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Membership
Meeting June 10, 2024
Leading
Your Business Into
Retirement
Presented
by Brian Schlosser
Sales
lead times are long. Competitors are bidding
jobs with no margin. Overall demand for your
service is down. Customers are paying
late. Suppliers are not extending
credit. We could go on all day. Times
are tough. Retirement? Are you
kidding?
Now is the time to
rebuild your business from the ground up.
Brian will be discussing practical steps on how to
lead your business and your people to your goal of
financial security and success.
The breakfast will take place
at the Ramada Plaza North on Wagner Ford Road.
Registration, Networking and Breakfast begin at
7:30 a.m. with the program from 8:00 a.m. to
9:00 a.m. Registration fees are $10.00 for
certified professionals, $20.00 for non-certified
members and $30.00 for non-members. Register
online at www.naridayton.org or call (937)
222-6274 and RSVP
today! |
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EPA
RRP Rule Certification June 15,
2010
Miami
Valley NARI has another class for the EPA's RRP
Rule Certification scheduled for Tuesday, June 15,
2010. This class will be instructed by
William Menrath, MS. If you or your firm is
not yet certified, here is an opportunity. The
class will take place from 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
at the Ramada Plaza North on Wagner Ford
Road. The cost of the class is $179.00 for
member companies or $229.00 for non-member
companies.
EPA's Renovation, Repair
and Painting Final Rule (40 CFR 745) requires that
renovations conducted for compensation, must be
performed by Certified Firms using Certified
Renovators. Renovation firms that wish to work in
pre-1978 homes and child-occupied facilities must
apply to the EPA and pay a fee in order to become
certified. Renovators seeking to become Certified
Renovators must successfully complete an
EPA-accredited renovator course or a course
accredited by an EPA-authorized State or Tribe.
This course is the EPA model course for Certified
Renovators and as such meets all requirements in
40 CFR 745.90. This course will teach attendees
how to comply with the EPA Renovation, Repair and
Painting Rule and the HUD Lead Safe Housing Rule,
and how to perform lead-safe work practices safely
and effectively. Once you have successfully
completed a Certified Renovator Initial Course,
delivered by an EPA-accredited training provider,
you will be an EPA Certified Renovator. EPA
Certified Renovator status will allow you to do
lead-safe renovation, repair, and painting work in
pre-1978 housing and in child- occupied facilities
where work will disturb lead-based
paint.
.
The class is limited to 24 students
and will fill up quickly. Please call (937)
222-6274 to register or go to www.naridayton.org. |
Clients
Provide The Best Insight Into Ad
Campaigns
By
Morgan Zenner
Everyone
struggles with how to best convey their message
through advertising. What is visually interesting
to the business owner might not be to the person
whose attention you're trying to get. Finding ways
to get your clients' opinion will give you greater
insight into business decisions and place your
company top of your client's
minds.
For example, asking a client's
opinion on your advertising is one way to use
their comments as a guide to show you how far to
push the envelope.
Joseph Gilday,
marketing director of Gilday Renovations, was
trying to increase interactivity between his
clients and his company. At the same time, he was
working on a variety of creative concepts for the
company's advertising campaign. But the new
campaign was stepping outside the norm of Gilday's
previous advertising, thanks to a new advertising
consultant hired by the company.
Please click here for entire
article. |
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10
Secrets for Customer-Survey Success
Customer
surveys can be powerful tools for small and
medium-sized businesses trying to better
understand any number of issues, from customer
experience and brand association to loyalty,
satisfaction and quality. However, they must be
intelligently designed and well
executed.
We
all have experience with the poor surveys Globe
comment writers discussed. It's not that putting
together a good survey is hard, it's just that -
like anything else - there is a process to it, and
attention to detail really matters. Here are some
ground rules for building a solid survey and
driving above-average
participation.
Please
click here for entire
article. |
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Print
Ads Can Work Well With Your Website
Is
it true the world of print media is changing
radically? Of course, no secret there. But I also
think reports of print's death have been greatly
exaggerated. Go to any magazine stand and you will
see what I mean. There are still hundreds of
magazines out there, and newspapers big and small
are figuring out ways to carry on.
That
said it is equally true that there are fewer ads
and fewer print options than a decade ago. Let me
suggest, however, that the changes offer the savvy
small business person some tremendous
opportunities.
Please click
here for entire
article.
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Stay
Safe from Crooked Contractors
Here
are some tips on how to protect yourself and your
wallet from crooked contractors.
The Better
Business Bureau sees home improvement businesses
as one of their highest complaint areas every
year, making planning and research critical for
homeowners. While hundreds of contractors are BBB
accredited and honest and fair, others are not.
Here are some do and don'ts for anyone
considering home repairs.
- Do make a
project plan and have a budget in mind.
-
Do check with the BBB to look up the contractor's
reliability report.
- Do ask for help
from friends and family for references. Or try the
free program on the BBB's website called
Request-A-Quote, where you'll get bids from
qualified accredited businesses within a few
days.
- Do get a written contract,
including a description of the work and materials
used, before the work begins.
As for the
don'ts, don't fall for common red flags. They
include contractors who solicit door-to-door for
business, those who offer special discounts or use
high pressure sales techniques or use ploys like
they have a special deal from leftover materials.
Other red flags include offers for a special
financing deal if you use their lender and if they
lack a local business listing.
- Don't
pay up front, instead pay one third up front, one
third half way through, and one third at the
end.
- Don't pay cash; you have more
protection using a check or credit
card.
- Don't assume your contractor has
the proper insurance, permits, and licenses. Do
your homework and check it out.
No matter
how big or small the repair job, ask a lot of
questions. And the BBB recommends getting two or
three estimates for the project. There is a
three-day cooling off law that allows you to get
out of most home repair projects if you feel like
you're were pressured into
it. |
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Independent
Contractors: Get Paid On Time
There
is a tendency for employers to devalue work from
freelance contractors or view it as somehow less
important than similar work that is completed
in-house. Don't magnify that tendency by coming
across tentatively, worrying about being "pushy,"
or being undisciplined in your billing.
"Set
out what you expect from your clients in writing.
Just as they expect a certain level of
professionalism from you, such as adherence to
deadlines, you should expect the same respectful
treatment from them," says Rohit Shukla, president
of Larta Institute, a Los Angeles-based
commercialization services company that works with
many small businesses and self-employed
individuals.
Please click
here for entire
article. |
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Six
Reasons You're Not Rocking Social
Media
You
know the value is there in social media, but
despite your best efforts (or what you think are
your best efforts), you're still struggling to
attract anyone. What's going on and how can you
change your social media luck? Below are six
reasons SMBs often fail in social media and how
you can turn it around.
Stop me when this
sounds familiar.
Please click
here for entire
article. |
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Increase
in Homeowners Who Say They Will Remodel in
2010
By
Nina Patel
The
U.S. Remodeling Sentiment Report reveals a 13%
increase in the number of homeowners who say they
will remodel in the next 12 months. This increase
follows a 5% increase in last year's report. The
Spring 2010 Sentiment Report, is a survey by
www.remodelormove.com of 5,000 homeowners in the
U.S. who are considering remodeling. The report
also shows that the recession has had several
impacts on U.S. homeowners. These
include:
- The most popular projects in
the past- remodeling the kitchen and bathrooms-
have decreased in popularity. Adding a bathroom is
now the most popular project.
- Interest
in do-it-yourself projects, both the actual
building as well as acting as their own general
contractor, has remained steady throughout the
economic downturn.
- Economizing on the
cost of materials is growing in popularity at the
same time, as fewer homeowners are reporting they
will use expensive materials for their remodel.
The percentage of homeowners reporting they will
use average costing materials remains the
same.
- The number of homeowners
reporting they are excited about remodeling has
climbed to an all-time high of
54%.
Summary
results from the
report:
Homeowners who
report
they:
2008
2010
Plan to hire a general
contractor
66%
64%
Plan to do some of the remodeling
work
67%
66%
Are excited about
remodeling
48%
54%
Plan to remodel a
bathroom
49%
42%
Plan to remodel the
kitchen
55%
48%
Plan to add a
bathroom
49% 53% | |
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