• Appliances:  Respond quickly to small leaks around refrigerators with ice makers, dishwashers and washing machines before they become major problems.  Install reinforced braided stainless steel hoses for the feed lines to your washing machines and dishwashers.  Try to never leave the house when these units are running.
• Carbon Monoxide Detectors: It’s a good idea to install a carbon monoxide alarm on each level of your home, and in or near each sleeping area.  Try to keep the detectors at least 20 feet from fuel burning appliances.  Inspect and clean dust from the covers of your carbon monoxide alarms.
• Chimney:  Have a certified chimney sweep inspect and clean the flues and check your fireplace damper annually, especially if you have an active wood burning stove.
• Dryer:  Clean clothes dryer exhause duct, damper and space under dryer.
• Electrical:  Replace all UL approved extension cords that have become brittle, worn or damaged.
• Escape Plan:  Review your fire escape plan with your family.
• Fire Extinguishers:  always have multi-purpose fire extinguishers accessible in your kitchen, basement and garage.

Following our meetings, one gave me a price on the spot and two never responded with an estimate. Two contractors mailed an estimate, and one of them followed up a week later.

Guess who got the job. Just by making a five-minute phone call! What fascinated me most was that only one contractor called back to discuss his proposal and ask for my business.

How can these salespeople afford not to follow up? Conducting my own research, each one said they needed more business, yet didn’t know the status of the majority of proposals they sent. I sensed that following up regarding their proposal was not their typical M.O. Instead, here’s what they said.

· I thought you were using someone else.
· I didn’t think you were ready to buy.
· I thought you felt the price was too high.
· I didn’t want to bother or pressure you.

While these contractors formulated their own conclusion, they never bothered to confirm if their assumptions were, in fact, true! They were operating under the costly assumption, “The prospect will call when they’re ready.”

I asked Bill, one of the contractors, “If you’re sacrificing valuable time to drive to an appointment, deliver a presentation, write a proposal and then don’t follow up and ask for a prospect’s business after taking all of the steps that earned you the opportunity to do so, who are you really helping?” Then it hit him between the eyes. “My competition!”

Bill realized something that only a select few have. While prospects need his remodeling knowledge and skills, they also need his help in making their purchasing decision.

Bill recently called me with some exciting results. After making thirty phone calls to past prospects, he spoke with ten prospects he had met with. Bill sold three more deals ($78,000) in one week that he never would have sold.

In many businesses, especially the ones that sell directly to consumers such as home remodeling, cold calling consumers via the phone is no longer an option to generate new leads. Aside from canvassing door to door, networking, asking for referrals, posting job signs or traditional (and sometimes costly) marketing/advertising campaigns, what else brings in more business? Follow up calls.

How many prospects are waiting for your phone call so they can send you a deposit? How many people are out there waiting to begin working with you?

Bill and I sat down to crunch the numbers. I shared this observation with him. “Consider that you can make about fifteen calls per hour (one hour per week). Assume that out of fifteen contacts, you make one more sale. (Average sale $10,000.) Four hours a month equates to four more sales. Over a year, that’s $480,000 in volume. This exceeds the yearly volume of most contractors just by making one hour of follow up calls each week!”

If you take a moment and look at your call back list, how much business does that equate to? Now ask yourself, “How much of it am I willing to give to my competition?”

Since your competitors aren’t paying you commission, here’s your opportunity to utilize a simple, efficient three-step follow up system that will bring in more (free) sales.

1. Get Permission. Whether you need to follow up after an initial conversation or once a prospect receives your proposal, tries out your product, speaks with references or needs to check their schedule before they meet with you a second time, it’s just good business sense to get permission before doing so. For instance, you inform the prospect they will be receiving your proposal next Friday. Before you leave the appointment ask, “May I follow up with you to discuss and answer any questions you have regarding my proposal?” Gaining permission to follow up eliminates your fear of appearing overly aggressive or pushy. Now, they’re expecting your call.

2. Schedule A Meeting. Now that you’ve gotten permission, schedule a time that you will be calling or meeting with them. Immediately put it in your planner or PDA. This eliminates the time consuming game of phone tag and having to hunt your prospect down in order to schedule yet another time to meet or review your proposal, reducing the number of calls you’ll have to make or respond to.

Tip from The Coach: There is an exception to this rule. If part of your selling strategy requires drafting a proposal for a prospect, rather than sending your proposal and then scheduling a time to meet after they’ve received it, if possible, it’s always better to schedule a time to hand deliver your proposal. This way, you can review it face to face (or computer to computer) with the prospect and immediately address any concerns or barriers to the sale. Reviewing the proposal upon delivery provides you with the luxury of handling all possible objections immediately so that you can then ask for the prospect’s business, thus reducing the chance of your proposal becoming another item on the prospect’s lengthy ‘to-do’ list. In many cases, the longer it takes to reconnect with a prospect, the closer your proposal gets to the bottom of their priority list.

3. Just Follow Up! Depending on the sheer number of prospects you connect with, start by putting aside at least one hour each week that’s strictly devoted to this practice. Considering your ROI, it’s time well invested. Otherwise, something else will always take precedent.

Instead of thinking about how many calls you need to make, consider how many sales you’ll be giving to your competition if you don’t. If something as simple as following up provides you with a competitive edge, then your next sale is just a phone call away.

Keith Rosen is fanatical about increasing your sales, improving your business and helping you achieve what matters most. That’s why more top global sales organizations chose Keith’s sales training and management coach training solutions to drive more sales. Keith addresses the specific challenges and objectives unique to your company, then moves beyond traditional training by coaching your salespeople and managers around best practices and best thinking which develops true champions.

A globally recognized authority on sales and leadership, Keith is the CEO of Profit Builders, named the Best Sales Training and Coaching Company Worldwide. Keith has written several best sellers on time management, selling, prospecting and leadership coaching, including the widely acclaimed Coaching Salespeople into Sales Champions, winner of Five International Best Book Awards.

Subscribe to his newsletter, The Winners Path, http://www.profitbuilders.com/winnerspath.htm. Find more sales and management coach training videos and podcasts on www.ProfitBuilders.com.

Hiring a designer

Naturally you have probably already decided on what that project is and you may even have started to contemplate what you would like it to look like. Now if you are like many people, you can’t quite envision what the completed project will look like as a finished piece. So if your budget allows my first suggestion would be to ask around for a qualified designer. Maybe you have friends or co-workers who have recommendations. Once you have asked around and interviewed potential designers, you can start the flow of ideas. Designers help with not only choosing materials but also placement of windows, outlets and everything so that when a project is completed it all works smoothly together.

Hiring a contractor

Contractors are like everyone else. Some are really good and some aren’t and the trick is to weed out the poor ones. The first step here is to research and ask around and by all means don’t just run through the Yellow Pages for contractors. Have your friends suggest some people that they have used and then do your own research on the internet, ask them how they worked out and if you think you would be interested in using them, set up a meeting. Now at this point I’ll go through out some hints:

They promptly return your call- very good.

They arrive at the meeting on time and prepared- very good again.

They are running a bit late and they call to apologize- they value you and your time too.

As you meet and talk, what’s your feeling? Do you seem to communicate well and is he interested in hearing what you have to say?

Do you trust this person and feel comfortable? If this is a no then that should be it. Done deal and on to the next contractor. You will be spending a great deal of time talking and dealing with this person and if you aren’t totally comfortable from the start, it will probably not get better as the project goes on. Choosing the right match for your contractor is the hardest part but if you are comfortable with their presence, responses, personality or really any aspect, I’d try someone else. They may be a great contractor but it has to feel right from the start.

Don’t be shy

As you are talking with anyone that may be involved in your renovation, don’t be shy. If you have a question or concern you should ask the person and if they are professional they will know that you may not be knowledgeable in that area and will be more than willing to address your question or concern. You need to feel comfortable in your decisions and choices, they need to explain things to you so that you are. If they aren’t able to or shrug off your concerns and questions, move on as it probably won’t be a good working relationship.

Contracts

The next thing that you should do to ensure your renovation project is a success is get a contract. Having a written contract is just good for both parties. It spells out what you as the client are expecting as well as the responsibilities of the contractor, designer or anyone else that you hiring. A contract makes sure that everyone is agreeing to the same things and that as the project progresses there are no doubts or misconceptions on any parties part. The client can’t say “I thought we were getting granite counters,” when the contract clearly states Formica. If granite is what they truly want, then a change order can be made and everyone can still feel that it has been a fair process. Oh and if you hear- “oh I never use contracts.” Please move on to the next person

Now if you take your time and do your research and interviews, you should have a successful renovation. However if you don’t do these then you really shouldn’t complain. Remember, there are good designers, contractors, plumbers and electricians and there are bad ones. Asking the right questions and having the right information will be the key to a successful renovation project.

Todd Vendituoli

http://www.thebuildingblox.com/
http://www.socialmedia4builders.com/
And can also be found around the web on:
https://twitter.com/#!/TALV58
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Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world’s leading questionnaire tool. ]]> http://www.homeownersreferral.com/where-do-you-go-to-find-good-contractors/feed/ 0 http://www.homeownersreferral.com/34/ http://www.homeownersreferral.com/34/#comments Wed, 16 May 2012 21:34:34 +0000 admin http://austinwebdesign.com/demo2/?p=34 Continue reading →]]> Maintenance and improvement are both essential realities of home ownership. From windows and skylights to gas ranges and front doors, everything in your home will eventually need some work. But how do you know when something simply needs repair, or merits being replaced?

Of course, each situation will be as unique as the home in which it occurs – and as individual as the homeowners themselves. A few good rules of thumb, however, do apply in most cases. When you’re considering repair or replacement, ask yourself these questions:

• How old is the malfunctioning item?
• How extensive/pervasive is the problem?
• Will the cost of repair approach the cost of replacement?
• Which course – repair or replace – will yield the maximum energy efficiency?
• How does the cost of repair measure up to the value it will provide?
• How does replacement stack up using the same measure?

To help you get an idea of how these rules apply, here’s what some experts have to say about home elements that frequently raise the repair/replace question:

Skylights

While many modern skylights are energy-efficient, qualify to use the Energy Star mark and are leak-free, if you have an older, plastic model it’s probably a good idea to replace it. Not only are these older plastic bubble-type skylights often faded and unsightly, reducing visibility, they are not UV resistant, are not energy efficient, and are much more likely to leak.

In fact, based on an estimate of 15 cents per kwh/hr, replacing an old plastic skylight with an Energy Star-qualified VELUX skylight can save a 2,000-square-foot home about $194 a year on cooling costs, a company study shows. Add skylight blinds – which are available in a variety of styles that can be remote-controlled, including blackout to block light, light filtering to diffuse light, or Venetian to adjust light – and the energy savings can be enhanced even more. And blinds in colors and patterns can add a fresh look to your room decor. What’s more, depending on the age and condition of even older glass skylights, it’s not a bad idea to consider a modern, more energy efficient model. To learn more about replacement skylights, visit www.veluxusa.com.

Windows

Recent research shows that skylights and vertical windows can work well together to effectively daylight a home while contributing to heating and cooling energy savings.

Like skylights, windows have vastly improved in energy efficiency over the past few decades. Leaky, inefficient windows can be a major source of heat loss in a home, boosting energy bills and decreasing the comfort level indoors. Window manufacturer Pella points to these signs that old windows need to be replaced:

•  They’re difficult to open or close.
• You can feel air leaking in or out around them.
• Condensation or fogging occurs on or between glass panes.
• You can see chipping, deterioration or water stains on the window or the wall around it.
• Cleaning is a major chore and you avoid it because of the difficulty.
• It’s difficult or impossible to find replacement parts for the old windows.

The Efficient Windows Collaborative (www.efficientwindows.org) site also provides extensive information on selecting both windows and skylights, including fact sheets and computer simulations for typical houses using a variety of windows in a number of U.S. cities.

Heating, ventilation and air cooling

Furnaces and air conditioning units are among the most important parts of your home’s infrastructure; they’re directly responsible for the comfort level and air quality inside your home. They’re also among the more costly items to repair or replace.

So how do you know when it’s time to replace part of your heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system? EnergyStar.gov offers these guidelines:

• If your heat pump or air conditioner is older than 10 years.
• Your furnace or boiler is more than 15 years old.
• Your energy bills are spiking.
• Equipment needs frequent repair.
• Some rooms are too hot while others are too cold.
• The HVAC system is very noisy.
• Your home is very dusty.

Replacing older HVAC systems with newer, Energy Star-qualified ones can significantly impact your heating and cooling costs, according to EnergyStar.gov. An Energy Star-qualified heat pump or AC unit can save up to 20 percent on heating and cooling costs, the website says. You can learn more at www.energystar.gov.

Courtesty of ARA Content

Below are just a few items to include on your “Home Maintenance To Do List” this season:

1. Check your foundation and exterior masonry: Small cracks in the homes foundation and masonry walls are normal and can be filled with patching compound purchased from a home center. If you detect bulging, buckling or cracks that exceed 1/8 inches in width, or whose edges dont line up, consult an engineer or licensed builder/general contractor to determine the cause of the problem.

2. Inspect windows and doors: Inspect and replace missing or loose caulking around window and door frames. Repair holes in screens and cracked windows, replace broken or missing window or door hardware, and tighten and lubricate door hinges and closers.

3. Program Your Thermostat: By programming the thermostat to bring the HVAC system on and off based on your occupancy schedule, and/or to turn the heat down at night when youre snug in bed then turn it up just before you arise, you can save anywhere between 3% to 5% on your heating and cooling bills.

4. Close/open air vents: Since heat rises, it makes sense to give warm air maximum access to your lower level rooms in the winter and cool air maximum access to the upper rooms in the summer. You can accomplish this by closing the HVAC vents in upper rooms and opening them in lower rooms in the winter and doing the opposite in the summer.

5. Check your deck!: Powerwash your deck in the Spring to rid it of mold and moss that build up over the winter, then have it sealed to protect the wood. Check for loose boards or raised nails. Also check the footers and areas where the deck fastens to the house for any structural damage or weakness.

6. Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors: When you change your clocks, change the batteries in these devices. If you live in one of the two states that dont change their clocks (AZ and HI), mark your calendar to change the batteries every 6 months.

7. Inspect, clean and repair gutters and downspouts: Clear debris from gutters and downspouts. If you have gutter screens, make sure nothing is sitting on top of them or otherwise preventing water flow through them. Reattach any gutters or downspouts that have pulled away from their moorings.

Talented contractors can differentiate themselves from the competition and ultimately win more jobs by implementing a few simple follow up procedures:

1. Confirm your appointments: The night before an appointment has been scheduled with a prospective client, call to confirm. Make sure that you have at least two contact numbers on file for the homeowner so that you can reach them day or evening.

2. Call if you’re running late: Everyone knows that things come up but prospective customers are a lot more forgiving if you let them know that you’re running late or can’t make the appointment at all. Nothing is more frustrating than waiting at home for a contractor who doesn’t show.

3. Follow up on the appointment: If you need to give an estimate, advise the client on how long they should wait to receive it. And, if you don’t deliver the estimate in person, be sure to follow up a day later to get their feedback. Don’t expect them to call you.

4. Communicate (and document) what they should expect: Once a contractor has been hired for a project, he should articulate clearly what the homeowner should expect as far as timeframe, materials, work crews, mess, added expenses, etc. Managing a homeowner’s expectations from the beginning will help ensure that the project runs smoothly. And of course, document all of the project details in a formal contract.

5. Your work isn’t done when the project is done: Once a project has been completed, follow up with your client to make sure that they’re satisfied with the work. Maybe they have a friend or neighbor to refer you to or perhaps they’re considering another project in the future.

If you’re a contractor who is too busy to focus on the customer service end of your business, then consider working with a local Homeowner Referral Network (HRN) business. HRN’s serve as an outsourced sales and marketing force for busy contractors and can take on a lot of the follow up procedures mentioned above.

1. Inspect Your HVAC System: Before you turn on your a/c for the summer or your heater for the winter, make sure the entire system is in good working order. Unless you have a technical background in this sort of machinery, consider purchasing a maintenance contract with a reputable HVAC service company. They start around $200 per year and often pay for themselves with two free annual seasonal checkups of your system and significant discounts on labor and/or parts if you need repair during the contract period.

2. Change Furnace Filter: Most homes have a standard HVAC system with removable/replaceable filters to catch dust, pet dander, pollen and other particles that otherwise would circulate throughout the home. There are different levels of filter available – - those that capture a lot of particles, those that capture only a few, and those in-between. Which you choose may depend on whether you have pets, how many people live in your home, or whether you have allergies. Filter labels generally state specifically what they filter out and what they don’t.

3. Program Your Thermostat: By programming the thermostat to bring the HVAC system on and off based on your occupancy schedule, and/or to turn the heat down at night when you’re in bed then turn it up just before you arise, you can save anywhere between 3% to 5% on your heating and cooling bills. Of course, this presupposes you have a programmable thermostat. If you don’t, you can purchase one at a home center and install it yourself following the included instructions. If you have a heat pump, however, efficient operation dictates that you set your thermostat at the desired temperature level and leave it there day and night.

4. Close/Open Room Vents: Since heat rises, it makes sense to give warm air maximum access to your lower level rooms in the winter and cool air maximum access to the upper rooms in the summer. You can accomplish this by closing the HVAC vents in upper rooms and opening them in lower rooms in the winter and doing the opposite in the summer.

5. Professional Chimney Inspection/Cleaning: Have a licensed contractor professionally clean and inspect your fireplace/chimney once a year to remove creosote build-up and detect and repair firebox or chimney liner cracks, gas line leaks, chimney cap or bird screen cracks and other fire hazards.