Qualified Remodeler Magazine

SPR 2014

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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LinkedIn QR Editorial Director Rob Heselbarth started a discussion on quality, saying: "It's easy to proclaim that your remodeling business is committed to quality but it can be difficult to prove." He asked questions on the topic: "Do homeowners ever ask what quality means to you? Do they ask you to prove your commitment to quality? Or is the word quality another piece of marketing mumbo-jumbo? If the next homeowner you meet asks you to prove your commitment to quality, can you do it? What would you say?" LinkedIn group members responded as follows: "We use a handout called 'Doing Things Better.' Actually, we have several PDF handouts that are forwarded over days or weeks, sort of like a free food sample at a mall food court. We provide something valuable to their project planning and information about us to encourage the client to make an informed decision about our company." Jim Lex, CR "Quality has become a four-letter word. If a contractor brings up quality too early in the sales process, the potential clients interpret it as the contractor trying to justify a higher price. Clients may get three bids assuming all contractors deliver a quality product. They are searching for the lowest price for that quality product. Open-ended questions with active listening and follow-up questions in the selling process will help separate you from the other contractors much more than telling the client you are family-owned, been in business 100 years and do quality work. Let the other two contractors say that." Sean O'Dwyer "I strive to ensure quality control by controlling my supply chain, monitoring my subs and inspecting the work as it progresses. We have a pretty well-defined process, which stems from having a mature organization with a strong supply chain, team of subs and in-house personnel. I think that defined process and relentless communication helps smooth out the rough edges and bumps in the road. At the end of the job, the client's perception of quality is influenced by how the job went." Matt Kennedy "Quality cannot be self-proclaimed — either spoken, on a website or in a brochure — but if it is conveyed authentically by your customers with testimonials, then it will be powerful." Mark Collins Join the discussion on Qualified Remodeler's LinkedIn group page: http://tinyurl.com/QRLinkedIn BETTER eNewsletters to meet your needs! Searching for product info? Interested in kitchen and bath design trends? Just want to stay current on market conditions? Qualified Remodeler and sister publication Kitchen & Bath Design News have a full slate of weekly and monthly eNewsletters to suit your needs. Visit ForResidentialPros. com/reg/ newsletter/display to sign up! Facebook Qualified Remodeler's Facebook follower Robert Szklarz sent us a message about his company's definition of quality: "We at Colonial Carpentry Innovations Inc. define our quality to a potential client in this manner: 1) We start with the suppliers we use; we have vetted our suppliers to make sure the products we use will stand up to the use of our client. 2) We let clients know if we uncover something that is a safety issue, damaged beyond structural integrity or just not properly built in the first place, we won't just cover it up. We will work with our client to come up with a cost-effective solution that gets the job done right. 3) I can go on and on, but at the end of the day it comes down to our lifetime warranty on craftsmanship. If we install a new window on an addition and for some reason it turns up 10 years down the road that siding is falling off under that window, we will fix it for free." Thanks for your message, Robert! Follow and participate on Qualified Remodeler's Facebook page: www.facebook.com/QualifiedRemodeler Pinterest Follow ForResidentialPros.com for design inspiration. We feature extra photos from issues of Qualified Remodeler and Kitchen & Bath Design News. See more of the projects on our pages at: pinterest.com/4respros. Twitter Follow your favorite magazines and websites on Twitter. Check us out @4ResPros, @QualifiedRemod and @KBDN for regular updates and information. ForResidentialPros.com QR April 2014 47 ONLINE BUZZ QUR_47_OnlineBuzz414.indd 47 3/28/14 10:44 AM

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