Table of Contents January 2004

FEATURES

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  Kitchen Exhibit with latest design practices

  When REMODELING decided to crate a state-of-the-art Dream Kitchen as the centerpiece of the 2003 Remodelers' Show in Baltimore, we asked designer Christopher Coleman to provide attendees with the hottest, most innovative products and designs. Coleman, of Coleman Design, wanted to create a...

   

• Company jeopardizes success after market collapse; avoid unhealthy growth and straying away from core business functions

  The phone stopped ringing in Tom Davison's Sonoma, Calif., office in early 2001. Not a year after Davison Remodeling celebrated its best earnings ever, the unwanted quiet set off a two-year slide that almost killed the company.

   
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  Choosing Right and Wrong In Remodeling

  Remodelers have their own sense of what's wrong: 92% would never use illegal aliens as day laborers.

   

Before and After

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  Knatz and Mulvey team with Devereaux, an ex-foe, for a remodeling job

  When Geraldine Knatz and John Mulvey set out to renovate their 1936 Long Beach, Calif., home -- with its exquisite leaded glass windows, clipped gables, and charming shingled roof and walls -- the one person Knatz knew to call for advice was a man she had just spent months battling in court.

   

Reader Panel

• Remodeling Ethics

  Remodeling has progressed in its long march toward professionalism, but unethical and unqualified contractors still plague the industry. Most readers agree that to continue its advancement, the industry needs to establish standards for quality and ethical behavior.

   

VIEW POINT

FIRST WORD

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  Interpreting what the customer thinks is important

  As consumers become more comfortable using the Web for research, seeking out this kind of online feedback before hiring a remodeler will become routine.In addition to asking for ratings of retail stores, health clubs, and auto insurance companies they have used, the survey queries consumers about...

   

News + Notes

• Mortgage Lending Expected to Plummet

  The remodeling industry, spurred the last couple of years by all-time low mortgage interest rates, might need to find a new way to grow in 2004.Though it's certainly not great news, it's no reason to panic, says Kermit Baker, senior research fellow at the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard...

   

• ESL 500N smoke detector recall

  GE Interlogix has announced a voluntary recall of their ESL 500N smoke detectors. There have been no reports of problems with the detectors, but they may fail to work properly upon installation or if there is an extended power loss, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission Web site.

   

• Study relating cancer risks with CCA treated wood

  The SAP will review the methodology, not the results; if an error is found, the EPA will make the necessary corrections and issue new findings. The SAP should release the results of its review in early 2004, which could lead to the results eventually shifting in either direction.

   

• National do-not-call list claims first victim

  The national do-not-call list has claimed its first victim, and, in a bit of bad news for the public face of the remodeling industry, it's a home improvement company.California Attorney General Bill Lockyer has filed a civil complaint against American Home Craft, a Hayward, Calif.-based replacement...

   

COMMENTARY

GUEST COLUMNIST

• Finding, training, and retaining good employees

  As a company, we believe that in order to produce a high-quality job, our own staff of craftsmen and apprentices should complete the carpentry work, rather than subs. --Jim Benoit, CR, is co-owner of Benoit & Czarnecki Design/Construction, a full-service remodeling firm in Newtown Square, Pa.

   

LINDA CASE

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  Let marketing play a large role in increasing quality leads

  Create a marketing plan and a marketing budget each year to be sure the funds are available and to avoid impulse buys. The sure path to referral leads is to deliver a great product wrapped in great service.

   

MARK RICHARDSON

• Staying true to your New Year's Resolutions

  Whether we're vowing to stop some kind of negative behavior or swearing to start some kind of positive behavior, one fact about New Year's resolutions remains unchanged: We fail more often than we succeed.--Mark Richardson is president of Case Design/Remodeling and Case Handyman Services, Bethesda...

   

WALT STOEPPELWERTH

• Subcontracting Your Way To Success

  Remodeling contractors need look no further than the new home builder to see their new model for growth.But in the past 20 years, you can add roofing, siding, windows, insulation, flooring, drywall, tile, appliance installation, and painting as areas within residential remodeling now dominated by...

   

YOUR BUSINESS

Sales and Marketing

• Assigning leads to your workers

  You provide your salespeople with a place to work. You produce the work they sell. And you pay them, fairly and promptly. You don't need to promise more than that.

   

• Avoid lead tracking mistakes

  When leads come in and you have a name, phone number, and best time to return the caller's inquiry, what happens next? Here are five lead tracking mistakes that companies often make, along with remedies.

   

• Rotary clubs giving back to the community

  A recent REMODELING Reader Panel (see October 2003) discovered that nearly 10% of remodelers belong to Rotary clubs (www.rotary.org). The reasons for membership vary, but according to Joe Prin of HomeFix in Eagle, Idaho, "Rotary is made up of business owners and leaders of the community.

   

• Company trucks acting as moving billboards

  Remodelers Advantage is rereleasing The Remodeler's Marketing PowerPak. Your company trucks act as moving billboards for your company.

   

• Working Through A Sales Slump

  What I learned: I realized I needed to talk to people and get reinforcement that the slump wouldn't last. Guy Marzano is a new sales rep with Case Handyman Services of Golden Valley, Minn. We'll recap his experiences over the coming issues.

   

• Thank you notes to customers

  He says he usually makes a point to thank customers in writing if they send back an end-of-job survey that is exceptionally complimentary.Mark Cantor of Jendell Construction, Kensington, Md., says he prefers in-person thank-yous, with thank-you letters more typical for referrals from customers.

   

BOTTOM LINE

• Weekly Job Control Report

  Greco Remodelers, Manassas, Va., did not have a production manager to check on the status of jobs, so they decided to create a weekly job control report. If we see a problem, we can be more proactive to rectify it and get the job back on track," Annette Greco says.

   

• Retirement Formula

  You don't need a fortune to retire, but you do need to be realistic.Over the next 15 years, your spending is likely to decrease to, say, $45,000 per year less the $20,000 from Social Security.

   

• Flash report used to predict probable income

  As Andy Wright's company grew, he needed a way to keep track of his projects to help him make decisions about marketing, selling, and purchasing. Two years ago, the owner of WrightBuilt in Grass Valley, Calif., created a monthly "Flash Report," which not only covers the status of ongoing projects...

   

BY DESIGN

• Groovy Ceilings: Beaded Ceilings

  Beaded ceilings -- common to traditionally built porches -- add understated but noticeable charm. A typical shortcut replaces individual boards with 4-by-8-foot beaded groove plywood sheets and hides the seams between sheets with 1x2s or lattice strips.

   

FIELD NOTES

• Preparing for disaster

  Disaster happens. When it takes the form of a hurricane -- like Isabel, which smashed into much of the East Coast last fall and did billions of dollars in damage -- at least you get a heads up that a catastrophe is on the way."If you have two generators running all the time, you can run power tools...

   

• Daily Job Log

  Over the next five months, we will discuss the five pieces of paper that every lead carpenter should complete. First, it documents what really happens on the site -- the calls that are made and the conversations that take place.

   

GOOD FORM

• Knowing your demographic

  The most successful marketing campaign is one that reaches your target customers. It sounds simple, but ask yourself, How well do you know the demographic you serve?

   

Tech at Work

• Online hiring over company websites

  Thanks to companies like Maine Window and Sunroom, remodelers may finally be ready to shed their Luddite image: Even installers won't find work at the company without Internet access. And since dropping newspaper ads, the company has realized "astronomical cost savings," Levangelo says.

   

• SketchUp program

  For many remodeling design chores, SketchUp beats even contractor-friendly CAD programs like Chief Architect or SoftPlan. Here are just a few tasks that only take a few minutes with SketchUp but would cost hours using CAD (if you could do them at all).

   

Ways + Means

• Keeping close relationships while still growing your business

  I used to believe that if I ran a successful business, every other piece of my life would take care of itself. Realizing you've sacrificed relationships to grow your business is a step toward repairing relationships.

   

• Mock Trial: Mold Case

  Jury Solutions, a Virginia consulting firm owned by C.S. Koch, uses mock trials to prepare litigants for their cases. This summary comes from a mold case in new construction, but the insights it offers apply equally to remodeling.

   

• Pro Forms from Builder Books (NAHB)

  You've probably got more forms than you want -- stored on your computer, piled on your desk, filed away in cabinets. If the answer is "no," then you might want to pick up Form Builder, a series of CDs from BuilderBooks, the publishing arm of NAHB.

   

• Billing system that collects payments throughout a project's duration

  Keith Steier, president of Knockout Renovation in Brooklyn, N.Y., has found a solution to this problem. At the end of each billing period, the client pays Knockout for work completed, less the 30%.

   

BIG50

CLOSE UP

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  Homestead Remodeling: Bob Barber and Neil Minnucci

  Homestead Remodeling of Lansdale, Pa., has doubled its volume to more than $2 million since being named to the Big50 almost 10 years ago, in 1994. But owners Bob Barber and Neil Minnucci find they do what they do best -- three-quarters of it single-line work -- by having the leeway to complete jobs...

   

FACE OFF

• Receptionist duties

  I'm a one-man design operation now, and because my business is so personal, it's important that my clients hear my voice when they call. Some people have the person who answers the phone screen callers as possible leads.

   

SECOND LOOK

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  Taylored Construction: Elaine and Larry Taylor

  After 30 years in the business, Elaine and Larry Taylor (Big50 1987) of Taylored Construction are in the process of selling their Anchorage, Alaska, company to their children. Elaine and Larry will maintain a 10% share in the company.

   

SOLUTIONS

• Presenting a bid to a client

  On smaller jobs, like handyman work or a small bathroom, we fax or mail the bid to the client. We also include a list of homeowner rights and responsibilities, which explains the right of recision as well as our policies on mold damage and asks clients to clear the construction area and provide a...

   

KITCHEN AND BATH

SPEC BOOK

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  Countertops made from different material

  Many materials offer endless options for countertop creativity. Quartz continues to be introduced in ever-more complex hues, whether deep and luxurious, light and ephemeral, or in colors drawn from nature. Laminates simulate natural materials, such as stone and metal, in new shades and textures, as...

   

Management

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  Manhattan Center for Kitchen & Bath

  The Manhattan Center for Kitchen & Bath (MCK&B) is a new one-stop shop for product selections. "For most individuals undertaking a major renovation or new construction project, the selection process is often the most daunting and time-consuming part," says Steven Naphtali, vice president of MCK&B.

   
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  Public Displays: Crowley Construction

  At the end of a home show, Gary Crowley has usually accomplished two things. First, he's placed the Crowley Construction name in front of about 10,000 homeowners. Second, he's sold his booth display cabinets -- and has probably gotten the job renovating the kitchen.

   
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  Couple saves money and space; but adds value and style

  The homeowners of this one-story house thought they'd have to put on an addition that was beyond their budget to get the open kitchen and dining room they wanted. Instead, Worthington, Ohio, remodeler Ron Landis convinced them to incorporate their third bedroom and created the warm, farmhouse...

   

REPLACEMENT

ROOFING

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  Roof Job Estimating

  The biggest mistake you can make in an estimate is also the most obvious: Measure the roof, from up on the roof, and measure it right because, Cox says, "everything is calculated off that."

   

Windows

• Establishing separate corporate identities: windows and remodeling

  Three years ago, Jason Larson, owner of Lars Construction, a San Diego design/build company, decided to create a division dedicated solely to installing vinyl windows. "It allows us to monitor job costs and watch sales in that division," Connor says.

   

PRODUCTS

FIRST LOOK

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  2004 International Builders' Show

  Here's a look at new product introductions from the annual International Builder's Show.

   

IN FOCUS

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  Business-related software products

  Building on the previous version, the software now allows automatic report scheduling, as well as e-mailing or faxing of reports and documents on demand. The Project Work Center can be customized to display important job information, and the Up-to-Date Part Information enhancement allows vendors'...

   
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  Interior Trim Products

  Decorative moldings are available in a wide variety of styles and wood species, including linden, cherry, oak, and maple.

   
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  Niche: Fiberglass Windows

  Though vinyl windows dominate the replacement, remodel, and new construction markets, fiberglass windows have carved out a niche for themselves. Less than a handful of manufacturers currently offer fiberglass windows, including Milgard Windows, Pella, and Marvin Windows.

   

LAST WORD

Bench Mark

• Questionnaire about various areas of business

  This questionnaire is designed to collect information from the past two years about many of the areas most important to Benchmark readers. It will take more than a few minutes of digging into your records to complete this form, but the payoff will be the ability to see from the results we publish...