clients, prospects and colleagues repeatedly about what you do.  We’re all stressed; therefore, we simply don’t remember every detail of every company with whom we do business.  

It’s up to you to educate subtly and continually, so your clients, advocates and those with whom you have alliances don’t go elsewhere.  Let 2010 be the year you reap the benefits of smart marketing.  Remember: in marketing, it’s not what you spend, but how you spend it!

Here’s to your best year ever!

Adrienne Zoble is the President of Adrienne Zoble Associates, Inc. in Fort Collins, CO. Visit www.azobleassoc.com to learn about Adrienne's new Schmoozing Calendar and Market Planning workbook. You may reach her at azoble@azobleassoc.com.  

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