Valpak coupon mailers are sometimes very effective. One problem we see is that after awhile, all the ads start to look alike. We’re attempting to combat that by creating a faux check for our Roundtable members that looks nothing like any of the other ads in the envelope.
Growing evidence that tropical rainforests may now be expanding faster than they are being cut down, though more data are needed to determine the nature and extent of reforestation trends.
The world’s most severe environmental problems, as ranked by the Blacksmith Institute and Green Cross Switzerland, are overwhelmingly problems of poverty in developing nations.
— No American or Western European city ranks among the top 50 cities in the world for air pollution in a World Bank ranking.
— Air pollution levels are falling in the 10 most polluted cities in the United States, by as much as 27 percent over the last decade in the case of fine particulates in Los Angeles.
— Recent ice core studies have found that levels of heavy metals in the atmosphere declined substantially during the 20th century, although heavy metal levels could rise again with increasing use of coal in Asia.
Stratospheric ozone, the “good” kind of ozone—akin to “good” cholesterol in blood—appears to have reversed its long-term decline and is now increasing over the United States. The level of ozone destroying chemical compounds in the atmosphere declined 12 percent from 1995 through 2006.
Water quality monitoring efforts are picking up steam, though it will still be several more years before we have enough data to draw a clear picture of water quality trends on a national basis. However:
— The U.S. Geological Survey sampling of drinking water drawn from surface waters in 17 areas around the continental United States found very low (nonhazardous) or no presence of 258 different man-made chemicals.
— Long-term monitoring of Lake Tahoe on the California–Nevada border has detected an improving trend in the clarity of the lake’s water over the last seven years, reversing decades of slow decline.
The health of U.S. ocean fisheries has improved substantially over the last few years, according to the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service’s “Fish Stock Sustainability Index.”
— Recent research suggests that the rate of collapse of global ocean fisheries could be cut by two-thirds through the use of a property rights approach, according to a careful study published in Science magazine.
Flat or declining global average temperatures in 2008 have ignited new controversy over climate change. The data show that 2008 was the coolest year since 2000, and there has been no discernible warming for the last decade, after two decades of steady warming between 1978 and 1998.
— Arctic sea ice levels rebounded from the all-time modern low observed in 2007.
— The global ambient level of carbon dioxide rose by 0.5 percent in 2008, a slight increase over the average annual rate of the last 25 years, to 385 parts per million.
— U.S. carbon dioxide emissions rose 76 million tons in 2007 (the most recent year for which data are available), after having fallen 81 million tons in 2006. Most of this increase was attributable to colder weather in the winter of 2007.
Public opinion data on advertising and marketing suggest growing public weariness with “green” messages in general and messages on global warming in particular. In recent polls, 58 percent of Americans declined to identify themselves as environmentalists; 78 percent so identified themselves as recently as 1991.
— A Pew poll in January 2008 found that Americans ranked climate change last among a list of 20 priorities for the nation to address.
— A Rasmussen poll found a slight plurality of Americans (44 to 41 percent) believe climate change is a natural rather than a man-made phenomenon.
One of the most common questions you hear today from plumbing business owners and managers is “Where do you find Plumbers/HVAC Technicians trained in sales?” I submit you are not going to find very many skilled plumbers, let alone those proficient in sales in today’s market, and the only answer is that you are going to have to train them yourself. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the demand for plumbing and heating workers is projected to exceed the supply, and a general aging of the journeyman ranks will likely create job openings faster than they are filled. Their job opportunities are expected to be very good in the future, and employment in the field is projected to expand 10 percent between 2006 and 2016. However, as we all know, most employers in today’s market are having difficulty finding qualified trades people to do the work right now.
To me, the writing is on the wall, if we do not start recruiting young people into our industry and training them ourselves right now, we will be dealing with an even bigger problem in the future. The potential workforce is out there, we just have to recruit them. I volunteer at our local high school’s Construction Technical Class, which offers some 60 students exposure to some of the construction trades. It does this by having retired tradesmen come in and work with the students a couple of days a week. The volunteers consist of a carpenter, electrician, sheet metal worker, cabinetmaker, and plumber.
The students rotate between all of the trades during the first part of the year, and then they can pick out what trade they would like to finish out the rest of the year with. Due to budget cuts, as of now next year’s class is going to have to cut one class, which means some 50 students that have already signed up will not be able to attend this program. We are trying to raise some money to get the class reinstated, and hopefully we will succeed in doing so. The young people who attend these classes can go on to be trades people, we just have to get them on board. One way might be contacting the High Schools and seeing about a job shadowing or mentoring program.
I am a firm believer in that old saying “What goes around, comes around”, and I propose that we must go back to training apprentices from the git-go as we did for some 60 years during the strong union era. This process takes time and money, but it is proven to have worked for myself and thousands of others who received our training in this manner during the 50s, 60s & 70s.
As for as learning sales skills goes, if they are incorporated in the apprenticeship training process, it will be a very easy process as opposed to trying to teach an old dog new tricks even when you are lucky enough to find one. The reason being, sales is just a dirty word to many of the older generation of trades people. After all, it has taken over 20 years of overcoming huge resistance by the Service & Repair Industry before the Flat Rate Business System become accepted; let alone installing and using a sales program in conjunction with it.
For the sales training itself, we have discussed on the Service Roundtable many times the benefits of using Charlie Greer’s Tech Daddy DVD Series. It is inexpressive, and covers every aspect of what Service & Repair shop technicians will need to become proficient in sales. For management, I also highly recommend attending the Service Roundtable National meetings. You will come away from them being a much better informed businessperson, as well as a sales person. The main thing I have found in my sales training classes is that lack of confidence is what holds most people back. Simply put, if you think you can sell you will, if you think you can’t, you won’t. Roll playing is a great way to instill that confidence, and allow them to believe in themselves and their ability to sell anything. So there it is, just go for it.
Just my thoughts,
Gene B
It was difficult to understand the voice on the other end of the phone. “I haven’t been able to work for six months,” he said. “My jaw’s wired shut.”
The contractor called me out of the blue after my phone number was listed in a magazine article. I think he called me because he was lonely. He relayed his story. The contractor was involved in a serious automobile accident. His truck was totaled and he wound up in intensive care. After he was released from the hospital he still couldn’t work.
As a single truck operator, he owned a job, not a company. When he couldn’t work, neither could his company. His wife was forced to refer his customers to a competitor. Goodbye customers. Goodbye business. In an instant, this contractor lost his business, much of his wealth, and most of his hope.
The phone call haunted me. Twenty years later I still think about it. At the risk of going “Bill Clinton,” I can still “feel his pain.”
I wondered how other contractors could avoid his fate. The answer to me seemed obvious. Grow! Build a business, not a job. Create a company that can exist without you. Anything else is not really a business.
Read the remainder of the article at Contracting Business.
It's amazing how many articles fill the trade press about "green" plumbing. Most plumbers are aware of the growing consumer awareness about the environmental impact of the choices they make in lifestyle and purchases. Yet, many are uncertain exactly what being "green" really means.
Green practices can affect the products and services you sell, the way you operate your company, and the way you live your life. Few people, including the leaders of the green movement manage to uphold all three areas (it’s that lifestyle thing that trips up many of eco-leaders).
It's your call whether you can credibly claim to be a green company. Whether you believe you are green or not, you can offer green products and services. You can also begin adopting green practices in the operation of your company. This is smart business.
All else being equal, people usually select greener products when given a choice. Often, people will pay more for green products. Thus, greener offerings are more marketable and can be more profitable. Similarly, green business practices are often efficient business practices.
Without addressing lifestyle, here are 10 ways you can make your company more environmentally responsible at Contractor Magazine.
We are in the process of getting our Plumbing Heating and Cooling Company Web Page up and running on Facebook, and I am wondering like many others just how to use it in an effective manner for our business. I must admit I do not get all of this Social Media stuff, I mean how much free time do these people have on their hands to be able to post so much personal trivia? However, I believe you cannot just ignore Facebook, as my own experience with Google has shown me how powerful the Internet can be.
A few short years ago, I never even heard of Google, and now I probably use it 5 or 10 times a day. The fact is I just no longer use the Yellow Pages, as I can find anything I need on Google in a few seconds. Obviously, I am not alone in this, as Google has surely taken world by storm, and now Facebook has even surpassed them as far as users go. As for the Yellow Pages, I heard the other day that a Yellow Page Rep said he felt the Yellow Pages as we know them would be gone in 3 years. I do not know if that will be the case, but to me there is no doubt that they are dying a slow death mainly due to the Internet.
One thing driving me in this, is that I am keenly aware of how many people and their companies have failed over the years due to not keeping current with all of the new prospects and possibilities that come along and are necessary for continued success with progress. Change is not easy for many people, as it is just so easy to hang on to what you have done in the past, rather than looking for new and better ways of doing things.
I am also following all of the posts concerning Facebook on the Service Round table, and I am getting some great feedback there. So far, my thinking is to put our company URL Link on our Facebook page, to direct people there, as well as having a discount coupon they can download and printout. I am sure I will discover much more about this Facebook thing as I go along, and it will become one more arrow in quiver of modern day marketing and advertising.
Just my thoughts,
Gene B
Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
So, that's what they decided to do. The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve.
- The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
- The fifth would pay $1.
- The sixth would pay $3.
- The seventh would pay $7.
- The eighth would pay $12.
- The ninth would pay $18.
- The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.
"Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20."
Drinks for the ten now cost just $80. The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his 'fair share?' They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay. And so:
Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.
- The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).
- The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings).
- The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings).
- The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).
- The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).
- The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).
"I only got a dollar out of the $20," declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man," but he got $10!"
"Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar, too. It's unfair that he got ten times more than I!"
"That's true!!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!"
"Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison. "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up. The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!
And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.
For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.Why does this matter? Our country is beginning to beat the snot out the tenth man in our society. If we allow it to continue, the result is inevitable.
This doesn't have anything to do with small business, marketing, or economics. I just think it's a cool report for a day like this one. From the BBC...
