Qualified Remodeler helps independent remodeling firms to survive, become more professional and more profitable by providing must-have business information, namely best business practices, new product information and timely design ideas.
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MARKET MAKERS 2013 Market Makers Market-maker remodelers are more than good marketers; they have vision, they study their business and are committed to their clients T By Rob Heselbarth here are remodelers who do well taking business the market gives them, and there are market makers ��� proactive remodelers who generate business that otherwise would not have been theirs. Qualified Remodeler interviewed six successful marketmaking remodelers at five companies to find out what���s behind their proactive strategies and tactics. It���s clear these remodelers share common traits, ALURE HOME IMPROVEMENTS Sal Ferro President/CEO East Meadow, N.Y. alure.com Affiliations: BBB, NAHB, NAR, NARI, NKBA, NRCA, PRIME Alure Home Improvements in East Meadow, N.Y., is a customer service business. Customer service, not sales, is the philosophy. The idea is, satisfy the customer and sales will come. 14 February 2013 QR despite working in different markets in different sectors of the industry. First, they all maintain a vision of what their business should be. Second, they all are committed to marketing, especially in slow times. Third, all six remodelers respect and value their clients, and never bother them without offering something of value. Here now is Qualified Remodeler���s 2013 class of market makers. ���As we built business, we leveraged the existing customer base we already had,��� says Sal Ferro, president and CEO. ���That���s how we evolved; we went after clients that trust us and spent money with us. We sent them letters, postcards and fliers for a new siding and windows division. Then we added roofing, then kitchen/bath, and did the same thing; we went after the customers we���d had for years.��� Alure is smar t about tap ping into its clients. No cold calls are made; it���s more of a soft sell. ���Instead, we follow up on previous work. We constantly let clients know how else we can help them. We make sure they���re happy.��� Specialization is another, yet indirect, way Alure retains its customers. For example, when the remodeling firm entered the siding and windows markets, it didn���t ForResidentialPros.com The recognition of Sal Ferro as the face of Alure Home Improvements helps establish the remodeler as the go-to company for remodeling work. use the same reps that were selling paintint jobs. ���We had teams for each,��� Ferro says. ���We believe in specializing; we can���t just dabble. Kitchen and bath designers and installers do the kitchen and bath work, not window guys and painters. We went into each new division with a specialist mentality.��� Face-to-Face Alure has perfected the in-person event, by hosting its annual Design and Planning Show, held most recently in January. The event, which is open to the public, features, of course, products and seminars relating to home remodeling, plus kids��� activities, cooking and wine sessions, raffles, prize giveaways and more. Admission is free. ���The show is an opportunity to make positive touches with the community,��� Ferro says. ���It���s an opportunity for clients and potential clients to enter a low-pressure environment, meet people in our company, have something to eat, win prizes and learn a little. The key is offering something of value.��� Face time with the public is something Ferro believes in, which is why he has made himself the face of the company. ���I make sure my name and presence is prominent. I do that through reaching out to the community and by being the face of the business. I���m on multiple billboards, involved with charities and took part in Extreme Makeover. I���m involved in relief efforts for Hurricane Sandy. I play a role in the community and people know me. Alure is Sal, and Sal is Alure. Every time people turn around, they see Alure.��� Ferro knows that no one can sit in a chair and expect a business to grow. ���Being a market maker is using multiple fronts, and when one doesn���t succeed, try something else. It���s not about advertising the most; it���s about being focused that matters. There���s not one magic pill; it doesn���t exist. Someone once said, ���Some people dream about achievements, and some people stay awake and achieve.��� Dreaming is good, but you must be willing to make your dreams reality.���