Table of Contents May 2004

Features

• Shining On

  One-third of the biggest Standard & Poor's companies are family businesses, and on four economic indicators they outperform the other two-thirds. This is according to studies by Temple and American Universities, detailed in a November 2003 BusinessWeek article, that say one of the biggest strategic...

   
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  Honors Marketing

  A Big50 winner in 1994, remodeler Stephen Gidley has featured his award prominently in promotional efforts ever since.

   

Other Articles

• Shining On

  One-third of the biggest Standard & Poor's companies are family businesses, and on four economic indicators they outperform the other two-thirds. This is according to studies by Temple and American Universities, detailed in a November 2003 BusinessWeek article, that say one of the biggest strategic...

   
• 

  Honors Marketing

  A Big50 winner in 1994, remodeler Stephen Gidley has featured his award prominently in promotional efforts ever since.

   

View Point

• Westinghouse Acquires Radiant Lamp

  A March press release indicated that Westinghouse was lured by Radiant's line of differentiated light bulbs. Under the agreement, Philips will continue its strong manufacturing relationship with Radiant, according to the release

   

• Australian For "Stupid"

  A 35-year-old Australian man has no serious injuries after shooting himself in the head with a nail gun. According to news reports, Brad Shorten was cooling down with beer and friends after a day of working on his house, when, as a joke, he put the nail gun up to his head.

   

• Gift Registry May Add Power to BIY Market

  Thanks to The Home Depot's online registry, weddings, holidays, and other gift-intensive events may take on a more blue-collar feel. This development is significant not only because it's another way that The Home Depot reaches customers but because it pushes home improvement further into holiday...

   

• Bobvila.com Sued Under Anti-spam Law

  The suit alleges that the defendants sent e-mails to Hypertouch customers that violated provisions set forth in the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003, otherwise known as the CAN-SPAM Act.

   

• Big Deal

  Members of the Big50 understand that success in the remodeling business depends on the character of relationships they build.

   

Commentary

Linda Case

• Call A Meeting

  Well-run meetings harness your team to achieve goals and to be accountable for results in their day-today roles. Meetings allow an owner to communicate a uniform message efficiently and build future leaders for the company.

   

Mark Richardson

• Going Proactive

  The results will tell you not only how much time you spend on issues that seem to pop up out of nowhere but how many appointments you had to cancel and how many evenings and weekends you had to work to make up for lost time.

   

Walt Stoeppelwerth

• Branching Out

  The lack of consolidation in the remodeling world -- which continues to consist of tens of thousands of small companies -- makes me believe that the market is ripe for it. In the next five to 10 years, I predict design/build companies will start to use more subcontractors and will open branch...

   

Guest Columnist

• Full Disclosure

  The following sentences precede all our estimates: "This estimate has been itemized for easier comparison."At our company, a computerized estimate for an average 5-by-8-foot bathroom remodel is about nine pages long. The project costs around $10,800.

   

Your Business

Ways + Means

• Get a Life

  For consistent work/life balance, you must choose to have balance and be committed to having it. Asking for help is a strength all successful leaders must possess.

   

• Constant Training

  Each year, Sal Ferro or his top managers meet with each employee to complete a needs assessment that drives the training for that person.

   

• Measuring the Economic Temperature by Getting Involved

  You can read all the prognostications you want, but the best way to get a feel for the economy is to talk to the people who feel most acutely the effects of its fluctuations: businesspeople. The problem is it can be difficult to have access to enough people to get the total picture.

   

• Surveys Say

  Visit any Pizza Hut or IHOP across the country and you'll find a comment card on your table, asking you to rate the quality of your meal, speed of service, and the friendliness of your server. Yet few contractors have customer satisfaction surveys, and even fewer have effective ones.

   

Bottom Line

• Equipped To Save

  Small business owners should plan their vehicle and equipment purchases around two changes to Section 179 of the IRS code.

   

• Cash Reserves

  One of the most important things you can do for your company is to establish and regularly contribute to an Operating Capital Reserve Account. With a healthy OCRA, you don't have to sign a contract with a difficult customer just to keep money coming through the door.

   

Sales + Marketing

• Is My Mailing List Working?

  Here are four questions to ask yourself if you think your mailing list isn't working.

   

• Pleasing Hold

  If you want to use the time prospects would otherwise spend listening to static to your advantage, do what Scott Mosby of Mosby Building Arts did: produce a low-cost phone message that dovetails with all your marketing. Mosby's three-minute, looping on-hold message is a marketing tour de force.

   

• Hang Around, Warm Down

  Whenever you "break bread" with your customers -- which is what you're doing when you're selling a contract -- never eat and run.

   

• Sidetracked? Pivot Back on Track

  I had a great attitude, was feeling confident, and knew I had a good chance of selling because I had gathered a lot of information before the call.Guy Marzano is a new sales rep with Case Handyman Services of Golden Valley, Minn. We'll recap his experiences over the coming issues.

   

• Vintage Thanks

  Remodelers Bob and Sue Fleming of Classic Remodeling & Construction, Charleston, S.C., give a company "branded" box containing three bottles of wine (from Sue's cousin's winery) to clients whose jobs they just completed.

   

Field Notes

• Jobsite Paperwork, Part 5

  Time cards are critical to all aspects of a remodeling business.

   

• Neighborly Gesture

  BOWA Builders distributes a laminated card with the company's information and emergency contact numbers to their clients. For an added personal touch, the staff at BOWA don't just mail the cards -- the project manager knocks on doors and hands them out.

   

• Roll the Film

  Houston remodeler Don Strong says the carpet protector he has used for eight years shows his clients that his company is dedicated to protecting their homes. The president of Brothers Strong says the durable plastic sheets last for weeks on the jobsite.

   

By Design

• Beam Me Up

  Designers often use wood posts, cross beams, and rafters to lend interiors a traditional, or even rustic, feel. "When you're in a big open space, you feel kind of lost," says Nancy McCarren of Muse Architects, Washington, D.C. "It helps a design to add elements of a scale people can relate to."

   

Tech@Work

• Get More For Your Training Dollar

  Your training dollars are better spent on periodic mini-sessions that address specific issues.Send remedial users to introductory Windows classes before the real training starts.

   

• Savvy Software

  Construction Computing Systems' CompuTool management software is a rare bird. Conceived, designed, and tested by remodelers, CompuTool is a comprehensive solution with extensive relationship management features.

   

Good Form

• What Went Wrong?

  If you want to know where you're going wrong, try surveying customers whose jobs you didn't get.

   

Big50

Other Articles

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  Reginald Marzec, John Steindl, and Andrew Wells

  Normandy Builders is — in a good way, of course — like the irradiated bug in a B science fiction movie: It just keeps growing larger and larger.

   

• Big50 2004

  The best of the best: That is what the REMODELING editors set out to find each year for the incoming Big50 class. Recipients of this coveted award can't just be good. They must be excellent -- and excellent when measured against their highest-quality competitors. They lead the industry in business...

   

K+B

Design Clinic

• Wash and Glow

  When Wayne Minde's client approached him about creating a lighted vanity top for her bathroom, the remodeler stepped up to the challenge. The president of Tri-Lite Builders, Chandler, Ariz., called his Avonite fabricator, and the two set out to make a translucent countertop from the solid surfacing...

   

• Masterful Master Bath

  In the master bedroom, architect Milford Cushman included easy-to-operate pocket doors for the entry-way to the bathroom and the closet.

   

• Access Granted

  When Stowe, Vt., architect Milford Cushman was asked to design a custom home for a couple, the fact that the wife is in a wheelchair was just another design issue. Though Cushman chose universal design elements for the kitchen and bath that work specifically for these clients, he says much of the...

   

Spec Book

• SpecBook: Sinks

  Providing a clean, sleek look, undermount stainless steel sinks are all the rage in kitchens. But alternative materials are also showing up, along with interesting basin shapes and configurations.

   

Replacement

Decks

• Top Ten Don'ts

  Phil Rea lists the ten biggest mistakes a home improvement salesperson can make.

   

• Blind Faith: Hidden Fasteners

  Hidden fasteners have been around for a while, but many contractors who build decks tend to shy away from them. Caslmon, for instance, says the clients who asked for hidden fasteners were told the cost would be greater.

   

Windows

• Vinyl Offer

  Remodelers are divided on the issue of vinyl windows.

   

Products

Trends

• Star Search

  The United States Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star program and the Department of Energy have named the Energy Star 2004 Partners of the Year for Excellence in Efficient Products. Lennox Industries, Sea Gull Lighting, Whirlpool Corp., Good Earth Lighting, and Gorell Windows and Doors...

   

• ODL Rolls Out Franchise Program

  Door glass and decorative window manufacturer ODL is rolling out a national franchise program that will allow remodelers and other independent entrepreneurs to tap into their local markets for upgrading existing steel and fiberglass entry doors by providing on-site door glass installations. Called...

   

• Granite Countertops Becoming An Affordable Upgrade

  With all the countertop options available these days, you might think that granite has receded into the background in all but high-end kitchens. Because granite is becoming so much more widely known, a lot of people have moved into this industry.

   

Reader's Choice

• Reader's Choice Keep Quiet

  Remodeler Lawrence Murr works on bathroom remodels for many clients who dislike the noise of their existing exhaust fans. Because it does no good to install an exhaust fan in a humid bathroom if the homeowner won't use it, Murr offers to upgrade his clients' ventilation system with a Panasonic fan.

   

• Reader's Choice Professional Function

  Remodeler Dominic Maltese frequently works with clients who want "bells and whistles" kitchens while staying within a budget. When KitchenAid introduced its Pro Line a few years ago, Maltese started recommending the line to these clients for a high-end, professional appearance at competitive prices.

   

• Reader's Choice: Warm Walls

  Remodeler John DeCiantis learned about the Icynene Insulation System while attending a trade show several years ago. The system is applied by licensed Icynene dealers, who mix the two-part formula on site.

   

On the Job

• Personal Protective Equipment

  All field employees should be trained on what personal protective equipment to use in every work situation, and lead carpenters and production managers should set a good example to ensure personal protection becomes a habit.Steel-toed boots and shoes can prevent injuries ranging from stepping on...

   

In Focus

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  In Focus: Elegant Garage Doors & Openers

   

• In Focus: High Tech Tools

   

• In Focus: Insulation

   

First Look

• First Look: Algae-Resistant Shingles; Massage Tub; and more

   

Other Articles

• Benchmarking the Big50

  Every year, our search for the Big50 uncovers some of the best-performing remodeling companies in the country. Nearly half of this year's Big50 Companies show revenues of between $1 million and $2 million.