There’s a lot of articles about “How to hire a Contractor” on the Internet told by individuals who are the end consumers of the contractor’s services, or are writers for various publications.

Most of the advice they give is simply rehashed stuff they have read or formed an opinion of — whether good or bad.  This article I decided to write will show you how to hire a contractor and come out with a great outcome — and I’ll give you advice from the perspective of a real contractor — me! Photo: findingsalihah.blogspot.com

Don’t be cheap — keep an open mind.

“Man, are they cheap!”  This is the number one gripe I hear from fellow contractors.   “They want a $30k bathroom on a $10K budget”.  Most folks don’t have a clue when it comes the cost of having remodeling done in their homes.  They have been conditioned by unrealistic information or beliefs they think or have read.

Others want the contractor to itemize everything in their contract so they can decide if they are paying too much.  The problem with this is there’s no reference point for the customer to draw information from and compare to, relative to comparing apples to apples.

Establishing a budget early eliminates much of the frustrations and misunderstandings between parties.  General itemization is pretty standard in home improvement.  Most contracts the contractor provides should clearly go over the phases of a project, including project timelines, materials to be installed, rules in which the company conducts their business, and draw payment schedules.

The company should request a thoroughly detailed description of the job you want built.  This is really the most important aspect of creating an estimate of your project.  You want the job built the way you envisioned it right?  I’ve seen many contractors build a client’s job the way the contractor wanted it — not the other way around.  Make sure to have a clear direction when describing your job.  Perhaps write down an outline of your wants, needs, and expectations.

For the sake of this article, I’m covering a “Total-Cost Contract”, in which all labor and material costs associated with a project are inclusive and will not exceed the original bid.  You get one price for all services rendered, no matter how long the project takes or any unforeseen problems exist.  You sit back and relax and let the contractor arrange material procurement, scheduling, and anything else described in the contract.

Don’t waste the contractor’s time, or your own.

If you want to create problems early in your search to find a contractor to do your project, start by luring unsuspecting contractors to your house to get  “bids” with no commitment.  You want a free estimate right?

FYI on free estimates: Most savvy contractors will advertise free estimates, then PRE-QUALIFY the customer in the first phone call by asking pointed questions.  That way they won’t waste their time rushing over to your house — to only find out that you were price shopping.   Some of the questions the customer can expect are:

1.  What do you want to do?  This usually is the first question you get asked.  The contractor will want to know what kind of project you are considering and if he or she is qualified to deliver an acceptable end product.  If not, most have a list of specialty contractors they will work with, or they may refer you to their sub directly — and take a percentage of the total project.

Don’t be vague; they’ll want to know who will make the buying decisions and most will likely want to to deal with only one of the parties concerning change orders and payment.

2.  Have a firm start date or completion date.  You should know when you want the project started or completed.  You need a pretty solid answer because the contractor will need to adjust his schedule according to your needs and his needs beforehand.  The sooner the lead time you give a contractor to prepare, the better.

3.  Tell the contractor your budget.  Most people cringe at telling a contractor their budget because of a TRUST Factor, as well as not fully understanding his angle.  The tradesman hasn’t yet won the confidence of the homeowner.  Most homeowners feel that if they give away the amount of money they have set aside for their project, the contractor will attempt to use every penny of this amount.  That’s flawed, because usually, the amount a homeowner saved for a project is only 60% of it’s actual cost.

The contractor isn’t asking you how much you think the project will cost; he wants to establish a budget because he doesn’t want to waste his time and yours.

The contractor will them begin to build your job on paper according to the information you provide.  And that’s the key:  You build your own job with the selections and finishes you decide on.  He simply put that neat package together for you — and charges you a fair price for his time and efforts.

4.  Unrealistic expectations.  You may have grand ideas of how sweet the new powder room should look.  You want a wall taken out, a soaking tub, new glass tile, and so on.  The reality is, the cost you may think and the cost the contractor quotes you can be on two different planets.  Some contractors give out a medium and higher price.  This eliminates much of the dreamland state people experience when their wants exceed their needs.  That’s why it is so important to establish a budget early.

5.  Answer the contractor’s questions about your project thoroughly.  When the contractor decides that you are a good fit for his company, he’ll make the drive out to further nail down your project — with questions, questions, and more questions.  He wants to build your project EXACTLY how you want it; not of how he might want it to look.  This is a trait of a great Contractor; he listens more than he talks.

6.  Have the decision maker/buyer at the meeting too.  If you aren’t buying the product, you need to tell the contractor.  If the husband or wife writes the checks, they need to be at the meeting.  The reason is to make sure there are no misunderstandings when the contractor builds your job.  I’d hate to show up at a meeting with one party present, build the project on paper, only to find out that the other party wanted the addition to start in the family room.  Then, the project isn’t built the way you both want and that becomes a problem when payment is due.

7. Don’t be a pain in the ass.  Work with your contractor.  No one wants to deal with a P.I.T.A. (guess what the initials stand for?), which is why it’s imperative to have a solid contract with all aspects of a job discussed, signed off, and agreed upon between all parties.

8.  Don’t expect extras without paying for them.  This is a biggie.  Some folks will say, “can you fix the door in the hallway since you’re here?” and “Could you look at the light in the den that doesn’t work?”  Most of the time, I’ll just fix it –  if it doesn’t take more than 20 minutes.  Other than that, I whip out a estimate form and we’ll complete a change order for the added work.  Contractors should stay on schedule to perform the project they are contracted for.  And no, we won’t babysit your pets or children who enter the work area either.

9.  Make payments on time, according to the draw schedule in the contract.  Work stops until a draw payment is made, period.  Most respectful contractors uphold their parts of the deal; we expect our clients to do the same.

10.  Never weasel out of the final payment.  I’ve had one client not pay a final payment in 16 years, which left a bad taste in my mouth.  If all parameters of the contract are met, there should never be a reason for non-payment.

I noticed this ad today in Metro Detroit Craigslist:

Investor looking for Contractors who finance (East & West Detroit)

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Date: 2011-08-01, 4:18PM EDT
Reply to: see below ^{[Errors when replying to ads?]}

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I am an investor. I just purchased 60 properties and will be purchasing more, I am seeking a professional construction company that can rehab my properties and receive payments as the homes are fixed up and rented out!. Once homes are rehabbed your company will be paid. LETS WORK SOMETHING OUT!. Of course as buisness grows you will receive payments more quickly but we can grow together.
I am willing to offer your company the entire contract if you are willing to work with me in the beginning. I am looking to move fast and buy 400 properties in the next year.
I am looking to start asap.Call Jennifer 313-742-xxxx
Also willing to include a home rent free

• Location: East & West Detroit
• Compensation: negotiable
• Principals only. Recruiters, please don’t contact this job poster.
• Please, no phone calls about this job!
• Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.

PostingID: 2524705xxx

No contact info?

if the poster didn’t include a phone number, email, or
other contact info, craigslist can notify them via email.

And here’s a reply from some anonymous guy:

RE:Investor looking for Contractors who finance (East & West Detroit) (Detoilet)

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Date: 2011-08-01, 5:07PM EDT
Reply to:xxxx ^{[Errors when replying to ads?]}

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HAHAHAHAHAT HOW MUCH CRACK HAVE YOU SMOKED TODAY LADY?YOU HAD MONEY FOR 60 HOUSES BUT YOU CAN’T PAY FOR THE REHAB.YOU HAVE MONEY TO BUY 400 MORE HOUSES BUT YOU CAN’T PAY FOR THE REHAB.

I HAVE DONE WORK FOR MORONS LIKE YOU BEFORE AND IT NEVER ENDS GOOD.

GOOD LUCK TO THE IDIOT THAT FALLS FOR YOU SCAM.

FREE RENT LOL!!!! HOW MUCH DO YOU THINK A REHAB COSTS ON A PIECE OF SHIT PROPERTIES.

YOU BOUGHT THEM IN BULK FOR PENNIES ON A DOLLAR THAT MEANS THEY ARE BEAT TO HELL.

LET ME GUESS YOU WANT SOME POOR SCHMO TO PROVIDE THE MATERIALS ALSO AND YOU WILL PAY IN PAYMENTS.

WHAT ABOUT THE COMPANY EMPLOYEES? YOU THINK SOME COMPANY IS GOING TO PAY FOR ALL THAT LABOR AND WAIT FOR YOUR PAYMENTS.

WHAT A JOKE .

• Location: Detoilet
• Compensation: $50 A MONTH IF YOU EVER GET THAT
• Principals only. Recruiters, please don’t contact this job poster.
• Please, no phone calls about this job!
• Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.

PostingID: 2524808xxx

Do investors and others really think contractors are starving this much for work? What do you think.  I’d like to here your replies.

I took a sales call to do work on a home in a nearby residence.  The guy I went to see owns the home in a beautiful neighborhood 15 miles away.  He wants me to fix some drywall from a busted pipe that burst during the winter, install a new high-efficient toilet in the bathroom and add rubbed-bronze fixtures to the sink and tub.  Photo: urlesque

I agree to work up an estimate on these items and decide to get back with him the following day — to go over details of cost.  I head back to the home office, pour over the internet for supply costs and recommendations for the homeowner, estimate the time it will take to complete the project, multiply my hourly rate, procurement fee, error/omissions percentage, mark-up, ect., ecetera, ect.

I call the homeowner the next day and schedule a meeting at his house.  I go through the details, ask for input, and a start date — should the customer sign and is in agreement with the quote.

He reads and looks over the estimate, then pauses, for like 15 seconds.

“Is there a problem?” I blurt out.

“Well, yeah.  How much is the materials?  I’d like a breakdown of each of these things are gonna cost!” he replies.

How do you handle that?  Should you give him a revised estimate, or should you hold firm with explanation?

Would you ask for a cost breakdown of a meal at a fast food restaurant?

“Umm.  How much for the pickles?  I need to know the cost because it seems kinda off.  What is the price breakdown of a slice of cheese, the meat cost, and the bun cost.  Also can you tell me how much each french fry will set me back?”

“Now go back and work up another estimate for those items so I can see them listed, because I feel like you are overcharging and I don’t trust you.”

Sounds about right, huh?  Wrong!

First off, when a customer asks for line item cost, it could indicate they are extremely cheap and will beat you up on those line items.  Listing line items gives way to nit-picking — on every line.  You have already invested time and expense to prepare a written quote and drive over there to submit it.  Now they want another printed explanation.

Ouch.

I’m not saying that all people that ask for price breakdowns are not trusting you; they may have been conditioned this way with doing business in their everyday lives from listening to others.  Lawyers and accountants.

What I’m saying is that if a customer wants a price breakdown of materials and labor, they must be charged for it.  Calmly explain to them that there is a fair amount of time involved in preparing a quote (although they may not believe you — with the “free estimate thing” permeating our business, lol).  However, it is the truth.

I don’t know one contractor that prepares written estimates and drives them all over God’s Green Earth, who doesn’t incur gas costs and time spent putting these quotes together.

Sale your services as a full package deal.

In order to avoid headaches, which take the form of the client knowing your profit on their job and asking you to lower it, as well as taking away your material mark-up (by way of line item breakdowns), simply sell your company’s worth as a full package.  This is completely fair and legit.  Your profit on a job is proprietary.  You control the information: the secret recipe of Kernel Sanders chicken with it’s delicious herbs and spices didn’t get out from a customer’s squeeze play did it?  Should yours?

“Mmmm.. chicken..”

Decide: should I give a breakdown?

You must decide if you are going to agree to separate things for them, so the customer can see the prices of each item.  In standard contracts, I break down work procedures to be performed and materials to be installed.  But these blocks of information are general in nature — standard contract writing procedures.  Photo: kfc.com

However, if the client wants each and every line item broke down and the price indicated next to it, there is a cost associated with doing that for them.  That cost is purely decided by you and what you think your time, effort and energy is worth.

“I charge $75 per hour, and it will take 3 hours, Mr. Homeowner.  I’ll have that prepared for you in a day or so, no problem.”

If they are willing to agree (pretty sure they wouldn’t; as cheap clients usually request these things and will balk at the site of an added cost), then more power to your construction company..

Control the power

Dealing with certain customers, it becomes about control and power.  You are the contractor and have it.  Don’t let the client take it away by breaking your will to succeed and profit.  Having a calm, steady demeanor when dealing with the general public — and not sway because of emotions — will take you father in your business pursuits of success than not.

“Grow some of these, too… They’re needed in construction!”

Remember: Don’t loose your cool when confronted with problematic clients.  You can always just walk away.  The next prospective client won’t be so bad.  Photo: friendsoftheprogram.net

Watch this pretty cool product:

From a contractor’s standpoint, concrete canvass could have many uses in our industry. It could possibly have uses in flat commercial roofing, and perhaps an easy to lay walkway, retaining walls, pipe protection, and whatever else you could think would benefit.  Perhaps outbuilding tool storage, lol. There’s a 4 part case study on their website, concrete canvass, that shows a flat roof application. They claim it is water proof and fireproof that will not degrade from UV or weathering.

Here’s the website, concretecanvass.com

Well, not really 30 seconds.  More like a little over a minute!

This is a great video.  These are the techniques that summarize what we should be doing to our websites to get more traffic and increase visibility to them.  The video is so fast, I kept having to pause it to read the pointers, lol.

I’d like to add, don’t forget Google Places.  Having a listing on Google places is a HUGE advantage of getting your company found locally.

When someone does a Google search for a local business, say, “handyman services”, the search engine immediately determines where the searcher is — and shows listings close to where they are at — in real-time.

There search page shows a few paid listing at the top yadda yadda, and then they see all of these pretty little orange flags with the local listings posted on the first page of organic search.  This is an advantage not to be missed for your business.

Anyways, here’s the video:

Here’s the deal: some contractors are buying extra supplies on jobs and returning them for gift cards.

But, I have to say that this news reporter is reporting a story with only half the information.  They need to track down the contractor and get his version of the story.  Then these videos can be looked at with an objectionable eye.

In my opinion, 8 times out of 10 it is the homeowner’s fault when they don’t do due diligence in finding the right guy for their projects.  They just don’t check credentials, insurance, and other factors when determining who they hire to work in their homes.

The biggest factor a lot of these homeowners are concerned with is price.  They always seem to go with the cheapest guy!   Then, when sh!+ flies south, they call the news channels and harp out about how they were “wronged” by a bad contractor.  But don’t forget the word “cheap”.  You know the saying, “If it seems too good to be true…”.

Come on folks, really.  The public subsequently makes a determination that all contractors are the bad guys and the industry gets another black eye.  But what about the bad homeowner who always cries, “I’m a victim?”  You are not the victim.  You made the conscious decision to hire the cheapest guy.  Simple.  With choosing “cheapest” as part of the equation, it gives way to the likelihood of “unscrupulousity”. Is dat a wurd?

There are bad contractors out there — they will swindle the homeowner’s pet kitten if given half the chance.  There are also bad hairdressers, bad auto mechanics, and others who misrepresent themselves as professionals.  In my honest opinion, these people are not contractors — they are just working off the premise of being one.

So, Mr. Homeowner:  Don’t cry and fuss when you didn’t do your part to start — qualifying the tradesman.  Reputable Contractors cost — much more than a lot are willing to spend.  And they are busy.  When you are seeking a pro again, don’t go with the cheapest guy! you’ll pay for it in the end.

I just put together a bid for a potential customer.  He found me through my website, which is cool because that lets me know local people are finding us on the internet.  That’s huge.

So I went out to the prospect’s condo a few days ago.  This guy is not a referral, so I don’t know what to really expect.  I washed the company van and put the spit shine! on the rims, took a shower, put on my best uniform and headed out.  Y’all know, first impressions, ya dig?  Photo: picturesofsmileyfaces.net

Turns out, he needs the subfloor in his kitchen leveled.  I took measurements, yapped up a decent conversation with him, and he seems to be interested and ready to sign.  The subfloor is off by about 2 inches in the lowest spot.  I climbed into the crawl space under the floor looking for answers.

I recommended we jack the floor up from below; this is a no-go.  It happens that the condo association doesn’t want to disturb the framing because of potential problems that could arise in the other units, like cracking walls, due to fooling around with the stuff.  So that’s fine; I went home to think about solutions and I would get back to him.

I thought and thought.  I researched a little and came up with the solution:  I will add self-leveling compound, then finish with backerboard over the entire floor.  The guy wants two bids; 1 for the subfloor leveling and 1 for the finish floor; probably ceramic.

We are supposed to converse Monday morning; which, I think he is expecting to hear my price.

I never talk money over the phone.

I’ll discuss in great detail my plan for his problem.  I’ll explain all the scenarios and get input from his side.  Then I’ll suggest to him that we should meet in person to discuss the issues and the all important nitty-gritty: price.  I inform him that I’d like to meet with him and do a follow-up walk-through of his project and that I don’t discuss remodeling costs over the phone; 10 to 20 minutes of his time is all that is required.

So why wouldn’t I just throw the price out there over the phone, you ask?

Because if I spit out the price over the phone, it gives him a way to wiggle out or delay closing the sale, when I have garnered his attention in this last leg of selling the job.

Many of us have gone through this and have learned from past experiences:

“Uh, I’ll call you later” or something along those lines.

He may never call –  if it is over the phone when he hears your price.  He might even use your price as ammunition for bargaining with another remodeler.

It’s just too easy to forget you and call someone else once the customer has the information that he seeks.  Especially if he’s actively seeking many bids.  So, I make sure to leave an expectation in his mind until we can meet face-to-face.  That’s when you gauge a person’s temperament and, perhaps close the sale.  You’ll also want to meet physically to get a feel for their body language: what is it saying to you?

Finally, meeting face-to-face will give you an opportunity to make a second impression; although first impressions are the one’s customers usually remember.  Above everything, we make our jobs worth our time and profitable.  I never lost a penny on a job I didn’t get.

I’ll also have a printed contract ready for signatures — another reason for the second meet-and-greet.  I’d like to go over the details in printed form with him.  The plan is to blow him away with good ‘ole professionalism  — related to our clean vehicles, our uniforms, having a solution to his project, to the way the contract is written; tailored to his individual concerns and wishes.

Near the end of this meeting, the client and I will discuss price and any issues he may have, then I’ll ask for the project.  Simple, right?

Photo: geekologie.com

Here’s an interesting article I came across today:

As the housing industry continues to weigh the economic recovery, experts anticipate its remodeling sector will buck the trend and takeoff this year as homeowners start spending on upgrades and renovations.

Business reporters can gauge how their local remodeling market is recovering by turning to three key industry indices, finding the right industry experts, and checking in with both local remodeling retail shop owners and homeowners on local trends.

The best way to delve into the research is to look at your localized information from one of the indices. The National Association of Home Builders provides a quarterly Remodeling Market Index (RMI) that measures the remodeling market by gauging demand based on surveys of thousands remodelers in the U.S. The RMI is broken down into two indices – one that measures current activity and one that predicts future trends. Its survey questions focus mainly on the demand for major and minor additions and repairs and the amount of work remodelers have committed to them.

The NAHB’s index offers region-specific data that could be helpful in identifying unique trends in your area. For example, reporters in the Midwest will see that their region was the only region that experienced a decline in remodeling so far this year, according to 2011 first quarter RMI. The NAHB’s first-quarter survey also includes special questions on what would be keeping homeowners from remodeling – don’t miss that data.

Another telling remodeling industry index is Buildfax’s monthly Buildfax Residential Remodeling Index (BFRRI), once-private research that was launched for public use in January. It also provides regional information, but unlike NAHB’s RMI, the Buildfax index measures remodeling by tallying building permits for remodeling projects. It should give reporters a good sense of trends in larger additions and bigger-ticket remodeling spending.

…Read the full article

La Reine Callahan of Kent wasn’t even planning a home upgrade until a contractor stopped by last October.

“He asked me if I would like my driveway redone for $4,000 because it was all cracked and everything, and I thought, well, that sounds pretty reasonable,” said Callahan.

The contractor sketched it out on a piece of paper. But before doing the driveway, he suggested replacing her rotting carport for another $3,000. After he framed up the carport, “I thought, wow, this guy does good work,” said Callahan.

The contractor’s name was John Taufa and he was ambitious. Soon, Callahan had agreed to a long list of improvements, from brick-lined walkways to backyard landscaping.

“He started mid-October, and I thought it was going to be done by late October,” said Callahan. She paid for it all up front — $25,000 in cash.

“I had it in my savings and about $10,000 I took out against my credit cards,” she said.

“You went into debt?” we asked.

“Yes, I did. I’m still paying,” she said.

Paying for what? He tore out her driveway but never poured the cement. He built some planters in front of her house and replaced her grass, but left most of the projects unfinished. And the last time Taufa showed up?

“I would say first part of November, last year,” Callahan said.

“November?” we asked. “It’s March now.”

“I know,” she said.

Callahan’s neighbor Nickie, who asked us not to use her last name, hired John Taufa too.

“We originally had given him around $8,000 and he did a portion of the work so we’re probably out $3,000 to $4,000,” Nickie said.

“Is that a lot of money to you?” we asked.

“Absolutely, absolutely,” she said.

Taufa did pave the driveway and started some other projects, but then it was one no-show after another for months.

“It just makes you sick and it just goes on and on and on, because you want to believe what he’s telling you, but the reality when it sets in, you realize that you’ve been conned,” said Nickie.

Read the full story…

Do the people who’s homes you work in feel just as excited about their project as you feel about working there for them?

Do they look forward to seeing your crew show up on time in the morning?

Do the homeowners appear giddy with glee when you explain the procedures for the next work day?

If you answered no to any one question above, you may not be tweaking the “Referral Factor”.  The referral factor calls to the likelihood of a homeowner recommending you to their friends and family.  Great businesses are built on constant referrals, which can be thought of as the “snowball effect”.

The snowball effect can be explained like this:

Building a successful company is like a snowball rolling down a hill at the right temperature.  The snowball constantly picks  up more and more snow (referrals) as it rolls along.  By the time it reaches the level ground, the snowball has grown into a humongous boulder — if the snow is at the right temperature and sticks.  Warm and fuzzy.

The kind of snow I’d want to help build my snowball is the kind that makes a great snowman.  Sticky snow at the right temperature.

Is the snowball you rolled down the hill at too cold a temperature and none stuck to it?

We all know that getting referrals is by far the best way of attracting new clients.  You know referrals, right? — one of your clients is so impressed and satisfied with your work that they tell everyone within ear shot of how great your remodeling company is.  But what about getting new customers from scratch?

Our home repair company is experimenting with new tactics and radical approaches of finding these people.

We are looking for the biggest return on our advertisement investments — time and money.  We are attempting to find out what will give us the largest bang for our time spent in finding new customers.  Photo: alldaybuffet.org

So where do we start? We start by isolating what doesn’t work.

Some of the tactics I recommend against are:

Canvassing and door hangars. This is an old tactic that simply doesn’t work in today’s world anymore.  With the advent of the internet and people becoming more inwardly introverted — besides their interactions with family and friends, it’s nearly impossible to gain new clients this way.  Most people are sick and tired of the bombardment of advertisements at their front doorsteps.  They automatically chuck the stuff in the nearest trash can.

You may get 1 lead out of 1000 door hangars.  Also, people today just aren’t opening their doors to strangers anymore.  I don’t.  There’s just too many other ways for people to find out what they are looking for when they decide to look for it — whether it be home improvements or the latest gadget.

Yellowbook Ads. I can’t say all businesses wouldn’t benefit from a physical ad in the yellow pages, but, contracting seems to have steered away from this approach.  It’s because of the internet.  Most people looking for something they need start with a search on the ‘net.  Unless a potential prospect doesn’t own a TV or internet connection (some senior citizens), this is like throwing money to the wind.

Craigslist and Groupon. The reason I am against Craigslist is because the people that search on this site are usually looking for extremely low-priced deals that the professional contractor couldn’t possibly provide.  There are a lot of hacks that advertise there, so you get what you pay for.  I do, however recommend adding a page for “online presence” marketing.  You never know who’s searching for what.  Just take it with a grain of salt.

Groupon is another type of company that gives huge discounts to consumers.  Most contractors couldn’t afford to offer their services with 50% off their going rates.  It does benefit other service industries, though.

So where does the present state of advertising leave contractors?

Ways we are trying to attract new customers

Volunteering in our communities. “Why would us contractors work for free?  We have families and need to get paid like everybody else!” some might say.  But see, this is the way you get the word out for helping and giving back.  You post the stuff you are doing for the neighborhood on your websites (with pictures, of course), and people visiting your site will think, “What a great company that helps the neighborhoods”.  “I may hire them because they care”.

Offering free services should be limited to what you feel your company can handle.  I wouldn’t buy materials for neighborhood projects; but simply offer free labor — maybe twice a month.

This kind of tactic opens the door to networking possibilities that you may not have recognized otherwise.  You know the saying, “It’s not what you know, but who you know.”  This holds true to most small businesses.  You may sell the next high-paying contract at these outings.

“Git ya paypa up!…”

Post-its at gas stations and fast food restaurants. While pumping gas, this is an opportunity to advertise.  The person’s attention is solely directed at the pump’s digits.  Place a post-it close to that.  I recommend placing plain white post-its, because a bunch of colored notes will get removed in an instant — by the gas station attendant.  Photo: merchantcircle.com

Stop at gas station and a pass out flyers in company van and uniforms. We’ve done this with much success.  Timing is everything.  We do this when work is slow.  Pull up to a busy gas station dressed for work in the company vehicle and pass out flyers or business cards to the people pumping gas.

Above all, remain professional.  Uniforms are a must when implementing this tactic.  The reason?  You are more apt to get responses — as opposed to some stranger approaching another stranger without visible markings of a business.  You are there on business.  Spend only 10 – 15 minutes at each gas station and move on.  Otherwise the popos (police) might get called.

Give clients your company t-shirts to wear. This is a good tactic.  When finishing a client’s project, give them a t-shirt or two.  They may or may not wear it, depending how they feel about you.  They then become walking and talking billboards!  I would put the name of the company, phone number, website address on the back, and a funny (or) to-the-point quote on the front.  Something like, “I just got my bathroom remodeled, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt”.

The more creative you are with the quote on the front, the more likely the client will wear it.

Your website’s useability is important. When you finally get them to your site, it should be easy to use and find stuff.  A great example of a site’s useability is Ridgecon.com which is a Michigan roofing company.  It should be simple to navigate, and perhaps have some kind of price estimator on it.  People love to know rough estimates of home improvements.  Give it to them.

Good luck and “get money”~!

I decided it was time for new t-shirts for my home repair company, Handyservices.  I did a Google search for “custom t-shirts” and up came a bunch of websites that specialize in them.  The first page and first line was a company called, “Custom Ink”.  I clicked the link because “Design your own t-shirts online, and free shipping” caught my eye.  They are the first guys on page 1 – line 1 – of search results, lol.

What I liked about them is streamlined useability of their website.  This is perhaps one of the best sites as far as ease of use goes.  Anyways, I clicked the links in the “Get Started” tab to the right of their site and it was easy as pie!  You just select your product and visually design your t-shirts, hats, etc.

You can upload a logo, add text, and change anything on the fly.  Also you can send your colleagues an email of your design for their input or approval.  How easy is that?

So, I ordered (6) t-shirts from them because you get a discount when buying in bulk.  Another note is they “screen print” bulk orders and “digital print”  any orders less than 6 t-shirts.  The screen printing method is the absolute best quality — with vibrant colors and raised lettering.  The digital printing is okay, but the quality and sharpness is nothing compared to the screen printing method.

Here’s their website:

CustomInk.com

So, I got the contract signed with the homeowner and they are spending big mucho-lottah.  I sold my last job fully prepared and knowledgeable; clients love this kind of stuff!  Photo: tell.fll.purdue.edu

I fully tailored their contract to hashed out agreements and ideas with them; they are on-board for a project start date: Monday.  Today is Wednesday.  Now what?

I slow down by Sunday night.

Monday morning, I get in the work van and drive with no music playing.  I am driving 5-10 miles under the speed limit.  I slow down.  I get into a zen-like mind-state;  this is important.  Once we control the speed at which we go about things, it helps us to focus.  Focus on the task of the day and pleasing the client.

In theory, the object is to zero in and focus on that one customer.  We must  make them feel as if they are our only client.  We at times may lose focus due to rushing.  Rushing to get to the jobsite, rushing to get materials, rushing to complete the job, and rushing to get on to the next prospect.

Rushing is problematic and wrought with mistakes.  We spend more time correcting mistakes than if we didn’t rush in the first place.

Slow down…

The Gorilla Gripper seems to be an incredibly useful new tool for guys out in the field.  This is especially great for the “one-man-show” type of home improvement contractor that works alone.  Check out the video:

Here’s the description from the company’s profile:

Are you straining your back, neck, shoulders and hands lifting plywood, drywall and other heavy sheet goods?

You don’t have to any more!

The Gorilla Gripper™ is a brand new and essential gripping and lifting hand tool for a variety of construction industry building materials that are large, unwieldy and heavy….such as panels of plywood, particle board, wallboard, Melamine, MDF, OSB, granite, marble, sheet metal…and more.

As you well know, these materials typically stand four feet high and eight feet or more in length. They’re obviously cumbersome to carry and usually heavy as well, but need to be individually moved, perhaps hand-loaded onto trucks and ultimately hand-carried to their final destination within the building structure or onto its roof.

Since these panels lack handle holds or apertures for grasping, you typically have to grasp the top edge of each panel between the fingers and palms of your hands and lift the panel a few inches off the ground while walking to carry the sheet of material to the place where it may have to be trimmed to a required dimension…and then re-carried to the place where it will be installed.

Not only is this awkward to do by hand, but it physically challenges, stresses and fatigues your fingers, hands, arms, back, chest and neck. This also presents a risk to the materials themselves because they can slip from your grasp and fall to the ground, resulting in damage to the panels…or to your feet or toes.

The Gorilla Gripper solves all of these problems at once, increasing the overall ease and safety of gripping, carrying and moving these panels to and around the job site.

Here’s how it works! The Gorilla Gripper simply and easily slips over the center of the top edge of panels with thicknesses between ZERO and 3/4″ with the Gorilla Gripper ‘GP’ Model and 3/8″ and 1-1/8″ with the Gorilla Gripper ‘Contractor’ Model. When you lift its handle the two gripping plates pivot into a parallel position to the panel surfaces, moving together to compress against the panel, gripping it tightly. The unique design of the Gorilla Gripper automatically increases its grip the more the panel material weighs.

With your arm bent up fully at the elbow and your hand holding the handle of the Gorilla Gripper just naturally at your shoulder height, you’ll lift up the panel with surprising ease! The panel will rest gently against the outside of your upper arm. The leverage this affords makes it easy to carry these panels from place to place, across rooftops and through construction sites to get them where they need to be.

The Gorilla Gripper significantly reduces the stress and potential of injuries to your fingers, hands, wrists, back and chest. It also greatly reduces physical fatigue. An added benefit is that it increases control over the panel materials being carried, reducing the likelihood of dropping or losing control over them while handling, lifting, pulling, pushing or otherwise moving or holding them.

It enables you to handle and lift objects which are larger and much heavier than is otherwise possible or practical….and it costs less than one trip to the chiropractor! Use it once and you’ll wonder why it wasn’t invented sooner! We bet it will be one of your very best and favorite tools.

The Gorilla Gripper™…Don’t be on a job site without it!

Here’s the link to their website: Gorillagripper.com.

It costs about $40 bucks. Buy it at Amazon.

I don’t know about you, but being a professional in every aspect of your contracting business is so important today.  You must not overlook anything.

Your company vehicle. For the small independent, you must attempt to obtain a newer vehicle sooner or later.  People will look at what kind of vehicle you drive up to their house.  If your ride is leaking oil, get all those leaks repaired.  If your truck is noisy, get the muffler fixed.  And if it is rusted, get the rust patched and painted.  Photo: baseball-statistics.com

First impressions go a long way.  I wouldn’t hire a guy if he pulled up in a beat up old truck.  That’s the general view held by many homeowners.  Folks want to see a washed and clean vehicle parked at their house.  You would be surprised at why homeowners notice this.  They want a pro for bragging rights — they hired a company with pretty white trucks in their driveway.

Neighbors talk and chitter-chatter with each other.  “Look at Sarah over there with that gawd-awful truck in the driveway.  She must not be able to afford a reputable contractor!”  Customers feel nervous when a beat up truck is parked in their neighborhood.  You’d be surprised at what people notice.  “Are those guys in that beat-up pick-up truck there to rob somebody?  Are they casing our neighborhood for a victim?” some will think.

I’ve heard of homeowners calling the police when a suspicious vehicle is parked on the street for just a small amount of time.  Especially if there is more than one guy in the truck.  On the flip-side, a clean, newer vehicle would not garner a second look.  Perception is the key.

I suggest if you can’t afford a newer vehicle yet, please go to the car wash and beam your vehicle.  Put armor-all on the tires!  And above that, organize the inside and clean the seats, just in case the homeowner wants to do an inspection!  The way you take care of your ride and how you keep your tools in top working order speaks volumes of your professionalism.

Uniforms. Some contractors say, “I work everyday and get dirty, therefore I wear the same clothes day in and day out.  What’s the purpose of having clean work gear for everyday?”  That answer is simple.  You are meeting with different people everyday.  They don’t know where you’ve been and could care less.  All they know is that you’d better show up for the interview on time and be dressed neatly, or they are showing you the door.

I work the service side of home improvement so I keep no less than four clean shirts in my van and I suggest you should too.  There are unexpected occurrences we deal with everyday — related to dust, dirt, and spilled liquids.  It’s easy to get dirty.  Fast.

Some guys prefer custom printed-T shirts and jeans.  That’s fine but I prefer regular white dress shirts with collars and pockets, with an embroidered name tag/company logo on them, plus khakis and clean shoes.  To each his own, just make sure you are clean.

Hygiene. If you are a heavy sweater, keep plenty of face cloths and perhaps deodorant with you.  Cologne is a matter of choice; I choose not — because all it will smell like to the homeowner is funk! on top of cologne.  Showers are a must before work and after work; we don’t want to spread lead dust to the kiddies at home do we?

“…The funk..The whole funk. Nuthin’ but the funk..”

Photo: witchesbrewonline.com

Even if you are used to your on body smells, other people are not.  This means that while you may think you don’t smell, they may certainly pick up on your new smell that entered their residence.  It is similar to your own house smell.  Remember going to somebody else’s home?  You’ll say, “What the heckler was that smell in there?”  The people that live there are clueless to it.

Keep the teeth brushed and chewing gum on your person for emergency breath containment.  Try to quit smoking, too.  When attempting to get hired by a non-smoking homeowner, this could be a turn off, and many contractors have been shown the door, never to return for this reason alone.  It goes without saying that alcohol should never be on your breath during working hours.  If it is, you have a drinking problem.

Some guys will say, “But I didn’t drink today!  That was last night!”  To that, I’d have to determine that they have a LARGE drinking problem.  I’m not sure I’d even want someone representing my company like that.

Communication. If the water needs to be shut-off or a circuit needs to be interrupted while working, inform the homeowners.  You’d be surprised that basic communication is sometimes overlooked.  If you are running late or can’t make it that day, just call them and let them know.  The homeowners also appreciate it when you communicate the steps and procedures for their project in full detail.

Let the homeowners know that you’ve got them covered and will keep their best interests in mind.  Keeping them abreast of potential problems that could exist during your relationship with them goes a long way.  Answer the phone when it rings.  These common things are often overlooked, but they add value to the total experience with the client.  Transparency is the buzz word today in the wonderful world of contracting.

Skill sets and paperwork. You’ve gotta shine as far as skills go.  I always try to go above and beyond of what is required.  You should too.  Show the homeowner why you earn what you earn.  This plays are large part of getting future work from them, or getting recommended to their friends and family.  We all know what the holy grail of contracting is — The Referral.

When you get referred, some great things come into play:

1. You are almost guaranteed the referee’s project.
2. Prices you charge becomes less of an issue.
3. The prospect is anticipating the same great service you gave to your previous client.

It goes without saying that the more professional credentials and related paperwork you hold: licensing, insurance, RRP certification, referrals, job photos, etc., further cements the notion that you are the Contractor for their future project.  You brought it all to the table:  You’re too legit to quit!  Good luck.

“Go Hammer, go Hammer, go!”

Photo: quarrylanefarms.wordpress.com

A contractor got a laundry list of questions from a prospective client.  They were posted on the Contractortalk forum:

Member Heritage said:

Too good not to share

---

To make a very long story short…here is one of my prospective clients. We haven’t signed anything yet but since they had concept drawings for their reno & addition to their home, I gave them a rough break down on costs.

The next step is for them to sign with me for pre-construction services. Before they do…they said they have a “laundry list” of questions. I said “Sure, send them to me”.

Well…they…were….not….kidding…

Please bear in mind…this is just for PRE-CONSTRUCTION. I break my jobs up into 2 phases: Pre-construction and Actual construction. That’s 2 separate contracts. At pre-construction, I put together concept drawings, permit drawings, detail/section drawings, a SOW, transparent budget, bids from subs, committee of adjustments/zoning passes…aka the “design package”. Whether we actually contract for the actual work or not is up to them/me. They can take the package and have it bid on by others…I don’t care.

I’ve had people ask me questions…but nobody ever wrote it all out and asked me to type the answers back…and it has to be in RED.

Without further A-do …

Dear Peter,

Here are some questions that we have regarding the house renovation. We appreciate your time and effort in the pre-planning stage and look forward to your assistance in answering these questions. Please place your answers underneath the questions in red.

General Questions:
1) Will you be using subcontractors on this project?
a. If so, are your subcontractors licensed to work in these areas (such as plumbing, roofing, etc.)?
i. What is the average length of time they have worked for you?
2) How many jobs does your company have in progress right now?
3) What is the average number of jobs you do at the same time?
4) Do you have any other outstanding bids right now?
a. If these turn into jobs, will our job drop to the bottom of the list?
5) How do you manage your jobs on a day-to day basis?
a. Who checks for quality, mistakes and progress?
6) Who will be on-site and in charge of our home each day?
a. Will we have access to this person’s name, email and phone number?
7) Have you or your company ever been sued before?
8) Have you or your company ever sued anyone or filed mechanics liens before?
a. What happened? Why the disagreement?
9) What has been your best building experience?
10) What are your business ambitions?
11) What is the longest amount of down-time you experienced between jobs?
12) Who were your two best customers? Why?
13) Who were your two worst customers? Why?
14) Have you/your company ever caused/been involved in an accident that caused someone to receive hospital treatment or be hospitalized?
15) Do you plan to vacation during our job?
a. If so, who will manage in your absence?
16) Who are your top 3 material suppliers?
17) Do you have public liability and property damage insurance?
18) Do you have workers’ compensation medical insurance?
a. If so, are your sub-contractors covered for the medical insurance
19) Have you ever worked on a project that is similar to our home?
a. If so, what were some of the main challenges that you faced during construction?
b. And how did you time-manage the situation, and insure that you stayed close to the budget?
20) How would you handle a specific problem related to this project?
21) Could we have a list of 15 home references?
22) How and when do you clean up, particularly fine dust?
23) Does Nostco give written warranties?
24) To which professional associations do you belong?
a. Do you attend regular meetings or hold an office within the association?


House Specific Questions:
25) Could you start our renovation with the garage?
a. Could you start in the spring?
26) Will we have the opportunity to store our belongings in the basement while construction is going on?
27) Who would conduct our home inspection?
28) In regards to our roof, if we decided to slant the roof down, would that compromise the size of the garage? Are there any other options?
29) What are some cost effective ways that we could handle the entrance?
30) Do we require blueprints or building plans?
31) The attic entrance now resides in the master bedroom, is it possible to change that location?
32) Can you reposition the central vacuuming system into the garage?

Spreadsheet Specific Questions:
33) Were appliances included in the final price?
34) Line 157, Labour – $16,000
a. Please provide further breakdown of this labour
b. What is it referring to?
35) There are blank rows in the spreadsheet, are these services included in the project? If not, why? (example…Line 8-16 – Soft costs)
36) Are washroom facilities for your staff(sub-contractors) included in the cost?
37) Line 405, Toilets – $400
a. We will be reusing our existing toilets (2)
38) Line 84 – $4,000
a. We are removing the columns from the plans
39) Line 107, Stone Masonry – $5,000
a. Please describe what this entails
40) Line 146, Railing
a. What type of material will be used for the railing?
41) Line 184, Bathrooms
a. Does this price reflect all 3 bathroom renovations from the plans?
b. We have decided to take the bathroom number back down to 2 (Plans will be re-drawn)
42) Line 210, Roofing – $3,500
a. Is this just for the garage roof?
43) Line 294, Drywall
a. How much space will we lose in a room if drywall is applied?
b. Please describe a before and after scenario
44) Can you install a pre-fabricated shower stall and kitchen cabinets?
a. Will this affect the labour costs?
45) Line 338, Carpets – $2,000
a. We will only be using carpeting for the basement
46) Line 394, Plumbing – $3,000
a. Does this include internal and external pricing?
47) Line 456, Landscaping-Sub
a. What is this for?
b. We may have our own landscaper to the external landscaping
48) We have calculated that roughly $40,500 of the project is going to labour costs, how can you assist in lowering this cost to suit our budget?

Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions. We look forward to hearing back from you.
Sincerely,
Debra and Kaeisha ***x

Here’s a reply that took the “kick ass award”, by 480Sparky:

Dear Mr. & Mrs. ************.

I hope you don’t mind, but I’d like to ask you a few questions.

1. How much money do you have in the bank?
a. Are you willing to substantiate that with a copy of 3 months of bank statements?
b. Are you willing to provide copies of your last 5 years of tax returns?

2. Is your home currently paid for, or are you still making payments?
a. If payments, what are the terms?

3. How often do you to go on vacation?
a? Where to?
b. For how long?

4. Do you consider things like eating out, going to movies, etc. luxuries or necessities?

5. How stable is your current employment?
a. How long have you been in your current jobs?
b. What do both of you do for a living?

6. Have you ever hired a contractor before?
a. If so, who was it?
b. What was the project?

7. What is your highest level of education? (high school, college ,etc)

8. How many children (if any) do you claim as dependants on your tax return?

9. Have you ever been convicted of a felony?

10. Have you ever been deemed mentally unfit?

11. Have you ever been ticketed for driving while under the influence?

12. Do you plan on being present during the day when workers are at your project?
a. If so, do you know that getting in their way, asking question, making changes, etc. raises the price?
b. Can you bake good cookies?
c. Do you like Mtn. Dew?

13. Will you allow workers in your house to use the bathroom?
a. If so, make sure there’s at least 15 rolls of skid paper and a plunger. My plumber, Denny, likes to drop footballs.

14. Are you aware that we are required to obtain permits for this job?
a. If not, why do you think I am willing to risk my career just to save you a couple bucks?
b. If so, you understand that they are a cost of doing business and must be added to the cost of your project?

15. We are insured. Are you?
a. Please provide a copy of your current homeowner’s policy.

16. Do you have any pets in the house we need to be aware of?
a. If so, please use some common sense and put them in a part of the house no workers will need to be in.

17. Do you have any allergies? Particularly, to dust, fumes, etc?

18. Are you smart enough to remove paintings, knick-knacks on shelves, family portraits, pictures, etc. from the walls before we start?

19. Do you understand that your project is not a ½-hour show once a week on PBS?

20. Do you understand the only portion of the project we can allow homeowners to help out ‘in order to reduce cost’ is to sweep up the floor at the end of the day?
a. Are you willing to take the trash out to the curb on pick-up day?

21. Please describe your worst experience with a contractor.

22. Please describe your best experience with a contractor.

23. Can you comprehend our unwillingness to break down prices because doing so serves no useful purpose?

24. Are your next-door neighbors going to bother the workers with incessant questions and irrelevant babbling?
a. If so, are any of your neighbors qualified to work in any of the construction fields?
b. Are any of them Civil War veterans?
c. Do any of them have tools we can use?

25. Since you’re unwilling to give us a key to any of your doors and too lazy to reprogram the garage door operator, is it OK for any of the workers to gain entry into your home with a 5-lb sledge hammer should they arrive to find the house locked up?

26. Can we have permission to crank up 12 job-site radios, full blast, each tuned to a different station, just to annoy ‘Mrs. Kravitz’ across the street? (You know.. the nosey broad from Bewitched?)

27. Several of our workers drive older vehicles. We hope you don’t mind the spots of oil, grease and antifreeze on the driveway. Also, some guys might be a little tipsy upon arriving, so you may want to take the birdbath and patio furniture out of the front lawn. Is that OK with you?

28. Is it OK to wolf-whistle and make lewd remarks about your teenage daughter?

29. Most of our crews don’t go anywhere for lunch… they bring it with them. We hope you won’t mind the stench of rotting food that gets dumped behind the drywall. Don’t worry about it… if it gets too bad, just don’t use that room until the mold finishes it off.

30. Are there any particular swear / cuss words that really offend you?

31. Do you believe in a Supreme Being and/or Creator of the Universe?

32. Do you have a good stock of air freshener? My plumber, Denny, likes to drop more than footballs, and he thinks it’s funnier than hell while in a small crowded room.
a. Denny’s favorite line on the job site is, “Damn! Did I eat that, or did it crawl up my asshole and die in there?”

33. Are you still reading this, or have you already decided, “Man, this dude is just plain nuts!”

34. Do you understand that there’s only so many amps in your electric panel, so much psi in your water lines, and only so much flow available in your gas lines?
a. If any of my subs do a proper calculation, you may need to increase some of you utility services.

35. Why do you spell it ‘labour’? Are you English or something? Do we get buttered toast with tea at 2 PM every day?
a. Or, more likely, you just copy & pasted some web site about hiring contractors?

Photo: brentcsutoras.com

Today was different.  A customer hired us to paint (2) – 10′ x 12′ back bedrooms, and install crown molding.  We advised the homeowners that any loose items should be either removed from the room or if items should stay, could they please move them to the center of the room as much as possible.

We arrived 15 minutes early and sat in the van to collect thoughts.  My partner looked up to the house and the homeowner was peering out the front picture window.  We’d figure she just happened to notice us as we pulled up.  Photo: xslide.biz

I decided to knock on the door while my helper grabbed the paint, tools, and anything else for to complete the project.  Mrs. Homeowner greeted us at the door with anticipation.  “How are you guys doing?.. C’mon in!” she said excitedly.  She lead us to the back bedrooms and asked us did we need anything from her as she quickly scampered out of the area.  We replied the usual “no” and began prep work.

Two minutes went by and Mrs. Homeowner pops back in.  “Would you like any cookies or something to drink?”  We graciously replied, “No thanks”.  Then she goes, “So, is that the way to sand those spots up high? I could have done that!”

This isn’t much of a problem because many clients like to see you get going with your work then they leave.  Sometimes.  She then adds, “Why y’all cost so much to paint? Anybody can paint!”  There was a deadening silence.  “Is there something I can help with?” the lady said.  “Naw, we got it covered” I said.  She paused, for like another 30 seconds watching us get things going.  Then she starts sweeping the floor around us!

Then the questions really started flowing.  Things like, “So, why do you have to do that”, and “Do you think you’ll need much paint?”, and “Can I give you some help painting?”  She even stated that she would have painted the rooms herself — but she needed it done right away and can’t lift the heavy paint buckets..

After 2 hours of in and out of the work area with the questions and comments, the homeowner is starting to get under the skin.  It’s fine to watch us; but the constant conversation about her kids and grand kids is killing me!

I know plenty of guys that go through this day in and day out.  It’s the nature of the beast; working in people’s homes and dealing with different personalities — and they have every right to be there.  I just had to turd this story out because homeowners are funny, really.

Some people are more ‘hands-on’ than others.  This client likes to clean and sweep while we work.  The lady was just a cleaning and throwing stuff away while we were working.  As soon as we made a tiny mess, she was over there to clean it up.  She threw away a little drop cloth and mastic we were still using!  She says, “I was only trying to help!” and got upset with my helper and stormed off..

Here are reasons why the Homeowners should let the Contractor do their job without unnecessary interruptions:

Contractor will make mistakes when distracted. Some contractors will forget steps, procedures, and functions when their attention is drawn elsewhere.  It is soo important to let the tradesman do his job.  Some guys can multitask, but others, they loose focus and give the homeowner less than their best.  I’m not talking about small-talk — which is necessary to be personable and friendly to your clients and set comfort levels at ease.  When they start engaging you to the point where it takes away from job performance, a line must be drawn.

Contractor takes more time to complete their project. I had this client that needed a drop ceiling finished.  It was a DIY job that they couldn’t complete.  They didn’t know how to finish the last cuts and make everything fit.  So I’m in the basement with the client’s husband and he’s just blabbin’ off like no tomorrow.  I have to say that I was too!  It was a time and material job..lol.

Needless to say I finished their project a day late.  The wifey was not to happy with the final bill..

Contractor’s mindset can easily get thrown off course. Take a contractor’s mind off the day’s project and you can only expect low productivity.  Some contractors like the conversation but for the most part, we would prefer to work in silence and finish the task in a timely manner.

Dangerous work area. The client or their pets can get injured by entering a dangerous work area.

Here’s some solutions that will work to keep you focused.

Caution tape and ‘do not enter’ signage. We’ve implemented these no-distraction techniques with great success.  Most times, we explain that this is dangerous work and we wouldn’t want the homeowner to get injured.  This is true.  We take the interests of our client’s families into full account.  They completely understand.  This is construction and remodeling, for Pete’s sake!

Photo: uvprocess.com

Tell them to not enter the work area during the duration of their remodel during off hours. I know they won’t and you do too, but for the sake of working at their home during business hours with no distractions, you request them to not enter work the work area (taking into consideration the scope of their project).  You can also say you’d like them to wait because you want to surprise them with the “Big Reveal” when you guys are done.

This will play a part in the psychological reasoning of it all: they may look in while you are renovating and make small talk, but they won’t linger.

I don’t want to be a failure.  No one wants to be a failure.  “How can there be any value in it?” one might say.  I’d like to share a story.

Many years back, I contracted with a commercial company to maintain a dozen or so apartment buildings.  The scope of work entailed repairing, installing, and basically keeping these apartments in good working order.  This commercial company cut a check to my business once a week, on time, every time.  Photo: jakegyllenhaalwatch.blogspot.com

I thought, great.  What a good thing I have going!  As with commercial contracts, the company that hires you usually will only cut a check every 30 to 90 days.  I made sure to insist a sweet payday weekly, because my company would be giving up a lot to work for their company.  I would have to let a large portion of our residential customers go.

I didn’t want to do this at first; however, guaranteed money from the larger apartment guys made the decision easier.  They paid my guys almost double what we were making on the smaller, residential jobs.

We contracted with this management company and everything was excellent for two years straight.  We installed tub back splashes in most of the apartment units, repaired kitchen cabinet doors, painted, and basically kept an eye on all systems in the apartments –  the electrical, plumbing, and any HVAC issues.

I got a call one day to meet with the lead supervisor of the company.  He informed me that they were in legal issues with others and they would no longer be needing my company’s services.  At the end of the contract, that’s it.

We were in effect terminated because the funds just weren’t there to pay us.  A large number of companies go through this.

Consequently, with the added monies flowing into my company during the boom,  I invested into newer vehicles, tools, extras at home, and any other things that peaked my interests.  I had more bills.  Now I wouldn’t have a steady flow of income rolling in:  I would have to start getting new customers from scratch again!

Failure.  It teaches you. You either learn to adjust or lose something.  Instead of taking this client in an incremental way and maintaining all the other clients I built up over the years, I decided to let them go and just work for the apartment guys.  Bad mistake.  Now it will be twice as hard to attract new customers, without some form of serious marketing and promotion.  Which can translate to costly.  We may have been able to snag a few of our old residential customers; however, most of them moved on.  Photo: funnyjunk.com

You must prepare for tomorrow for your business. Save funds and adjust your working model to cope with different dynamics.  Above all don’t place all your eggs in one basket — no matter how attractive that basket may be.  It’s problematic because it sets you up for failure.  What happens to your business when a client moves on?  How will you deal with a sudden loss of income?  Planning is key.

Experience is the best teacher. Remember when your Dad said, “Don’t tell ‘em nothing!”, “Experience ah teach ‘em”  to your mom concerning the way you were acting when you were a teen?  It’s true!  At 18, you know everything by then .  You also find out that friends you call friends aren’t really your friends and they would stab you in the back given half a chance.  We tend to be trusting creatures and try the find the good in people.  This trait is hard-wired; we strive to be socially connected to others.  That is, until experience shows us differently.

Experience is a life long lesson. I’m always taking in small ideas and ways of doing something different in construction.  There’s always new products and ideas to try out.  We never really stop learning.  As a 20s something, everything about life is rush, rush, and making impulse decisions.  Getting older, experience teaches you to plan ahead and think longer about important decisions, as well as organizing better so you can find stuff .

“Where’s mah tools?”

Photo: flickr.com

True friends are far between. I can count real friends I’ve had on one hand.  What they say is true: as you get older and older, you have less and less friends that you stay in contact with.  Family becomes more important.  Raising your kids and enjoying life is the focus.  Friends will burn you out: either from loaning them money or draining your positive energy with negativity.  I’m not saying all friends behave this way — some of your family members can be the worst!

Supposing you have tried and failed again and again.  You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call “failure” is not the falling down, but the staying down.  ~Mary Pickford

How does failure apply to my business? Well, the largest dynamic to failure is that it empowers you to change.  Change is the way you operate from bad experiences and the lessons they taught.  Find ways to streamline customer service and stay organized.  Always be open to new ways of thinking about business and the processes involved.  Tomorrow is another day to improve.  Good luck.

PALM CITY, Fla. –  The police arrested a handyman for ripping off a 82 year old lady for $107,000.  This guy took his own family over there to help the lady feel at ease with giving him her money!

Between December 2007 and June 2009 an investigation revealed that this contractor, Harry B. Patterson did little or no work for the lady.  The work he did do was declared hazardous and had to be redone.  He also billed the lady with several invoices for the same jobs.

• Document: View the allegations against Patterson

The police says the handyman brought his wife and daughter by the house to sit with her and keep her company.  She got comfortable trusting them according to WTSP News.  Patterson would recommend repairs to the lady and since she wasn’t knowledgeable about her home and he seemed to know what he was talking about, she believed the creep.

I can imagine the lady giving the guy a credit card and him running the thing up, but how do you charge over $100k and she hands it over graciously?  Some senior citizens are just as sharp as anyone.  Unless she was senile or had Alzheimers or something…

Investigators determined in one project to repair a seawall, replace insulation and remove mold, Patterson charged the woman more than $107,000 for $10 worth of cement patch and hour’s work, according to WTSP News.

Patterson was charged with grand theft from a victim over the age of 65, which is a first-degree felony. If convicted, Patterson faces a possible 30 years in the big house.  Photo: wtsp.com

I’m always looking for innovative products that step outside the box as far as usefulness goes. The LiftPod by JLG seems to fit that bill.

What I like about this product is that one man can safely set it up and it will lift you up to 14 feet!  That distance is where we contractors do most of our work when a ladder is needed.  I’m not saying this will replace 20 to 40 feet ladders for roofers, but for the small independent contractor, this thing fits neatly in the back of a pick-up truck!  Photo: jlgeurope.com

The video claims 330lb weight capacity, so this thing won’t break when a fat guy hops into the cab.  Well, a fat guy under 350 lbs.  This item could be perfect for the contractor who climbs a smaller ladder regularly during the course of his/her workday.  I don’t get paid for these links, however, when I see a product worthy of mentioning, I’ll give it a shout out!

• Price 1 for the LiftPod
• Price 2 for the LiftPod
• Company Website
• Review