Every industry has its own pet beliefs about what constitutes a sign of good business health. Unfortunately, not all of these commonsense diagnostics are reliable. Here are some misconceptions that I encounter most often in the remodeling industry. More
Like many across the country, the once-booming Northern Virginia remodeling market has hit a rough patch. And though Bob Benedict, president of Northwood Construction, in Sterling, says he hasn't had any potential clients back out of their scheduled projects, he has noticed that they seem to be in less of a hurry to break ground. More
With half the 120 million homes nationwide having been built before the bicentennial, new-home prices spiking, and built-up equity burning holes in homeowners' pockets, most remodelers have more work than they can handle. Some sit on 18-month-plus backlogs and mentally salivate as they watch their slice of the remodeling market's $199 billion pie fatten. More
Keith Steier says his company, Knockout Renovation Svcs., New York, had 13 appointments to look at projects during the first part of March. That's 30% more appointments than they had the whole month one year ago. More
I have always found that certain sayings or quotes strike some mysterious internal chord that causes light bulbs to go off. Some spark new ways of thinking about familiar problems; others serve to guide me through really tough decisions in a world that can be very complex and confusing. The following are a few of my favorite quotes that have some relevance for your remodeling business. These may not resonate for you the way they do for me; I'm sure you have your own favorites. The important point, however, is to understand the power of quotes and see how to use them to your advantage. More
I'm not much of a prognosticator, but I've heard a number of rumblings that make me wonder just how robust 2006 will be for remodelers. More
Backlog is essential to a healthy company, but it needs to be predictable and dependable. Too little and you'll spend all your time focused on selling the next job; too much and you risk making clients on the wait list unhappy. The trick is determining the amount of backlog that is “just right” for your company. More
It's a sales strategy as modern as the industrial age and about as energy-efficient, but George Uhlmann swears by it: spot-canvassing. More
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 but factors in the effect on revenue and schedule of jobs that are not yet signed. More
