Blog Archives




 

  • Five reasons remodeling is awesome
    By Rob Heselbarth - Monday October 1, 2012
    As daylight dwindles and temperatures drop, it’s easy to let these changes in nature affect your mood. It always takes me a few days to mentally adjust to the end of summer and the beginning of another winter. But, remodelers have much to feel good about, so I am listing a few here to help make you feel better about the cold, dark days ahead.   1) You’re always learning. With an endless stream of new products entering the market, you must remain educated about each of them to best serve your clients, and to build the best possible homes. New software such as BIM products are changing the way homes are built, as they maximize efficiencies and profit. Wise remodelers are learning how to use these tools to sharpen their...

  • The Benefits of Using Moulding
    - Monday September 24, 2012
    Editor's Note: This is the second in a five-part series about mouldings, taken from a whitepaper by Fair Lawn, N.J.-based Kuiken Brothers Co. Inc. titled "Using Moulding to Enhance the Beauty and Elegance of a Space and Create New Revenue Streams." There are many reasons to use mouldings in your next remodel or whole house project. “When you see classical moulding, you’re looking at the origins of American architecture,” says Christine G.H. Franck, designer and co-author of Winterthur: Traditional American Rooms: Celebrating Style, Craftsmanship, and Historic Woodwork . “There is a whole tradition still alive and vital today. You’re celebrating something that’s uniquely American by using classical mouldings, especially...

  • Home Shows Are Worth the Investment
    By Jeff Kaliner - Monday September 17, 2012
    In the age of digital communication and tech-savvy consumers, it’s easy to lose a personal connection with the homeowners who support your business. At Power, we pride ourselves on the personal attention each one of our customers receives at every stage of their home remodeling project. From the initial introduction to our products to the final walk through after a project is completed, customer satisfaction is always first on our list of priorities. The art of personal communication is just as important when marketing your business to potential customers. This is especially true in the home remodeling and renovation industry where consumers trust our companies enough to open up their homes to us and let us help them realize their...

  • A Serial Entrepreneur's Common Sense Advice
    By Victor Green - Thursday September 6, 2012
    It’s true that many factors contribute to an organization’s success, but in the end it all comes down to this: how will your business be better, or different, than what is already available? Will you provide a better service than anyone else? Will you offer something that will improve your customers business and make them more money? The answers to one—preferably both—of these questions should always be a resounding, “Yes!” This article assumes you have done the research and built the product. You have found a gap in the market that you can fill. Now, you’re tasked with building or managing an organization that already exists. You may find the tips below are obvious or common sense. I would argue that these days, common...

  • Swinging Hammers
    By Laurie Banyay - Friday August 31, 2012
    I’m in the middle of a visit to my family, who live north of Pittsburgh. I worked out of their home office for a while, anticipating a quiet work time that would be productive. Although the latter occurred the former did not. Their house is in an area once country that’s slowly being developed. Behind their house, a rooster cock-a-doodle-doos from about 6 a.m. through sunset. When the rooster isn’t stealing the show, I can hear goats. If the breeze is blowing the right way, I smell cows. The noise I noticed the most, however, was that of construction. My parents live in an almost fully developed neighborhood. Right now, they’re having a deck addition put outside their sliding door where a patio formerly stood. Across the...

  • Using Moulding to Enhance Spaces
    - Monday August 27, 2012
    Editor's Note: This is the first in a five-part series about mouldings, taken from a whitepaper by Fair Lawn, N.J.-based Kuiken Brothers Co. Inc. titled "Using Moulding to Enhance the Beauty and Elegance of a Space and Create New Revenue Streams." As a professional interior designer, you have a keen eye for detail. You understand and appreciate things like structure, concept, hierarchy, continuity, history and tradition. You recognize quality and craftsmanship. You also want to improve your bottom line. Most interior designers have three options for making money—hourly rates, flat fees for project work and industry-standard products and services mark-ups. As a small business owner, you’re on the never-ending search for new...

  • Keeping Employees Motivated in the Dog Days of Summer
    By Jeff Kaliner - Monday August 20, 2012
    It’s easy for even the most high-achieving employees to languish when the kids are out of school and vacation is just around the corner. Keeping employees motivated in the dog days of summer can pay productivity and efficiency dividends for your company year-round. A careful balance of positive reinforcement and flexibility, with a little tough love, will help reenergize employees and keep them focused when the mercury rises. Our company has been named a top workplace in major cities up and down the east coast, and we attribute that primarily to employee satisfaction. We do our best to help our employees realize they’re an important part of the Power family. Knowing how much their role in the company is valued across all departments...

  • Know Your Process
    By Daniel Wolt - Monday August 13, 2012
    Why are window sales pitches usually more than two hours long? Most people I know think a movie is too long if it goes much more than that. If movie stars, superheroes and Hollywood magic can’t keep us enthralled for much more than two hours, who really wants to listen to a sales pitch for that long? For years I worked in the world of appointment setters, a commissioned sales team with a churn rate that was in the double digits and a constant need to sell, sell, sell. It was the industry standard way of selling replacement windows. Many people go into business for themselves after working for a boss for years and thinking they can do it better. That would have been my story too, except it was my company. When I walked away, I swore...

  • Talk to Someone Today
    By Kenneth W. Betz - Monday August 6, 2012
    Asked about his favorite thing in his office, Tim Swafford of Swafford Construction in Chattanooga said it was his telephone. “It’s the cheapest and most effective tool I own,” he said. The question was part of an interview of Swafford as NAHB’s Remodeler of the Month to be published in the September issue of Qualified Remodeler , in case you were wondering if I routinely go around asking aimless questions of busy remodelers. But I liked Tim’s answer. It addresses, I think, the frustrations and pitfalls I’ve observed resulting from over-reliance on technology like email and texting, not to mention attempts to communicate via social media. My response to tedious and imprecise emails frequently is: “Oh, for heaven’s...

  • To Reface or Replace
    By Mark Gandy - Monday July 30, 2012
    Refacing, sometimes also called “face lifting,” can be an economical alternative to replacing kitchen cabinets. Refacing cabinets involves replacing existing cabinet doors, hinges, drawer fronts, drawer boxes and hardware and re-laminating of cabinet face frames and finished end panels with new wood veneer. In effect, an existing kitchen can be completely transformed without removing the existing cabinet boxes, countertops, flooring, backsplash or appliances. The most common myth about cabinet re-facing is that it can always be done for a fraction of the cost of new kitchen cabinets. This is the most common sales pitch used by companies that strictly offer cabinet re-facing. Because Bath Kitchen and Tile Center offers new...

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